Innehållsförteckning för Septetmber 2024 från Soundings

There’s no doubt that some of the most interesting boating adventures come about through meticulous preparation. Take the run to Alaska that’s featured in this issue. Deputy Editor Pim Van Hemmen writes about his time aboard a 47-foot trawler skippered by Sam Devlin, a boat designer and builder who helped lead a flotilla from Anacortes, Washington, to Southeast Alaska. Pim’s reporting makes it clear that trip planning required a serious level of detail. There was the preparation of the boat itself, logistics around crew recruitment, and navigation particulars to work out in advance, among other things. And once the flotilla was under way, there was the daily work of retrieving weather reports, making repairs and ensuring provisions were sufficient—that included coffee, and it seems there was a hot cup for…

Jude Guerra learned how to drive a boat just after he figured out how to walk. His grandfather, who owned several wooden boats built by Lyman Boat Works, passed them down to his father, who in turn gave the boating bug to Guerra. As the years went on, more modern, fiberglass builds became the family rides—but a love of the Lymans was firmly embedded in Guerra’s heart, never to be dislodged. “Everything takes longer than expected when renewing a boat like this,” he says, looking over the 1963 Lyman that he and his brother have been restoring for the kids in their families. The classic Lyman, a 25-footer, cost $25,000 to buy. Even after all these years, the only attention it really needed was cosmetic. “The Lyman definitely takes commitment,”…

One, two, three, four…” A chorus of voices echoes across the water, as the good ship Epic bucks an ebb in the notorious cut between the Old Alcohol Plant and Indian Island. The collective energy of eight young sailors pulling with power and purpose bends the shafts of the cedarwood oars as they head for the far shore in search of relief from the current. At this moment, years of classroom instruction and on-the-water training come to fruition as the group embarks on a five-day journey that will cover less than two dozen nautical miles, but will go a long way toward teaching self-sufficiency, and refine the nautical and leadership skills of this young team. The students, who range in age from 13 to 20, are enrolled in the Community…

No boater is exempt from making mistakes, even the ones who think they know it all. That’s a theme the U.S. Coast Guard has always stressed in its efforts to educate recreational boaters about best practices onboard. For proof, check out the image above, which was part of a 1966 motorboat safety series produced by the USCG. It shows a crew member falling overboard after the operator made a “hazardous start” from the dock. The USCG used the image to illustrate one of the common boating safety don’ts. That is, when coming off the dock, the operator should ensure that all the guests are properly seated in the vessel; the stern gunwale being an especially unsafe place for a passenger when the boat is under power. The image also served…

A GREAT LITTLE BOAT I just came across your story on the Rosborough RF-18 (Underway, June) owned by the Gallos family on Cape Cod. I couldn’t resist sharing this photo of my 1985 sistership ByeGone, which hails from Edgartown on Martha’s Vineyard. I bought her as the quintessential “project boat” in 2020. She’d been lobstered hard out of Newburyport, Massachusetts, and was as barebones as a boat could be back in those days. After taking ownership, I put a good deal of money into her restoration (more than twice the purchase price). Today, she’s pretty as a picture on her mooring in Eel Pond. She is ideal for moderate-weather trips to Muskeget Island, where her shoal draft allows anchoring right along the shore. While I like to call her “the…

Trailering a boat to a local launch ramp is a lot different from trailering long distances. The farther you travel and the larger the boat is, the more challenges you face. I have learned this through experience. I ordered a Pathfinder 2700 Open toward the tail end of the pandemic. Not only was construction delayed, but delivery to the New Jersey dealer was also a problem. My new baby was sitting on its Amera Trail trailer at the Maverick Boat Group facility in Fort Pierce, Florida, just as fall fishing in the Northeast was heating up. So, I inquired about trailering the boat home myself. Charlie Johnson, the group’s marketing manager, got wind of the situation and called with a proposition. He needed a Pathfinder with Yamaha’s Helm Master EX…

Over the past half century or so, Sam Devlin has designed and built a lot of boats. By his own count, he’s built 434 boats. He estimates that another thousand or so have been constructed to his designs by others, and he’s written two books about the stitch-and-glue method he uses to assemble his boats. But at 70, Devlin is trying something new. He’s trying to learn how to slow down. Although, by his own admission he’s not so sure he can. “This is going to be an interesting experiment,” Devlin tells me by phone from his shop in Olympia, Washington, a couple of months before I join him aboard Puffin, the 1966 wooden trawler he purchased for a summer trip to Alaska. “I’m not sure if I know how…

Ginger Henry Kuenzel grew up spending summers on New York’s Lake George, at a time when powerboat racing was nothing less than an absolute craze. “I was born in 1949, so I got to experience it as a kid,” she says. “I have two brothers—one older, one younger. My older brother started racing when he was 12. I always wondered about what my mother was thinking, letting him do this, but he was about the same age that my father was when he started racing.” Kuenzel’s new book, The Buzz on Lake George: Speedboat Racing 1900-1964, documents not only the racing heyday that her family enjoyed, but also the prior years that led up to her father and his friends creating all the commotion. “I’ve gotten in touch with a…

First built in 1975 by Chuck Paine to his own design, the Frances 26 is a small, shoal draft double-ended boat with rounded bilges and a transom-attached rudder. Measuring 26 feet LOA with an 8-foot, 2-inch beam, and drawing 3 feet, 10 inches, the Frances 26 displaced close to 7,000 pounds, roughly half of which was lead ballast. Paine built the first hull as a one-off for his own use, but then his shop burned down with the boat and all his tools inside it. Fortunately, by then, Maine boatbuilder Tom Morris had already taken a mold off Paine’s hull. That mold would be used to produce about 35 of the 200 Frances sailboats that would eventually be built around the world. Paine and his twin brother built a second…

When I first ran the 457 CCS, it banked hard to starboard as 1,800 horses spurred out of the barn. Dire Straits’ 1985 hit Money for Nothing blared from the JL Audio system, the engines were screaming and the boat’s metallic gray paint glistened under the South Florida sun as we approached 50 knots—it was as Miami a moment as I had ever experienced. This was the same stretch of offshore water where Formula founder Don Aronow tested the company’s original model, the 233, 62 years ago. Built in Miami, it had a deep-V hull and the performance to propel it to numerous wins on the national racing stage. South Florida is not where Formulas are built anymore. They’re now made in Decatur, Indiana, where I visited recently, in large…

In last month’s issue, we explored the differences between external and internal battery management systems. This month, we’ll look at lithium-battery installation requirements to ensure that the new system will be safe. Proper charging systems, wiring, alternator controls and fusing are all essential to avoid catastrophic failures. The first crucial step is to consult your insurance company regarding any specific requirements before starting the installation. While many providers permit lithium battery systems on board, some require installation by a certified marine professional. ARE LITHIUM BATTERIES SAFE? Lithium batteries, especially the lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) variants that are common in the boating industry, are inherently safe when integrated into a well-designed system. The American Boat & Yacht Council recently released its latest standard, E-13, which outlines the requirements for installing a…