I drove a boat in an exhibition race of historic launches from 1910 this summer in the Thousand Islands. The event was covered by North Country Public Radio, the local NPR affiliate, and the story just came out.
The boats are “Number Boats,” the first one-design racing class for motorboats conceived by and built for the members of the Thousand Islands Yacht Club in 1909-10. For a bit more, see this previous post and this website.
I was summoned recently to help set nails in the Shoreline, WA shop of Eric Hvalsoe, maker of fine original small craft. These photos are of the Hvalsoe 13, a lovely and very seaworthy rowing and sailing boat designed by Eric in the early 1980s. Since then, these boats have been built by Eric and others here in Seattle and around the world, including Denmark. Along with its bigger (though younger) brother the Hvalsoe 16, these boats have become Northwest classics. One of the early boats is in the permanent collection at the Center for Wooden Boats, and another is on the docks and available for a row around Lake Union.
For more on Eric and Hvalsoe Boats, see www.hvalsoe-boats.com, or consult issues 102 and 104 as well as Small Boats 2009 from your WoodenBoat Magazine collection.
