The Sunday boatbuilders on Pier 40 made progress on both our big projects today. We added one more plank to the Peapod, and would have added a second if we had a few more clamps. We also added new white oak thole pin blocks to Quixotic. In the middle of this sunny afternoon we welcomed Sally, Frank, Dave and Marcel back from the Snow Row up at Hull. They returned a bit weary but very proud of the blue ribbon the youth crew had won on Saturday. The boat shop will be open for business and welcoming all volunteers on Wednesday and Sunday afternoons through the rest of the month. No appointment necessary.
Students are (slowly) completing work on the Opti. Spirits are high and “peanut butter work“ is improving. Mary is a steady leader, and Andrew is a patient teacher.
On Saturday, March 5th, Village Community Boathouse sent two crews to the Hull Lifesaving Museum’s 41st annual Snow Row. It was a lovely, spring-like day, not too much wind, not too cold, and the sun was shining- almost ideal conditions. There was a celebratory atmosphere as this odd and diverse community of open water rowers got together on the beach once more after Snow Row and other open water races had been canceled for the past two years.
VCB’s Youth Crew won in their category: Youth Cox-4 Pro. (Pro meaning that they had rowed together before the race.) In fact, the VCB youth crew practiced rowing for the race in the cold off Pier 40 embayment for a month before the race and their hard work paid off. The winning crew rowing Warrior finished the 3 3/4 mile race in 41:41. Warrior was coxed by VCB Youth Program Coordinator, Mary Harvey. The VCB adult crew, rowing Notorious G.I.G, coxed by Dave Clayton, finished second with a time of 44:06.
Winning Warrior Crew: Mary Harvey, Hanson He, Christopher Dou, Emmy Chen, and Abigail Johnson
Notorious Crew: Don Betts, Stone Su, Nafel Kahn, Dave Clayton, and Marcel Dejean
Boat wranglers Marcel, Frank & Dave Notorious and Warrior nesting on the trailer, heading for HullView of the Snow Row from the beachCoxswain Dave Clayton Notorious Crew launching Winning Warrior crew showing off their golden clamshellsNestingBoats and crew safely back at Pier 40
Thanks to Frank Cervi for towing and wrangling boats. Many thanks also to the parents of Mary Harvey and Nafel Kahn for transporting VCB’s high school rowers to the race. We are most grateful to Don & Martha Betts for putting us up for the night and to Don for taking an oar.
On Sunday the VCB boatshop was rocking like it was February 2020. Of course, on this second anniversary of the first great 21st century pandemic, everyone was vaxed and boosted and masked. Things are not yet—and may never be—the same. Nonetheless, out there on Pier 40, beneath the roar of the gas heater, a dozen volunteers were hard at work building and repairing boats. They were sanding, planning, gluing, painting and fiber-glassing with focus and camaraderie: it felt like old times.
Our boatshop has been slow to reopen this winter. Like everyone else, we have hunkered down as the blizzard of delta and omicron has swept through our region. Now that it seems the worst is past, we are cautiously putting out the welcome mat on Wednesday and Sunday afternoons for volunteers who want to help refurbish our gallant fleet of Whitehall gigs or lend a hand with a new project, a 14’ Maine peapod.
In addition, on Fridays after school, a clutch of VCB high school rowers are learning new skills as boatbuilders. They are tackling an 8’ Opti row/sail pram which is a continuation of a winter 2020 project. This crew is making good progress and having a good time in the process.
High school (and college) students who are working on the Opti, Fridays from 4:00 to 6:00.Drilling holes to mark out the centerboard slot.Bending some reluctant boards to make the gunwales.The Notorious G.I.G. is in the shop for its five-year overhaul. It needs to be scraped and sanded inside and out before we put on three fresh coats of varnish.Five years of vigorous rowing have worn down the thole pin blocks, We replaced the old ones with white oak.The bilge got a new coat of red paint to match the red sheer strake. Some people wanted to paint the whole interior, but Sally is very partial to the all-natural look. (We don’t always agree on everything)A cracked plank needs to be cut away and patched, backed up with a butt-block inside and fiberglass outside.Everyone got together to lay new glass cloth on the keel. Far in the back, you can see Frank working on the new electric lines.The Peapod is being built around eleven “molds” that rest on a strongback. Straight and level is important.The steam box (with the tea kettle) is ready to go. The thin pieces that will be laminated for the stems need about an hour of hot steam in order to be flexible enough to go around the form in the back.Even with the steam, persuading all ten laminations to go where we want them calls for all hands on deck.Marking carefully for the next plank.We are making patterns for each of the five planks. It is an extra step but it assures a better fit and less chance of wasting expensive wood.Once in place and attached to the bottom board, the stems need to be shaped to accept the planks.The first plank is down! Celebration!All work and no lunch? Not at VCB.
ROCKLAND — A Rockland-based organization that teaches maritime skills to young people received a new boat thanks to Manhattan boatbuilders.
The gift boat, a Whitehall Gig, is a model of the traditional four-oared 19th century boat used to ferry ship captains from their moorings to land, according to an account in a Manhattan neighborhood paper “Our Town.”
The Manhattan organization, Village Community Boat House, offers free rowing from Pier 40 in Hudson River Park. In the winter, the boathouse stays open so its skilled boatbuilders can teach the craft to others for free, according to Our Town. This year the builders realized they needed to make more room in the boathouse before they could build another boat. So, they decided to donate a vessel to some worthy seafarers.
Some of the people associated with the Village Community Boat House visited Rockland and were familiar with Station Maine, which teaches young people how to sail and row in Rockland Harbor. The Manhattan organization contacted Station Maine and agreed to donate the boat to the Rockland organization led by Muriel Curtis.
Ed Glaser of Rockland agreed to volunteer his services and haul the boat back to Rockland.
Village Community did an internet search and when its members realized the volunteer driver was also Rockland’s mayor, they organized an informal ceremony on Dec. 19. The group tried to persuade the New York City mayor to attend, but were not successful.
According to Our Town, Boathouse President Sally Curtis said “We’re like a family that has to give away a beloved pet. We wanted to be sure it would be well cared for and used to help folks, especially young people, get out on the water.”
Curtis posted on Station Maine’s Facebook page about the donation of the 25-foot long boat.
“These are amazing, stable little boats that have been seen in New York Harbor for more than a century. We are so fortunate to have good neighbors to the south who think of us and offer us their support. We’re also grateful to Ed Glaser for hauling GML (yes, that’s her name) all the way from New York City.”
Station Maine teaches maritime skills such as sailing and rowing at no cost to the participants.
Glaser is a captain, and served as harbor master for Rockland for 12 years before he was elected to the City Council.
