Dear Friends September 2009

Dear friends, September 2009

The last time I was in Maine was a long time ago. My son, Andre was graduating from high school. He is now 28. Flying north for my trip, a little storm named Danny was just making landfall and caused cold, overcast rains to greet me when I landed in Hartford, Conn. I briefly stayed with my oldest son, Alexandre, Heather and my three grandsons, in Bristol. The boys are always growing. Marcus, who was still a baby the last time I saw him, is now speaking in full sentences and that happened awfully quickly.
The rain kept pouring and after two days, it was time for me to go, rain or not. It kept up while I drove through western Massachusetts, doing 30 mph, going up and down all the way to Portland, Maine. I really didn’t care. Driving helps clear the mind. By the end of the day, I was around Damariscotta. Chip Holmes, an old friend, lives near there. I tried to give him a call but there was no answer. I headed on. Twenty minutes went by when Chip called back. “Well, turn around,” he said. I did. The sun was in its last stages for the day and I was ready to get off the road, even if it meant going back. Chip’s house was full of friends for “Saturday Supper” as he called it. The food was fresh out of his garden and everyone brought their specialty. Chip and I had some catching up to do. At the dining table were Chris and Jen Powell. The boat that Chip is just finishing up is Kim, a steel sailboat built in France that was frozen into ice for the winter exhibition in Antarctica. Chip has been retrofitted for circumnavigation.
It has been a total refit and he did it at his shop. Two years in the making. I don’t know if it was the rain mist or all the green but as the sun started to set, the sky turned a light pea green. I have never seen that before and I wasn’t alone. Then it slipped away.
So as we sat around, trying to top each other’s sea stories and harrowing tales, you could see Jen get increasingly concerned. Chip told her 95 percent of the days sailing, when it’s perfect and flat calm, are rarely discussed. It would be boring. We talk about 5 percent of sailing, the interesting bits. These are the stories that usually start with, “The wind really started blowing. And then…” She seemed relieved. I wished them luck. They will have their own 5 percent stories to tell, I’m sure, like a badge of honor to be told and retold. I spent a few days with Chip and then headed north to the edge of the earth as some of us call it, my old hometown of Lubec, Maine, the eastern most point of the U.S.A. The sky was clear and deep blue. The Carolinas haven’t cornered the market on blue skies.
As I drove down the winding roads, the old knowledge filled my brain. Turn left there for the shortcut. I drove the back roads. Then the names of old friends came back to me: Bunky Tinker, Johnny Morrison, Eddie Rier, Cal Bennett, Eric Lockenbough and so on. I haven’t seen them in a long while. I had even thought I might have forgotten some of their names but I haven’t.
My cell phone lost its signal when I turned the corner at Whiting to head to Lubec. Yup, end of the earth. Lubec is a peninsula with five smaller peninsulas. They call it the “Hand of Lubec” for that reason. I turned down to go to Baily’s Mistake. It’s a beautiful little harbor. Poor Captain Baily thought he was at the Lubec Narrows in a heavy fog way back when. He sailed his square rigger in and realized he made a wrong turn, he was 7 miles off. No way to turn around, she sailed ashore. Hence the name, Baily’s Mistake. Some of the old houses there are made of Capt. Bailey’s ship. These proud sailors started a settlement rather than go back to their Boston home office in shame.
I traveled down the back roads headed to my old friend Steve Rier’s house. We’ve been the best of friends since we were young men, in our early 20s. Yes, a long time ago. Steve and Chip are both the ingenious types. They can fix just about anything that’s broken with very little, using “Mainegenuity.” Time has been hard on my old friend Steve and I was there for that reason. Steve, his wife Cathy and I had a lot of catching up to do. I got to see a lot of friends. In a short time, I was back up to speed. It did not feel like so much time had slipped by, a decade. Steve had saved everything I ever sent him over the years. I was amazed and touched.
Steve and I sailed a few thousand miles together on an old 47-foot Hood racing yawl. She had a center board and Steve is from the school of keels. My oldest, Alexandre, used to call him “Stevie Keel Boat,” as a child because we used to get into these heated discussions about the merits of both. I repeated the story to Steve and Cathy and it brought smiles to both of them.
I left Lubec and headed south to Winter Harbor to have lunch with friends Allen and Vicki Goldstein. Vicki was to race and Allen was on the committee boat. During lunch, Allen shared the story of the Winter Harbor Yacht Club. Back in the early 1900s, there were small race boats, 31 feet, built for the club. They are called knockabouts, also known as The Rainbow Fleet or the Winter Harbor 21. They are beautiful little boats.
Over the years, they slowly disappeared from the club and only two remained, not enough for that class of boats to race. Allen went on a quest to see if he could find the other boats and bring them home. One by one, he found them. There wasn’t much left to many of them. They were restored and due to his diligence, the entire fleet was restored and reunited. They only sail and race at Winter Harbor.
Designed for a crew of four, they are beautiful. They are all different colors, I guess that’s so you can cheer your team from a long ways away. The restorations were masterfully done. This is a success story I would love to hear over and over again.
After lunch, my journey took me further south and I couldn’t be in Maine without heading to Wooden Boat magazine in Brooklin. Matt Murphy of Wooden Boat and Aaron Porter of Professional Boatbuilder sat around talking. I was to be Aaron’s guest later. Aaron and his lady love, Kate Holden, are part owners in a beautiful restaurant, The Table, in Blue Hill. It’s a beautiful setting, along a babbling brook.
The food and wine were excellent. I had fresh halibut. I can’t remember the wine that Aaron picked but it was perfect with the fish. Hanging out with wooden boat people can be incredibly tiresome. But Kate was spared death by boredom because work mercifully called her away. Aaron and my conversations went around and around, from the world economy, shipyards that I visited in my travels to the future of our craft. I look forward to our next visit and conversation. Aaron is such a sharp young man and nice, to boot.
In the morning, I headed further south to the center of the universe, The American Hotel at Sag Harbor. I arrived just in time for Ted Conklin’s son, Teddy’s birthday cruise on the Trumpy America. Teddy is now 15 and had full run of his father’s yacht. We headed to Barcelona Point and the kids and the dog went swimming. We gently cruised the protected waters around Sag Harbor, circumnavigating Shelter Island, heading to another cover where the kids swam again and sang “Happy Birthday,” to Teddy. With Capt. Frank Mikuletzky at the helm, we were all enjoying one of the last great days of summer. Teddy would be soon off to school. That day special was special to all of us on the boat, not just to the birthday boy.
I spent time in the pilothouse with Capt. Frank. America, Contract 420, built in 1965 for James L. Knight of Knight Ridder newspapers fame, has had a great charter season. Twenty-two charters so far from half days to three-day trips. They have been very busy. Ted owns The American Hotel built in 1846 that sits right in the center of it all. The next day, I ventured to the hotel to see Ted. It was early morning, just in the front door, there was a radio show broadcasting live from The American Hotel for National Public Radio. I just sat quietly at the bar, listening and watching. I was introduced to Jeff Peterson, a good friend of Ted’s. As we talked, different people would enter and leave the conversation. Carl Bernstein of Watergate fame sat in for a while as we talked about Jeff’s Model A pickup truck. Bad gas or was it water in the tank? Since I’ve had a few old engines, I put in my two cents. “Install a water separator.” Jeff thought that was brilliant. I didn’t have the heart to tell him I am actually a mechanical klutz.
There was a man listening in on our conversation. He looked kind of familiar, like I might have seen him down in Palm Beach. But thankfully, I didn’t embarrass myself by asking. He was one of the journalists from “60 Minutes” Jeff told me after he left the restaurant. I heard live classical music coming from the next room, as Ted’s Julliard-trained friend Brenda played the piano.
I realized Ted wasn’t kidding. I was, in fact, in the center of the universe.




















The next day, I was invited to a trip to the city. We were to stay at the New York Yacht Club. For all of you who are members, you already know. For those who are not, let me tell you, it was grand. I have always admired great architecture, whether on boats or buildings. The three front windows looked like the sterns of Spanish galleons. I was impressed before we even entered the front door. I’ve been fortunate to be involved with some great American yachts, but this was the first time I stepped inside the cathedral to American yachting at 37 West 44th Street.
In the great model room, many of the models were pre-war yachts. Every great yacht ever built could be found somewhere in the yacht club. It was like opening a great bottle of wine. Every one of my senses was aroused. I stopped by every case to admire the models. These were made by artists, not model makers. Gravity pulled me to the library, where I picked up on my research that I started at Joe Bartram’s private library. Each book I opened would bring tears to my eyes. Allergies. I’m not that sentimental. I started back in the 1890s. The odor of aged paper would make me want sneeze but that didn’t stop me.
I got to be less serious hanging out with Teddy, now 15. He is a lot of fun. Stephanie says I sometimes act like I’m 15 so Teddy and I were bound to get along. We went to the top of the “Rock,” Rockefeller Center for the spectacular view, to the museum of natural history where a good friend of Ted’s took us behind the scenes, to the artifact room. I took some photos and sent them home to my son through my phone. I got an message back from James, “Dad, I was standing exactly where you are. I was already there, remember?” He had beat me to the punch. James had come up to New York a month earlier with my niece Kirsten and her son Michael. He had already done the tour but I got to see the restoration room.
I’ve been to NYC before but I was usually in a hurry. Never did all this. We completed our city experience with hot dogs and Times Square. I had really done NYC this time.
It was a nice drive back to Sag Harbor. The next morning, Capt. Frank and I headed to Montauk to say hello to Capt. Bryan Akers. He was preparing Justice, a 1930, 70 foot Consolidated for her trip to NYC. Bryan was busy, but he took time out to have lunch and swap a few stories. It was time to go and I still had a long way to get back to the Hartford to fly home and see the grandsons one more time. I missed seeing a lot of people because I ran out of time.
Maybe that is a blessing in disguise. It only means I need to get back to New England more often. A lot more often.

Until next time,

Jim Moores


P.S. We are still looking for a taker for Grand Lady, the 1919 Trumpy. I have had a few calls, but nothing serious. I have included more photos but time is running out. Dan, the son of the owner who passed away, would like to see her get a good home. They plan to sell the boathouse she’s in. If you are interested, the boat is free but the boathouse is $100,000. It’s a pretty good deal. If you’re interested or know someone, give me a call.
I had lunch the other day with Kevin Walters, owner of the Trumpy Lunetta, Contract 196, built in 1928 for Col. S.L.H. Slocum. Kevin has recently gone through a divorce and has spent more than a million on the Lunetta project. He still loves the yacht but his life is moving in a different direction. He will entertain offers of 18 cents on the dollar. There is one person who has made a serious offer but it’s to turn Lunetta into a beach house. Her parts are in a warehouse and there are two rebuilt 1271 GM diesels. If you have questions, call Kevin at 561-659-8431. If you want to buy her, call Joe Bartram at 954-522-5428. She one of six Trumpy Grande Dames left. It would truly be a shame for her to be turned into house.
As I said in my last newsletter, I don’t want to write boat obits. I’m also not a boat broker. I just hate to see any more of these boats get destroyed and lost forever. They are irreplaceable.

August 2009 Dear Friends Letter

August 2009


Dear friends,

As I drive alone, south to the Florida Keys, I’m passing one strip mall after another. There’s the occasional beer joint , and old trailers, a little off level, in parks that are full. Junk cars and boats, whole or in pieces, litter lots and yards. Then, I see a stack of lobster traps at the end of a road. When you go over the bridges, you see the Keys’ crystal emerald waters. It’s a long painful drive. The air is clear and fresh except when it is interrupted by the smell of salt marshes and Sargasso seaweed baking in the hot July sun.
The Keys really haven't changed much through the years.
I am headed to Key West to see Capt. Seth Salzmann. He is the captain I mentioned in my last letter, a schooner captain. I met him in Beaufort this spring aboard a Malabar sloop. John Alden had never designed her as a sloop. She was a schooner missing her main mast. Malabar VII, built in 1926 in Wascasset Maine, was preparing for her journey north to Seneca Lake in upstate New York. And, on her final inspection before heading north, one of the crew inspecting her spars found that the top was rotten. Capt. Seth and the owner made the decision to cut it off above the boom, leaving her booms in her boom chalks. The sail and rigging was stowed below. And they set sail. Time was of the essence.
Sometimes luck plays an important role. The wind blew like hell out of the southeast at 20 to 30 knots out of the southeast and Malabar was surfing on waves at nine knots. They stopped to refuel and provision. The beautiful bow, black with gold leaf carved scrolls stopped me dead in my tracks. I had to take a look. I met Capt. Seth. He had assembled quite a crew. Her new main mast was being built near Seneca Lake while she sailed to her summer charter season. Seth was only delivering her. There was another schooner waiting for him in Key West, the Wolf, a steel, gaff-rigged schooner with a square top for a sail. She is docked at the appropriately named Schooner Wharf.
I had one stop to make. It was to an old Trumpy, Tramp. Terry Loring, the owner was onboard. We sat in the main salon, drinking a few cold beers. His wife was not feeling well so she didn’t join us. Terry has had Tramp for 25 years. Good or bad, he has kept her in operation. I wanted to study her interior details, and original parts for another project I’m looking at and we spent hours walking around her and looking at her from the deck beams to the stair case to the deck house. Tramp, 52 feet, was Contract 100, built in 1919 for William Selby.
I have been trying to put pieces together in my mind to formulate a restoration plan for Grand Lady, of the same era. Capt. Jim Twaddle and I drove up to see Grand Lady and went from end to end to look her over and now I was doing the same with Tramp. Although the boats were built in the same year and the hulls are similar, their layout and their pilothouse were entirely different.
Besides researching 1919 Trumpy yachts, it had been very quiet in Florida with James in sailing camp and Stephanie in North Carolina. It allowed me to focus on forming a strategy to save Grand Lady. The reality is she will need most of the hull replaced, and parts of the interior that are original should be saved. That’s why I visited Tramp to see what I could determine was original in both boats. This style of Mathis yachts are uniquely beautiful. The have an old-fashioned elegance of that era and bringing one of these boats back to its original grace would be like saving a national treasure. I can’t stand to see any more of these yachts destroyed and lost forever.
They are small enough to be practical to operate and breathtaking enough to stop people in their tracks to watch them go by. Of course, that’s my opinion. As for collecting information, Sean Simmons who tipped me off about Grand Lady, has been coming through with these great photos. I’m still looking for old photos from that era of the cabins and interior joinery. I have contacted the Newport News Marine Museum and they are researching my request. If anyone has suggestions, please let me know.
On another older Trumpy, I found out more about August Moon, her real name is Augusta of Cotton. She was 48 feet, built in 1920, Contract 113, for Sailing W. Baruch. She was famously known as the Abadab and was written up for her adventures in Yachting magazine in the 1930s. She was originally built at 52 feet and was shortened before WWII to 47.5 feet. This was the Trumpy that was crushed in Key West.
Now I want to fast forward to 1962, 57’ Westerly, Contract 404 for John Ward West. She carried the name Windrush II through three owners. Her lastest name is Patriot. She sits in a boatyard named Lockwood Marina in South Amboy, N.J.
Five years ago, my son James and I went on a summer adventure. We were guests of Mitchell Turnbough on the Trumpy M/Y Paragon, just outside of New York City. He told me of a Trumpy being restored in New Jersey so we went to take a look. This was a restoration in progress. It was going horribly wrong. They had Boy Scouts sanding the interior with 60 grit while others were taking things apart, and another group was cutting out wiring. She has been sitting for quite a while now. Someone had built a fly bridge on the top and gravity and rot were bringing her down. I initially tried to give them some advise but it fell on deaf ears. I bit my tongue and that was that. Five years later, she is slated to be crushed. The yard owner wants to sell the parts to see that they go to good use. His name is Bill Lockwood, 732-721-1605.
I’m starting to feel like I’m writing obituaries for Trumpy yachts every month and that is not my intention. So now I’m going to move to more positive things. I received happy news from Henry Pickersgill telling me about the Newport Bucket and how Summerwind performed. The 1929 Alden Schooner won overall and her grand dame class. It was when he told me that the owner held her wheel crossing the finish line that put a tear in my eye. This was his dream. He told me so even before we started the project, to own and race a grand old schooner. With all the headaches that come with any major restoration, I was thrilled that this had a happy ending. His dream came true not only for him but for all of us who worked on the project.
For a schooner, Design 412, barely mentioned in the Alden book, not even a photo, this sleeper has woken up and roared back to life. It doesn’t get better than that. Congratulations all around to the captain, the race crew, and especially to Mr. Don Williamson and his family.
Another happy ending was the countdown to launching Chesapeake. Even before we saw the boat, the new owner had a drop-dead deadline and completion date. We had to launch her in time for his wife’s birthday. This is not the first time we’ve had such deadlines. On Innisfail, Frank Lynch’s daughter was getting married. You don’t mess with brides and mothers of brides if you want to keep your hide.
On both projects, we had three times the amount of work than a surface inspection in a survey pointed out but got the work completed within the original time frame. I am very proud of how Nathan and his crew came through in the clutch in both projects. He had to resort to all kinds of tricks, such as getting patio heaters to make epoxy kick during unseasonably cold weather, or whatever to get these projects done. Behind Nathan’s laid back ways, he has a very mathematical mind. He went to college on a math scholarship and majored in economics and computer science. He served in the U.S. Army calculating coordinates for nuclear cannons. That background has proven to make Nathan a great project manager, very mission-oriented. He’s very hands-on and he teaches by doing and showing. With what we do, you learn as much with your hands as with your mind.
On Chesapeake, Nathan and his team of the best from his crew and my Florida crew, pulled out the running gear, installed new shaft log ribs, installed floor timbers, installed ribs and more ribs, blocked portholes, planked topsides and below, removed and reinstalled a large section of the aft staterooms and painted the area, painted the topsides and the bottom and hand-lettered and gold leafed new names on the transom and name boards in eight weeks. I challenge anyone to get that much work done in that time and done right with a six-man crew.
Now I’m going to jump around a little. I’m sure you all know Joe Bartram. He is a wealth of information when it comes to yachting. Joe and I were recently on the phone and I mentioned Grand Lady and how hard it was to find information on a yacht that old, 1919. Joe was gracious enough to invite me to research the boat at his personal office library. I jumped at the chance. Joe’s late father, J. Burr Bartram, a great yachtsman, had started a collection of Yachting magazine dating back to 1909 through 1950. They are bound by year and these are among Mr. Bartram’s most prized possessions and I understand why. Joe pulled the first book. “This is the way you need to remove them from the library,” he said. I nodded yes. I had brought along a 35mm camera and holding these bound magazines gently, I turned the pages. Joe left me there so I started at 1919 and worked my way to 1924 in a few hours. What a history lesson and what an evolution in such a short period of time. The earlier copies have many drawings and the pictures where there wasn’t enough contrast, they drew in the lines. The era of yachting really took off just after WWI. The wooden and steel mega-yacht was started in that time with yachts of 250 feet and 180 feet and so on. Most of them had one thing in common, aesthetic beauty. It was a time when naval architecture was an art and with the advent of heavy engines to achieve horsepower, many of these great yachts sliced through the water using a totally different principle to achieve performance. It was called piercing technology. The boat cuts the water in two and it comes back together at the stem, long and narrow. For this principle to work, everything had to be perfect, the weight, the balance, even the shaft angle. And it had to be done beautifully with striking lines, exceptional craftsmanship and elegance.
I didn’t need to go into Joe’s library to know that but being able to see its progression through the magazine’s pages was exciting. Joe would pop in every so often and ask how it was going?” He could see it in my smile, ear to ear, and he knew I appreciated the treasure trove that he had. Joe told me when his stewardship of this collection ends, they will be a part of the Museum of Yachting in Newport. That’s a wonderful thing to do.
Joe and Barbara are wonderful people and it was great to catch up with them. They had just returned from a trip to Alaska but that’s their story to tell.
In a few days, I will be on a trip north for a few weeks to see friends and clients, stop to see my three grandsons along the way, and to of course collect adventures to write about when I return.


Until next time,


Jim Moores

Save the 1919 Trumpy Grand Lady Update

Mr. Herman Schieis, the man who protected Grand Lady for more than two decades, has passed away.
Mr. Schieis bought her at an auction in Baltimore in 1983. While he didn't have the funds to restore her, he did the next best thing: He protected her for more than two decades.
He built his Grand Lady a beautiful boathouse to keep her under cover while he lived in a modest mobile home next to her.
We are deeply saddened by the loss of this great yachtsman.

Schooner Summerwind Wins Newport Bucket

We let out a collective whoop when we heard Summerwind, a 1929 John G. Alden, won the Les Grand Dames class in her first outing, at the July 17-19, 2009 Newport Bucket.
Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. J. Don Williamson.
The guys were stoked when they heard the news on Monday. They thought of it as their win, too. They built her strong and fast. It was an amazing, two-year project to rebuild Summerwind from the keel up and we couldn't be happier or prouder.
She's a beauty and now we know that she flies and so does everyone else.

Save the 1919 Trumpy Grand Lady

I have one story left. It is not part of my monthly newsletter and it only is being sent to those people who might be able to help.

In the last few months I have been looking into helping to save some of the smaller Trumpy yachts that were constructed after WWI. I have seen Tramp and August Cotton, both from 1919. Then there is Grand Lady. All three are from the same era.

When I was up I Beaufort I received a call from a captain in Key West. “They are going to crush a Trumpy tomorrow”! It turned out to be August Moon. She had been neglected for many years and after a long legal battle over non-payment she was crushed.

Sean Simmons, who loves Trumpy yachts, recently contacted me and so did Jerry Foster. Both were about the same thing, Grand Lady. She’s small, 52 feet. A Mathis Trumpy, Contract No. 102 built for George G. Shelton and originally named Riette II. Conversations about her go back five or so years. I had always made plans to stop up and see Grand Lady. Every time that I have passed the area south of Jacksonville, I have been on my way to some place in a hurry and had no time. Besides, the last time I stopped with my wife, Stephanie, we ended up owning a Trumpy, Jacqueline, the 46- footer.

This time heading south from Beaufort to West Palm, I drove fast with my radar detector on. It is a 14-hour drive and I left early, around 7 a.m. I had plenty of time to think this time. I knew that I really needed to stop and see Grand Lady.

Jerry had told me that she was in rough shape. Sean had forwarded me correspondence from the owner’s son, Dan. His father is battling cancer and he may not have long to go. I got to Exit 323 and followed Jerry’s directions. Of course, I got lost.

Jerry was my telephone navigator and with a little help and a lot of his patience I found Grand Lady. There she sat in a boathouse built to protect and preserve her. As I got out of the car my eyes glanced around at the dock and the boat. As I walked in I became entangled in cobwebs like in the movies, something out of Raiders of the lost Ark. As I stepped aboard the Grand Lady, the air was still. My eyes moved around and I took in everything, what was original and what was not. I was very impressed at how much of her was original.

I have been on Tramp, a sister ship. The interior of that boat has been changed many times since 1919.

Mr. Herman Schieis purchased Grand Lady in a 1983 at an auction in Baltimore. He moved her to New Bern, North Carolina for awhile then found this place and built a boathouse over her. While his yacht lived in a beautiful boat house, the owner lived in house trailer next to it. Here’s a man who knows his priorities. His son, Dan Schieis, confirmed that Grand Lady was his father’s greatest love, yachting.

Even though his father was not financially able to restore her, he has kept her safe for 26 years. Now his time is coming to an end. He wants to find someone to take care of his beloved yacht. I have been asked to help and I’m going to try my best. There are only a few remaining of the small Mathis-Trumpy yachts from this era, which was the dawn of the shallow draft age for motor yachting. They were the first to be built after World War I. They have their own distinct design and are a part of American yachting history.

I had a lot of think about on the rest of my drive south. I made it home around 11:30 p.m. It had been a long day. The last half went pretty fast with my mind focused on Grand Lady. I plan to find out as much as possible about her history and hope to find the right person that can see the dream, what she was and can be again. The dream is still there with Grand Lady.





Jim

July 2009

July 2009
Dear friends,
It is early in the morning before everyone else shows up at the shop. I thought this is a good time to write. A few weeks back, I drove down from Beaufort, N.C. to Charleston on Route 17. It meanders through small towns and I like that. It was around lunch time and I was really hungry. I saw a sign for the Buckshot Restaurant. The name alone was intriguing. Maybe the cook personally hunted the daily meals. I figured at least there was a story behind the name and I love stories. When I entered the restaurant, I found a soul food restaurant to beat all. The food was Southern cooking at its finest. Fresh collards, fried okra, catfish, Southern style fried chicken and chicken fried steak, which for you Yankees out there does not in any way involve poultry. I had a little of everything, a real belt-busting lunch. I think it was the best soul food I’ve ever eaten.
When I went to pay, my curiosity got the best of me as I asked the cashier the origin of the restaurant’s name. The elderly lady said, “Sit awhile and I’ll tell you.” I did. There’s no use trying to rush a Southern story teller. “Back in the day, there was a hunting camp here and those men that hunted, my Daddy would cook their ducks and whatever else they shot. Daddy was a good cook but not too good at getting the buck shots out all the time. So we made a sign, ‘Beware of Buckshots.’
A hurricane destroyed the old place and the restaurant moved up the road to Route 17. When they asked their old clients what they should name the restaurant, all of them said what they’ve been calling the place all along for years, “The Buckshot.” Hence the name.
After lunch, I headed on towards Charleston, feeling a little sleepy. Woods lined the road with a couple of houses along the way. I came across a series of roadside stands covered in straws baskets. They looked pretty much the same until I ran across one that was multicolored and I stopped. An aged black woman sat in the back of the stand, with the woods just behind her. She was weaving and shooing flies at the same time. Her hands were moving with machine-like precision, weaving and shooing. Sweat rolled down her face. I asked her who made all those baskets. She looked me in the eyes and then looked down at her hands as if I was none too bright. “All of them,” I asked, incredulous. We’re talking a lot of baskets. “Yes,” she said. I bought a small basket for Stephanie and headed on.
Coming over the grand bridge to Charleston, the view is amazing. You can see everything. I get the same feeling every time I cross it. It turned out to be the Spoleto art and music festival. It had been a year almost to the date of my last visit. The previous year, I had come up for the re-commissioning ceremony of Innisfail. I met with Capt. Eric on the Innisfail again and he mentioned that he heard Wishing Star might be coming. After our meeting, I wandered around the city marina. As I was walking around, Wishing Star appeared out of the blue and proceeded to tie up at the docks. This was just like my trip the year before. It was good to see Capt. Bret and Roberta Todd. They stopped for a while and brought me up to date. They had spent most of the winter in Key West. Wishing Star has new owners, Tom Baker and friends. They are from Charleston so if you are passing through, you might see her there. As we stood on the dock, I asked Capt. Bret if he had caulked the port hold shut. With a devilish smile, he said, “No, I found a company that makes porthole gaskets in white.” The company is H.S. White, 954-788-1660 in Fort Lauderdale. Capt. Bret used the 3/8 x 3/8 extruded vinyl. His instructions are to cut length to fit. Don’t stretch the gasket. You won’t need glue because the gasket will stay in place. Just tap in with a wooden mallet.
Leaving Charleston, I pretty much went straight to Beaufort and the airport and then home to Florida. It had been almost month away and it was great to be home again. But it was not going to last. Five days later, I hopped in a car to drive to North Carolina to pick up Nathan Smith and we drove to Reading, Pa., where Nate and I went to gyro school. The next three days, all we did was eat, sleep and learn about gyro stabilizing systems. Through the years, I’ve seen five boats sink after clipping or running around or the just the tide going out and poking a hole through the bottom. On wooden boats, I’ve seen broken ribs pulled away from the hull. Like other problems that we have encountered, such as electrolysis, ventilation to air purification, it was just another issue to solve. It is good to see American innovation at work. I will not bore you with school talk so I have enclosed some info on gyros and on the web, go to Seakeeper.com. They have a great video you can watch online.
It was a long drive getting back to Beaufort. Nate and Bernard Smith, our paint chief, had hauled out a Huckins, the Moveable Feast, and it was the first project in the 100 feet JDW Building. We are painting the hull. The owner, after seeing how Nate and Bernard worked, has decided we are now his “go-to” boat yard.
In Florida, the offices are almost done. The shop has a Stephen Kneipp original mural, a portrait of Windrush painted where an old window used to be, photo included.
Now, I am going to fast forward two weeks since I started this letter. Our shop Florida is now finished. The final touches were being performed when I left for Mystic, Conn. Stephanie came up with some great ideas and they got done in our offices. There were metal bar dividers that have been turned into solid bead board walls and wainscoting. We put in tongue and groove on the ceiling in my office, etc. But the neatest thing was the wallpaper. Over the years, we’ve collected a lot of blueprints from various projects. We’ve turned duplicates into wallpaper, Trumpy yachts, Consolidateds, and an Alden schooner are all prominently featured.
We have sent our south crew to North Carolina to help with the Chesapeake project. She needs ribs, shaft log, planking etc. Judy Currier, MMYC’s business manager, was laughing the other day that all of sudden she is surrounded by Chesapeakes. We have the Trumpy and we have new clients for paint work with a dead-rise style boat and a Burger all named Chesapeake.
Nate just launched the 60-foot Huckins, the Moveable Feast, built in 1961. She is headed to Mystic for the summer. He sea trialed her and sent her on her way. The owner, Rob Mooney, was ecstatic after Bernard finished the paint job. He had been hauled out another boat yard where they had been working on her for four years and still weren’t done. Nate had given him a time frame of two and half weeks for paint work and she was launched on time even with more work added. He was one happy owner.
The Trumpy Stately Lady is in Beaufort for the summer, which is outside the insurance company’s hurricane strike zone. We have arranged dockage at Olde Towne Yacht Club, which also offers a swimming pool, satellite TV, a private beach, fitness room, etc.
I spent some time in Mystic for the Wooden Boat Show and it was great. I have to say it’s the best show I’ve attended this year. I was a guest of Mr. Ted Conklin, the owner of America, Contract 420, built in 1965 for James L. Knight, the newspaper magnate. It was a great pleasure with Ted showing me around Mystic. He’s a wonderful host. America and Enticer were rafted together, two Trumpy houseboats from two different eras. Lady Catherine, another houseboat from the 1950s, was also there. Trumpy yachts were well represented at the show. There were lots of boats there from a Rybovich to an Elf to a 1888 cutter. It was very inspiring. From Mystic, I head north to Bristol, Ct., where my son Alexandre, Heather and their three sons live. Alexandre works for ESPN there. They bought their first house and wanted to show Dad. The best part was playing with my grandsons, Julian, Marcus and baby Aric. The baby just fell in love with me and vice versa. He grabbed my hands with his tight little fists every chance he could, smiled at me each time our eyes crossed paths. He’s 17 months old so I know it’s not just gas. We even took a nap together. I never saw myself as a grandpa but I like it. A lot.
Heading south to Newport, I ran into Earl McMillin. He was busy organizing the final touches on Freedom, Contract181, built in 1926 for Albert G. Fay of Lowell, Ma. The best part was Enticer was rafted alongside, see photo. I could see the pace of 20 plus men working so I didn’t stay long.
In Newport, I met with Jonathan Chapman. Within minutes, we were in a launch, cruising the harbor and admiring all the great wood boats from an old wooden 12 meter to Ticonderoga, a L. Francis Herreshoff masterpiece to the schooner Winter Wood laying on her moorings. We continued on to the New York Yacht Club. After typing up the launch, we climbed the grand hill of Harbour Court and met up with Earl. We sat on the aft deck chairs facing the harbor, sipping cocktails, with the best views you can find in Newport of a spectacular summer sunset. Life is grand and you have to savor these moments.
The next day, I started driving south. What a long road. I was torn between staying on to visit more friends or going but my need to be with my family for the Fourth of July pulled me to Beaufort, where Stephanie and our son, James, were headed up for the summer. From here, I’m headed back to Florida while my family spends a month in Beaufort. James is in sailing camp and Stephanie looks forward to spending time gardening and relaxing in the country.
I’ll miss them but I get to go away all the time. It’s their turn.

Until next time,

Jim Moores

Dear Friends February 2009

February 2009

Dear friends,

I know it has been a while. I think the last time I wrote was in November. I have sat down and written three letters but somehow with my world the way it has been this winter, they were not sent out.

We have launched Summerwind, the 1929 Alden schooner. It has been a race to the end. On launch day, the boat yard was crowded with people. Those who worked on her, friends, the press and three busloads of students from the Riviera Beach Maritime Academy. Everyone was taking photos.

Our son James skipped a half day of school for the occasion. He went through this project just as much as his parents. The mast had just been set the day before. As I said, it was truly a race. There were a few well-chosen words said but the yacht spoke for herself. Mrs. J. Don Williamson raised a bottle of fine French champagne and smashed the stainless steel dolphin striker. It exploded to the booms of cannon fire and cheers from the crowd. What a launching!

Everyone in our crew had butterflies in our bellies as she went into the water. All of us hopped on board. Our crew, the systems people, and the yacht’s captain and crew. Don Thibeault forward, Jon Meek and Purich Lucas in the engine room, Hopal Harris and I took the center bilge. Where was the water? Finally, she started one small weep.

For the last few months, Vlad, Paul, Don and Chris pounded cotton and oakum and a setting iron. The sound of caulking mallets hitting irons could be heard two blocks away. For the people working inside the boat, it was deafening. But it was worth it because when Summerwind went into the water, it was the moment of truth.

Bernard Smith and the paint crew were asked to do the impossible and as usual, they came through with grace. Bernard worked as many as 72 hours a week, fighting cold weather to get her painted for launch. They long boarded Summerwind until she gleamed. She’s a fair beauty. Jon carved the scrolls and cove stripe by hand on the new hull.

At the launching, Jon presented Mr. Williamson with the original Alden scroll that was carved into the old hull. We saved and restored it to her original 1929 black and gold leaf. We hope it finds a home onboard. It is the only original part of the hull except for the keel.

There is a bittersweet part of restoration. As time passes, the people and companies that worked on her over the years disappear, we just threw out a chunk of wood carved 1981 by some proud craftsman. It now reverts back to John G. Alden and Mr. Charles Morse, the builder. That’s okay. We know we were here and what we did.

This month, I was humbled and honored by being featured in Woodenboat magazine. Mr. Aaron Porter is an exceptionally fine writer and he captured a point in time on this project and my life.

I want to shift gears to tell you a story that you might find amusing. After Stephanie, my wife, read the article to me because I was driving and couldn’t wait, I gave Aaron a call and thanked him. I said, there were a few things that were a little off.

In our industry, there is something called “tagging” a project. He had not heard of the term so I proceeded to tell him about the K2, the 67’ Trumpy formerly named Georgejan, Contract 421 built for George Wasserman in 1965.

These two young men from Long Island, both named Kevin, hence K2, bought her. From the engine room aft, the keel was pushed up 6 inches and all the floor timbers were broken. Our crew, Nathaniel Smith and Richard Wellman replaced 40 ribs, 20 floor timbers, 6,000 fasteners and a few other little projects such as a chine log. Six months later, there was a great photo of K2 in Woodenboat magazine’s Launchings. The cutline said it had been entirely rebuilt by one of the Kevins and some guy named Ed, who apparently did varnish work on the boat. Well, Nate and Richard were madder than hornets. Good thing they didn’t have gas money to drive to Long Island from Florida. After telling Aaron the story over the phone, less than an hour went by before I got a call from Kevin Lessing, the Kevin involved in the “Launchings” piece. “Get outta here,” Kevin said in Long Islandese and laughed. I asked about his friend Ed. Ed has moved on to work in Saudi Arabia. Both Kevins get this log so they will get a laugh out of it. I haven’t spoken to Kevin Lessing in years so his timing was spooky.

So, back to tagging. I had the opportunity to work with Basil Day in Thomaston, Maine, a subcontractor on Whitehawk who built the mast and bow sprit. The ketch was built by O. Lie-Nielsen in Rockland, Maine. This yacht is a masterpiece for its time, 1978. But I was only 23 then, and my job was sanding splices, sweeping floors and carrying clamps. And, I watched and learned, knowledge I still have today. On the Victory Chimes, a three-masted Ram schooner built in 1900, my job was to be “the dumb end of the stick.” The lead man who I think was named “Bun,” was a master at bending heavy chunks of wood without a steam box. He called it “Egyptian technology” and we still call it that and use what I learned from him today.

Thank you, Aaron Porter, but I didn’t have much to do with either of those great boats. I hope all of you will pick up this month’s edition if you don’t already subscribe to Woodenboat. I know everything is digital these days but there’s nothing like being able to hold something in your hands. When I get older, I would rather go find a yellowing magazine or an old photograph then search for some computer gadget.

Up north, Nathan and crew have been busy. It’s been a cold winter for North Carolina, even some snow. They are working on America, a 75-feet Trumpy built as Jimiana, Contract 420 for James L. Knight. With this project, we will have worked on this yacht through five owners. Before us, Mrs. June McNelis had the same people take care of her for years. After the sudden death of her carpenter, we were called in for an interview and asked for references. I went down to see the Patience II and all went quiet for a while so I figured she found someone else. Six months passed and I got a call that we were hired.

Then Kris and Sheryl Garrison, great people, owned her, followed by Joe Bartram then Mark Spillane and now Ted Conklin of Sag Harbor. The yacht is named after Mr. Conklin’s Sag Harbor hotel. They all have one thing in common, the yacht has gotten better with each successive owner. She is much more beautiful through her ownership by Joe Bartram. His knowledge of these yachts and his taste really made the interior refit remarkable. The Garrisons focused on the structural and mechanical aspects of the yacht. We are just hugely honored to be a part of her journey.

The next yacht to be hauled at Moores Marine in North Carolina will be the S.S. Sophie There will be one big difference. The JDW building, named after the owner of Summerwind has been broken down in Florida and shipped to North Carolina. This will allow larger projects to be under cover. Sophie is 80 feet so Nate can’t wait.

Next, who won Vintage Weekend’s John Trumpy Award at Ocean Reef? Sirius, a 1964, 60’ cruiser, Contract 412, built for Henry C. Gibson owned by Earl Samson. Sirius was restored by NOA Marine’s Dan Avoures before he retired. Earl and his captain, Peter, have done a great job of maintaining her. The People’s Choice Award went hands down to Enticer. She came in on a Saturday, when Vintage Weekend was in full swing. When Enticer came to the dock, it was like the world stopped. Enticer, built in 1935, Contract 228 for Joseph M. Cudahy is now part of Earl McMillen’s fleet. So the two Earls took top awards and of course, they were both Trumpy yachts.

At Ocean Reef, there was some mention that new Trumpys were going to be built. And I received a call from a friend at the Miami Boat Show, Marty Isenberg, who asked, “Did you know a Greek company was going to build Trumpys?” In this month’s Yachting magazine, there is a whole story on it. I know people have mixed feelings about it. I haven’t had time to read the story yet but my thoughts are I hope the new Trumpys don’t lose their lineage and I wish them great success in bringing renewed interest in these fine American yachts.

Last but not least, we are preparing to launch a 40’ Garwood varnished from end to end. Don Thibeault and Gary Neal reconstructed the lazarette and engine room and Bernard handled the varnish. The Garwood has twin 550 HP gas motors and does 40 MPH. Her name is Outrageous and that she is.

Until next time,

Jim Moores

Dear Friends May 2009

May 2009
Dear friends,
April was a good month. The Florida shop refit has been completed and got its first project in the building, a varnished Chris Craft runabout. We are in the process of remodeling our Florida ship’s store as well. Everyone who has seen it has raved. I, however, am in North Carolina and have not seen it yet. Stephanie hasn’t even sent me any pictures. She wants me to be surprised.
I came up to Beaufort to be a judge at the North Carolina Maritime Museum’s Wooden Boat Show and have stayed on to hold down the fort. Nathan Smith, my partner and brother-in-law, and Renee just welcomed a beautiful baby boy, Mason James Smith, 7 pounds, 11 ounces. Nathan is taking some much needed time off to help out. Mason is as handsome as can be.
I recently took a trip down to Wilmington, N.C. to spend the day with naval architect Bruce Marek. Bruce has worked on a few projects with us, from dealing with U.S. Coast Guard certified yachts such as Innisfail to the schooner project in Florida. We have been working on the launch construction drawings, line plans and profile. This all started with a half model I made a while ago. We have come a long way. The length has grown from 28 feet to 40 feet. And, from the advice of long-time client and friend Mr. Hollis Baker, a stand-up day head has been incorporated. I have attached a profile. The idea is simple. Integrate the beauty of a pre-war yacht with a modern underbody and construction inspired by Innisfail. She will be cold molded. This will make for a light and strong boat.
The speed will range from 40 HP, 6 knots; 200 HP, 20 knots or more; to 460 HP with 40 plus knots. It will seat 12 people and a captain. The wheel is forward. In the aft, an additional set of motor controls and a pop-in tiller will allow you to be a part of the party or take a slow cruise around the harbor on a Sunday afternoon. It will be called a Moores 40 launch and will sport a bronze trumpet on both sides of the bow. There is a haws pipe for the anchor. From the front wheel, the anchor can be launched and retrieved. There is a winch and cleat under the deck. This will make it easy to anchor for lunch or any other time. We are very proud of how the ideas have all come together.
There has been a lot of great things happening in the Trumpy community. On May 9, history was made in Portsmouth, R.I. with the re-launching of Freedom, the 103 Mathis Trumpy, Contract 181, built for Albert G. Fay. The first time I saw Freedom, she was held together with Fiberglas. Earl McMillen had the vision to restore her and 7 years in the making, with a lot of patience and focus, she now graces the water again. I am sure Mr. John Trumpy Sr. would be proud because she is a magnificent yacht. This is the biggest restoration of a Mathis Trumpy to date and I hope it will inspire more.
In other Trumpy news, the new Trumpy yacht company has its first order and two are pending. And, the Trumpy Yacht Association is putting together its web site, www.TrumpyYachts.Org. Bill Waskey, TYA’s president, has asked for help with content. If you have photos, stories etc., send them to the association’s webmaster Catherine Freeman at catherineafreeman@hotmail.com and wwaskey-RWThomas@comcast.net.
I have had many people ask whatever happened to Sea Hammock, the 84’ Trumpy yacht built in 1961, Contract 400. My reply has been that she is sleeping. Well, she has been until now. This story will unfold.
After seeing the damage on Sea Hammock after her grounding, Mark Spillane, the owner of Coconuts, a 75-foot Trumpy built in 1965, Contract 420, asked us to cut off her fins. To many, this might seem extreme, but to me it seemed like a sound solution. We are currently looking into alternatives to fins, a gyro that turns about 10,000 RPM in a vacuum. It’s 3 feet by 3 feet and doesn’t have to be installed on the center line. The gyro can be left on at anchor to stop rolls even on the hook. In mid June, I will be attending a seminar on installation and maintenance for the Sea Keeper Gyro. The preliminary calculations are that we will control 75 percent or better on rolling. That’s as good if not better than stabilizers that dangerously hang below. I am very happy that we are seeing true alternatives to this problem.
Another problem that we have decided to handle in-house is shaft maintenance. We invested in the equipment needed to do these jobs that includes a device that was designed back in the 1940s by Tommy, John and Emil Rybovich. The device is for targeting shafts with up and down, side to side, fine adjustments. It’s a simple design but still used today in building those fine boats. I borrowed one from a friend, went to a machine shop and had it made. I asked my friend Mike Rybovich whether he prefers laser or wire targets. He just laughed. “Our sportsfish are 75 feet and do 40 MPH. I prefer a wire target over laser. They’re just as accurate and they are faster and easier to set up. “
We have both systems, laser and wire targets. On our last four yacht haul outs, America, Innisfail, S.S. Sophie and MY-CY, we’ve replaced the bearings including realigning the shaft. On the sea trials on S.S. Sophie, with all her floorboards opened up and at running speed, Capt. John and I could have a normal conversation while close to 80 feet of shaft whirled under our feet, 40 per side. Nathan and his men do a great job.
I’ve really enjoyed being in North Carolina. I’m having such a good time, who knows, I might want to spend the entire summer up here. Since I’ve been here, I’ve seen a lot of wildlife. Just in the backyard at the cottage, I’ve seen deer, a bob cat with pointed ears and a fox. Driving home the other day, a big buck stood in the middle of the road. When we launched S.S. Sophie, there were dolphins playing in the Intracoastal. With spring in full bloom, it has been good to be here. With a new baby, boats and bobcats, it’s been a terrific change of scenery.
Until next time,

Jim Moores