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Preview to the Process
this, envision yourself walking through the steps in order to make sure you understand what you will need from step to
step. If anything is not clear, take a deep breath, if you have the DVD for the boat, it will go into great detail. You
definitely have everything you need to make this boat a reality.
It will be helpful if you break the process down into two distinct areas, the preparation tasks and the actual building of
the boat. If you purchased a kit, then most of the preparation has been done for you, however for the purpose of this
book, it is assume that you have not purchased a kit and you will be staring with this book the DVD’s, a pile of lumber
and a good attitude.
As you go through the individual steps to build this boat, there are a number of items you will need to have prepared,
such as the inner and outer stem pieces, deck supports, gunwales and forms. Although you can wait until you need
these items to prepare them, it doesn’t make sense for a number of reasons. For instance, you will
need the stem forms in order to steam bend the stem pieces. If you wait till after you mount the stem forms to prepare
the stem pieces, you will either need to steam the pieces on the strongback or cut an extra stem form to use for the
steaming process. Alternatively, you can simply steam the stem pieces prior to mounting the stem forms. The task
listing in this chapter attempts to sequence the tasks in a logical order to insure that you have the pieces you need
when you need them. Gunwales, stem pieces and deck supports and so forth should simply be made as time permits
while things are drying or you just need a break from whatever it is that you are doing. Now, let’s take a look at the
preparatory work that you will have to do for this boat.
Making ready the boat shop
There are a few things that you should be thinking about before you get started. I have built boats in large factories,
garages, basements and backyards and regardless where you decide to build yours there are a few things that will
make it much easier. First, you will need at least 3 feet on either side of the canoe. With a canoe that has a 3’ beam,
that means you will need 9 feet across. You will also need to have 3’ in front and behind the canoe. Adding that to the
16’ length of the boat will leave you with a 9’ by 22’ workspace. This does not include the space you will need for a
workbench and tools. A good rule of thumb would be to add at least another 3’ along the entire length of the boat. I try
to have storage for my strips over the center of the hull for easy access. As silly as it may sound, make sure that you
have enough room to maneuver the boat out of the place that you built it. I once built a boat in my basement that
required me to remove the doorjambs to extract the boat out of the basement bulkhead. Thank goodness that took
care of the problem, because after the doorjamb there was nothing but concrete. My mistake was not in making sure
that the doorway was big enough, I had failed to take into account the angle I would have to maneuver in order to get
the hull outside. It is important to remember that you will have to finish off the hull with epoxy and fiberglass as well as
marine varnish. Although you can move the hull after the outside of the hull has been fiberglassed, you should not make
any major movement of the hull prior to that point. So in theory you can move the hull to a different location in order to
fiberglass the inside, as well as varnish the boat. I bring this to your attention because there will be odors from these
steps and they will linger for days, so have enough ventilation wherever you are to ensure your safety. Be sure to read,
understand and follow the manufacturers instructions of all chemicals (and tools) used. While you are picking the
location of your boat shop, keep in mind that you will be generating dust, and I mean a lot of it. The dust
will be made while sanding and fairing the hull. I highly recommend the addition of a palm sander with a vacuum
attachment to your list of tools. This sander attached to a wet vacuum can eliminate the vast majority of the dust. The
other thing to remember about the dust is you need to get rid of it before wetting out (epoxy and glass) and
finishing off the hull. Dust has a way of getting everywhere. The area that you are working in should be well lit. During
the stripping and fairing phase you need to inspect the hull fairly closely. If you are putting detail strips in the boat for
aesthetic purposes, you will need to be sure of the strips coloring and fit. There is nothing worse than getting your boat
into the great outdoors, and finding out the detail work that you did looks nothing like you intended.
Finally, you should remember that the boat will not be done overnight. As a rule, I don’t like to predict the amount of
time that it will take someone to finish a boat. There are so many variables to consider which make it virtually
impossible to make that prediction. What I will say is this; an experienced builder can finish this boat in 2 weeks of
honest work (40 – 60 hours). On the other hand, I have seen people take as long as 6 months to finish their boat. The
point is it doesn’t really matter, as long as you are enjoying yourself. So why do I bring it up? Because wherever you
choose to build your boat, it will be there until it is done. So think about it and make sure that the location will not
become inconvenient if you don’t finish it in a week.
Lofting of the forms
Lofting is an art and the DVD’s will cover lofting in as much as it relates to this boat. All of the necessary offsets and
instructions are here to draw all of your forms. The lofting process, simply put, is the process of placing points on a
sheet of paper or wood with respect to a baseline and then connecting the points. You will connect the points using a
batten or thin flexible piece of wood or metal in order to get a fair curve from point to point.
Cutting the forms
Think of forms as slices of the boat that you are about to build. If you took a canoe that was already built and sliced it
every foot along its length and then transferred that profile to a piece of plywood you would have a form. By creating
and placing enough of these forms at regular intervals you will have enough of a hull shape to cover with wooden strips
and recreate the boat that you just sliced up. Forms can be transferred from full size patterns that come with
purchased plans. They can also be lofted from a set of measurements provided to you. The latter method will be
covered in detail in the DVD’s.
Drilling stem forms for steam bending
You will be steam bending the stem pieces around the stem forms in order to achieve the curve that you need in the
stem pieces without breaking the wood. In order to do this, you will need to drill holes along the outer edge of the stem
forms every 4 inches or so and approximately 2 inches in from the edge. The hole should be at least 1
inch in diameter, or at least big enough to accept the clamps that you will be using to clamp down the stem pieces.
Making the inner and outer stems
The inner and outer stem pieces are typically made of a hardwood like ash or white oak. The forms on each end of
your canoe (Stem forms) are placed at a 90 degree angle to the rest of the forms. The reason for this is they will be the
terminating point for your wood strips as you build your hull. These are more commonly referred to
as the bow and stern of the boat. The inner stems are 2 laminated ¾ inch wide by ¼ inch thick pieces of hardwood that
will be bent over the stem forms. These are a permanent part of your boat and afford you a permanent place to glue
and ultimately epoxy your cedar strips.
The outer stem pieces are virtually identical to the inner stem pieces and are bent around the bow and stern after all of
the strips have been placed on the boat. These perform a couple of functions. First they are aesthetically pleasing and,
they finish off the ends of the boat nicely as well as provide protection to the ends of the boat as you bump into that log
and those rocks in the water.
Scarfing the gunwales
After the hull as been fiberglassed inside and out, you will notice that it is quite flexible. In order to take that flex out of
the hull and provide stability and strength along the length of the hull, gunwales are used. Virtually all boats have
gunwales of one kind or another. For this boat, the outer gunwales will be 18 foot pieces of Ash wood that are
approximately ½ inch wide and ¾ inch thick with edges that have been rounded over. The inner gunwales vary from
boat to boat. If you are building a decked canoe, the inner gunwales may have more than one section. However for
most canoes, the inner gunwale is virtually the same as the outer gunwale. The actual scarfing refers to taking two
shorter pieces of Ash and creating a longer one. It will be difficult to find an 18’ piece of lumber, and if you found it, it
would be even more difficult to transport back to you shop. Scarfing will allow you to take two 10’ pieces of gunwale
and join them with a scarf joint. A scarf joint consist of a diagonal cut down the length of the wood which is at least 6 to
8 times the thickness of the wood and then gluing and clamping them together.
Loft, cut and drill holes in the forms for deck supports
If you are building a canoe like the “Little Rob” or “Bay Hawk”, the design will call for a deck support both fore and aft.
Using the same process you used to steam bend the stem pieces, you will be steam bend the supports for the fore
and aft decks of the canoe. Just like the rest of the forms, dimensions are given for the lofting and they will be cut, and
then holes drilled in them exactly as the stem forms. In fact for this boat, one of the deck support forms is
a body form reused by simply drilling holes at the appropriate intervals. Steam bending the fore and aft deck supports
Again, for the decked canoes, you will need supports both fore and aft and they will terminate into a curved piece of
lumber that attaches to the inner gunwale and if there is a bulkhead, the support will attach to the middle of bulkhead.
The primary purpose for this is aesthetics. The decks will have a much more elegant termination with curved ends.
Prepare the strips for the hull
The strips around the hull are typically made of cedar. You may use Western red, Northern, Alaskan or Spanish. If you
are really feeling quirky, you can spring for red wood. I have never personally done this, however I have seen it done
before. For the rest of this book it is assumed that you have looked into the price of the Red Wood and have decided
to go with Cedar. The wood you choose will be cut into ¾” x ¼” strips. I have found that using 7/8” decking is perfect
as it is close enough to ¾” and it is reasonably easy to come by. After the strips are all ripped to a uniform width (this
is very important), they will have to be routed with a bead and cove to ease interlocking them on the forms.
OK, so you have prepared all of the pieces that you will need
to build your boat and have set up the perfect shop. You even have a CD with Irish music on it just to put you in the boat-
building mood (after the first song or two you may want to switch to something a little less salty). Now that you have
done all the necessary up front work, it is time to start building your boat. The following is a list of all the major steps in
the building of the boat.
Build a strongback
The strongback is the support structure upon which you will position your forms. Placing and positioning the forms on
the strongback is in fact the most critical step in the entire process. Incorrect positioning of the forms on the
strongback will result in a boat that is not fair, out of alignment or contorted. All of these results are unacceptable and
easily avoidable if you follow the steps outlined in the DVD’s, which describe installing and truing up the forms on the
strongback.
Laying up the strips
Laying the strips down is probably the most satisfying of the steps. As you begin to place strip after strip on the boat
the hull will begin to appear right in front of your eyes. Strips are placed lengthwise along the hull either in one long strip
or multiple strips scarfed together to create one long strip. Scarfing is a form of splicing two or more pieces of wood
together, and will be covered in the DVD’s. Starting at the sheer of the boat and working your way up the sides and
over the bottom of the boat, you will ultimately build a complete hull for your boat.
Fairing and sanding the outer hull
Because you are creating a round or curved object using rectangular wood strips, you will need to fair the hull. Fairing
consists of smoothing over the hull using wood scrapers and sand paper. While fairing the hull, you will have to find that
fine line that separates a good fair hull, and a hull over sanded to the point you create thin or weak spots. Keep in mind
that you are working with a hull of ¼” thick cedar strips. This is especially important when you consider that you need to
fair both sides (inside and outside) of the hull.
Sheathing the outer hull
It is almost time to take the forms out of the boat and flip it over. Before you do that, you need to strengthen the hull.
First you need to stretch fiberglass cloth over the hull and saturating it with epoxy. When it cures, it will achieve the
strength and rigidity necessary to make this pile of wood into a boat hull. The real strength in your
hull will come from the sandwich of fiberglass, wood and fiberglass.
Flipping the hull
This step requires the careful removal of the forms and turning the hull right side up for the first time. The hull at this
point is relatively rigid from the outer sheathing of fiberglass, however care must be taken not to damage the inside hull
while removing the forms.
Fairing and sanding the inner hull
Not unlike the outside of the hull, the inside of the hull needs to be shaped to a smooth contour. This is an important
step, as you want the fiberglass to lay flat without any gaps or air pockets between strips.
Glassing the inner hull
This is the last step to fully encapsulating or sandwiching the cedar strips and creating a solid and rigid hull. It is
performed using virtually the same steps as the outer hull glassing.
Attaching the gunwales
The gunwales are hardwood strips approximately ¾” inch by ½” inch that run the length of the boat at the sheer line.
The sheer line can best be described as the highest point in the boat as you sit in it excluding any decking.
It runs the length of the boat on both the port and the starboard side (that’s left and right side to you land lubbers).
There are four gunwale strips, an inner and outer gunwale for each side of the boat. The gunwales add significant
rigidity to the final boat.
Trimming out the boat
Trimming out the boat is simply another way of saying mounting seats, breasthooks, decks, gunwale caps, yokes and
other trim pieces depending on the boat that you are building. The final addition of these pieces not only gives you a
place to sit, it will permanently spread the hull to its final position as well, and take out any flexing in the sides.
Varnishing
Although varnishing your boat will do a lot for the “wow” factor of the final boat, there are also technical reasons to
making sure Strip Building the Sandy Point Way 14 there is always a good coat of marine varnish on your boat. It will
protect the glass and epoxy from the UV of the sun. That’s it! You have finished your boat. If it sounds simple,
that’s because it is. If it does not sound simple then relax, take a deep breath. The DVD’s will discuss and illustrate in
detail all of the steps just listed. The most difficult part of building a boat is getting started. I can tell you that it is worth
the effort, and not just for all the attention that your boat will get. The real prize is the pride of paddling something you
built. There is a special connection between a boat and its builder. It somehow paddles truer, sails swifter or rows
easier. You come to look at it as something more than just another possession; it is almost like a friend that will spark
a good memory every time you see it. When I built my first boat I never thought I
would still be building them 30 years later. You know what they say; you can never have enough friends.
step. If anything is not clear, take a deep breath, if you have the DVD for the boat, it will go into great detail. You
definitely have everything you need to make this boat a reality.
It will be helpful if you break the process down into two distinct areas, the preparation tasks and the actual building of
the boat. If you purchased a kit, then most of the preparation has been done for you, however for the purpose of this
book, it is assume that you have not purchased a kit and you will be staring with this book the DVD’s, a pile of lumber
and a good attitude.
As you go through the individual steps to build this boat, there are a number of items you will need to have prepared,
such as the inner and outer stem pieces, deck supports, gunwales and forms. Although you can wait until you need
these items to prepare them, it doesn’t make sense for a number of reasons. For instance, you will
need the stem forms in order to steam bend the stem pieces. If you wait till after you mount the stem forms to prepare
the stem pieces, you will either need to steam the pieces on the strongback or cut an extra stem form to use for the
steaming process. Alternatively, you can simply steam the stem pieces prior to mounting the stem forms. The task
listing in this chapter attempts to sequence the tasks in a logical order to insure that you have the pieces you need
when you need them. Gunwales, stem pieces and deck supports and so forth should simply be made as time permits
while things are drying or you just need a break from whatever it is that you are doing. Now, let’s take a look at the
preparatory work that you will have to do for this boat.
Making ready the boat shop
There are a few things that you should be thinking about before you get started. I have built boats in large factories,
garages, basements and backyards and regardless where you decide to build yours there are a few things that will
make it much easier. First, you will need at least 3 feet on either side of the canoe. With a canoe that has a 3’ beam,
that means you will need 9 feet across. You will also need to have 3’ in front and behind the canoe. Adding that to the
16’ length of the boat will leave you with a 9’ by 22’ workspace. This does not include the space you will need for a
workbench and tools. A good rule of thumb would be to add at least another 3’ along the entire length of the boat. I try
to have storage for my strips over the center of the hull for easy access. As silly as it may sound, make sure that you
have enough room to maneuver the boat out of the place that you built it. I once built a boat in my basement that
required me to remove the doorjambs to extract the boat out of the basement bulkhead. Thank goodness that took
care of the problem, because after the doorjamb there was nothing but concrete. My mistake was not in making sure
that the doorway was big enough, I had failed to take into account the angle I would have to maneuver in order to get
the hull outside. It is important to remember that you will have to finish off the hull with epoxy and fiberglass as well as
marine varnish. Although you can move the hull after the outside of the hull has been fiberglassed, you should not make
any major movement of the hull prior to that point. So in theory you can move the hull to a different location in order to
fiberglass the inside, as well as varnish the boat. I bring this to your attention because there will be odors from these
steps and they will linger for days, so have enough ventilation wherever you are to ensure your safety. Be sure to read,
understand and follow the manufacturers instructions of all chemicals (and tools) used. While you are picking the
location of your boat shop, keep in mind that you will be generating dust, and I mean a lot of it. The dust
will be made while sanding and fairing the hull. I highly recommend the addition of a palm sander with a vacuum
attachment to your list of tools. This sander attached to a wet vacuum can eliminate the vast majority of the dust. The
other thing to remember about the dust is you need to get rid of it before wetting out (epoxy and glass) and
finishing off the hull. Dust has a way of getting everywhere. The area that you are working in should be well lit. During
the stripping and fairing phase you need to inspect the hull fairly closely. If you are putting detail strips in the boat for
aesthetic purposes, you will need to be sure of the strips coloring and fit. There is nothing worse than getting your boat
into the great outdoors, and finding out the detail work that you did looks nothing like you intended.
Finally, you should remember that the boat will not be done overnight. As a rule, I don’t like to predict the amount of
time that it will take someone to finish a boat. There are so many variables to consider which make it virtually
impossible to make that prediction. What I will say is this; an experienced builder can finish this boat in 2 weeks of
honest work (40 – 60 hours). On the other hand, I have seen people take as long as 6 months to finish their boat. The
point is it doesn’t really matter, as long as you are enjoying yourself. So why do I bring it up? Because wherever you
choose to build your boat, it will be there until it is done. So think about it and make sure that the location will not
become inconvenient if you don’t finish it in a week.
Lofting of the forms
Lofting is an art and the DVD’s will cover lofting in as much as it relates to this boat. All of the necessary offsets and
instructions are here to draw all of your forms. The lofting process, simply put, is the process of placing points on a
sheet of paper or wood with respect to a baseline and then connecting the points. You will connect the points using a
batten or thin flexible piece of wood or metal in order to get a fair curve from point to point.
Cutting the forms
Think of forms as slices of the boat that you are about to build. If you took a canoe that was already built and sliced it
every foot along its length and then transferred that profile to a piece of plywood you would have a form. By creating
and placing enough of these forms at regular intervals you will have enough of a hull shape to cover with wooden strips
and recreate the boat that you just sliced up. Forms can be transferred from full size patterns that come with
purchased plans. They can also be lofted from a set of measurements provided to you. The latter method will be
covered in detail in the DVD’s.
Drilling stem forms for steam bending
You will be steam bending the stem pieces around the stem forms in order to achieve the curve that you need in the
stem pieces without breaking the wood. In order to do this, you will need to drill holes along the outer edge of the stem
forms every 4 inches or so and approximately 2 inches in from the edge. The hole should be at least 1
inch in diameter, or at least big enough to accept the clamps that you will be using to clamp down the stem pieces.
Making the inner and outer stems
The inner and outer stem pieces are typically made of a hardwood like ash or white oak. The forms on each end of
your canoe (Stem forms) are placed at a 90 degree angle to the rest of the forms. The reason for this is they will be the
terminating point for your wood strips as you build your hull. These are more commonly referred to
as the bow and stern of the boat. The inner stems are 2 laminated ¾ inch wide by ¼ inch thick pieces of hardwood that
will be bent over the stem forms. These are a permanent part of your boat and afford you a permanent place to glue
and ultimately epoxy your cedar strips.
The outer stem pieces are virtually identical to the inner stem pieces and are bent around the bow and stern after all of
the strips have been placed on the boat. These perform a couple of functions. First they are aesthetically pleasing and,
they finish off the ends of the boat nicely as well as provide protection to the ends of the boat as you bump into that log
and those rocks in the water.
Scarfing the gunwales
After the hull as been fiberglassed inside and out, you will notice that it is quite flexible. In order to take that flex out of
the hull and provide stability and strength along the length of the hull, gunwales are used. Virtually all boats have
gunwales of one kind or another. For this boat, the outer gunwales will be 18 foot pieces of Ash wood that are
approximately ½ inch wide and ¾ inch thick with edges that have been rounded over. The inner gunwales vary from
boat to boat. If you are building a decked canoe, the inner gunwales may have more than one section. However for
most canoes, the inner gunwale is virtually the same as the outer gunwale. The actual scarfing refers to taking two
shorter pieces of Ash and creating a longer one. It will be difficult to find an 18’ piece of lumber, and if you found it, it
would be even more difficult to transport back to you shop. Scarfing will allow you to take two 10’ pieces of gunwale
and join them with a scarf joint. A scarf joint consist of a diagonal cut down the length of the wood which is at least 6 to
8 times the thickness of the wood and then gluing and clamping them together.
Loft, cut and drill holes in the forms for deck supports
If you are building a canoe like the “Little Rob” or “Bay Hawk”, the design will call for a deck support both fore and aft.
Using the same process you used to steam bend the stem pieces, you will be steam bend the supports for the fore
and aft decks of the canoe. Just like the rest of the forms, dimensions are given for the lofting and they will be cut, and
then holes drilled in them exactly as the stem forms. In fact for this boat, one of the deck support forms is
a body form reused by simply drilling holes at the appropriate intervals. Steam bending the fore and aft deck supports
Again, for the decked canoes, you will need supports both fore and aft and they will terminate into a curved piece of
lumber that attaches to the inner gunwale and if there is a bulkhead, the support will attach to the middle of bulkhead.
The primary purpose for this is aesthetics. The decks will have a much more elegant termination with curved ends.
Prepare the strips for the hull
The strips around the hull are typically made of cedar. You may use Western red, Northern, Alaskan or Spanish. If you
are really feeling quirky, you can spring for red wood. I have never personally done this, however I have seen it done
before. For the rest of this book it is assumed that you have looked into the price of the Red Wood and have decided
to go with Cedar. The wood you choose will be cut into ¾” x ¼” strips. I have found that using 7/8” decking is perfect
as it is close enough to ¾” and it is reasonably easy to come by. After the strips are all ripped to a uniform width (this
is very important), they will have to be routed with a bead and cove to ease interlocking them on the forms.
OK, so you have prepared all of the pieces that you will need
to build your boat and have set up the perfect shop. You even have a CD with Irish music on it just to put you in the boat-
building mood (after the first song or two you may want to switch to something a little less salty). Now that you have
done all the necessary up front work, it is time to start building your boat. The following is a list of all the major steps in
the building of the boat.
Build a strongback
The strongback is the support structure upon which you will position your forms. Placing and positioning the forms on
the strongback is in fact the most critical step in the entire process. Incorrect positioning of the forms on the
strongback will result in a boat that is not fair, out of alignment or contorted. All of these results are unacceptable and
easily avoidable if you follow the steps outlined in the DVD’s, which describe installing and truing up the forms on the
strongback.
Laying up the strips
Laying the strips down is probably the most satisfying of the steps. As you begin to place strip after strip on the boat
the hull will begin to appear right in front of your eyes. Strips are placed lengthwise along the hull either in one long strip
or multiple strips scarfed together to create one long strip. Scarfing is a form of splicing two or more pieces of wood
together, and will be covered in the DVD’s. Starting at the sheer of the boat and working your way up the sides and
over the bottom of the boat, you will ultimately build a complete hull for your boat.
Fairing and sanding the outer hull
Because you are creating a round or curved object using rectangular wood strips, you will need to fair the hull. Fairing
consists of smoothing over the hull using wood scrapers and sand paper. While fairing the hull, you will have to find that
fine line that separates a good fair hull, and a hull over sanded to the point you create thin or weak spots. Keep in mind
that you are working with a hull of ¼” thick cedar strips. This is especially important when you consider that you need to
fair both sides (inside and outside) of the hull.
Sheathing the outer hull
It is almost time to take the forms out of the boat and flip it over. Before you do that, you need to strengthen the hull.
First you need to stretch fiberglass cloth over the hull and saturating it with epoxy. When it cures, it will achieve the
strength and rigidity necessary to make this pile of wood into a boat hull. The real strength in your
hull will come from the sandwich of fiberglass, wood and fiberglass.
Flipping the hull
This step requires the careful removal of the forms and turning the hull right side up for the first time. The hull at this
point is relatively rigid from the outer sheathing of fiberglass, however care must be taken not to damage the inside hull
while removing the forms.
Fairing and sanding the inner hull
Not unlike the outside of the hull, the inside of the hull needs to be shaped to a smooth contour. This is an important
step, as you want the fiberglass to lay flat without any gaps or air pockets between strips.
Glassing the inner hull
This is the last step to fully encapsulating or sandwiching the cedar strips and creating a solid and rigid hull. It is
performed using virtually the same steps as the outer hull glassing.
Attaching the gunwales
The gunwales are hardwood strips approximately ¾” inch by ½” inch that run the length of the boat at the sheer line.
The sheer line can best be described as the highest point in the boat as you sit in it excluding any decking.
It runs the length of the boat on both the port and the starboard side (that’s left and right side to you land lubbers).
There are four gunwale strips, an inner and outer gunwale for each side of the boat. The gunwales add significant
rigidity to the final boat.
Trimming out the boat
Trimming out the boat is simply another way of saying mounting seats, breasthooks, decks, gunwale caps, yokes and
other trim pieces depending on the boat that you are building. The final addition of these pieces not only gives you a
place to sit, it will permanently spread the hull to its final position as well, and take out any flexing in the sides.
Varnishing
Although varnishing your boat will do a lot for the “wow” factor of the final boat, there are also technical reasons to
making sure Strip Building the Sandy Point Way 14 there is always a good coat of marine varnish on your boat. It will
protect the glass and epoxy from the UV of the sun. That’s it! You have finished your boat. If it sounds simple,
that’s because it is. If it does not sound simple then relax, take a deep breath. The DVD’s will discuss and illustrate in
detail all of the steps just listed. The most difficult part of building a boat is getting started. I can tell you that it is worth
the effort, and not just for all the attention that your boat will get. The real prize is the pride of paddling something you
built. There is a special connection between a boat and its builder. It somehow paddles truer, sails swifter or rows
easier. You come to look at it as something more than just another possession; it is almost like a friend that will spark
a good memory every time you see it. When I built my first boat I never thought I
would still be building them 30 years later. You know what they say; you can never have enough friends.