Classic boats draw attention

Boat/US Magazine, May, 2002 by Michael Sciulla

Patches of fog were still on the lake that early morning during the summer of '65 when out of the mist an elegant triple cockpit speedboat -- all mahogany and chrome -- glided along the shore of Blue Mountain Lake in upstate New York. I didn't know what it was at the time, but it sure left a lasting impression.

Today, hundreds of thousands of boaters and onlookers flock to some 135 antique and classic boats shows held in North America each year. They include the thousands who trek to such off-the-beaten-path places in August as Lake Tahoe for its Concurs d'Elegance extravaganza or the tradition-rich Antique Boating Museum's show held in Clayton, NY, to the tens of thousands who reportedly attend the Mt. Dora, FL, show (near Orlando) which was in full swing as this issue of the magazine was going to press.

They come to admire the timeless beauty of these remnants of a bygone era and share in the passion of the owners of these craft who are as serious about preserving these gems as are the collectors of any fine art.

But keeping the flame alive requires time, effort, organization and money. While much of the work is done by volunteers, one enthusiast who has dedicated a significant portion of his life to ensuring that these boats are passed on to generations to come is Wilson W. Wright of Tallahassee, FL. Wright, a BoatU.S. member, is celebrating his 20th year at the helm of the 3,000-member Chris Craft Antique Boat Club, the largest of the two dozen or so "marque" clubs which have been established over the years to meet the needs of everyone from the owners of Century boats to Trumpy yachts. It's estimated that there are as many as 15,000 antique and classic boats still out there.

That the Chris Craft Antique Boat Club is the largest of its kind should come as no surprise. The Chris Craft brand became nearly synonymous with "pleasure boating" during the pre and post-war years, building more recreational boats (119,000) than anyone else for five decades from 1922 to the early 1970s. In 1958 the company introduced its first all-fiberglass boat, the Silver Arrow, and for the next decade or so produced a mix of both wooden and fiberglass boats. The era of the wooden boat came to an end for Chris Craft in 1972 with the sale of a 57-foot mahogany Constellation to the late NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle.

Having officially "retired" last year as one of Tallahassee's leading lawyer/lobbyists, Wright took over as executive director of the Chris Craft Antique Boat Club in 1982 on a "temporary" basis when it had but 300 members. One of the first things he did was sign his club up as a BoatU.S. Cooperating Group, and now finds himself with the daunting task of managing it on a full-time basis.

"So much to do and so little time to do it," says Wright, a spry 72, who owns a 1965 24-foot Chris Craft Sea Skiff, and whose plans for increasing access to the club includes expanding its Web site, www.chriscraft.org, enhancing its archival retrieval capabilities and buttressing its on-line discussion groups.

"We can provide a wealth of information on parts for boats, pictures, engine manuals and even guidance on what kind of varnish or windshield brackets to use on a 1928 utility runabout. This information just isn't available anywhere else and it's free to our members," notes Wright. His members pay an annual dues of $25 for which they also receive the club's glossy quarterly magazine, The Brass Bell and two free classified ad listings per issue.

Wright was adamant when asked if he thought the antique and classic boats clubs would survive the passing of the World War II and Korean Conflict generations who grew up with these boats. "It isn't just nostalgia, it's having something that's inherently worthwhile that few people have. It's a lot like owning an old masterpiece -- they just don't make them anymore," he said.

In addition to administering to their club members and participating in antique and classic boat shows, one of the ways that Wright and others keep the spirit alive is by holding periodic gatherings for the lovers of these old boats, like the National Boating History Symposium that was held last year in Covington, KY, just across the river from Cincinnati.

For three days, nearly 200 aficionados from the UK to California met to exchange information, renew old ties and celebrate their common bonds. They plunked down $239 in conference fees and for this were able to attend a dozen or so lectures on classic boat brands by noted boating historians and had the opportunity to view some priceless 8mm movie footage of these boats in their heyday. The event was topped off with a visit to classic boat broker Lou Rauh's Antique Boat Connection, arguably the Midwest's largest collection of antique and classic boats for sale under one roof.

Organized by Jeffrey Beard, a successful association executive, the symposium was an effort to bring together many of the various clubs and groups which make up the antique and classic boating community, including those who own cruisers, sailboats and, yes, even "classic" fiberglass boats. It was sponsored by the Chris Craft and Century boat clubs, the Gar Wood Society and Classic Boating magazine, a stunning bimonthly published by the Wangard family of Oconomowoc, WI.