All in Restorations
I got to see Justin Kelly’s 21 Scorpion up close in Ontario Canada during the Tuff Marine run in the fall and after talking to Justin about it, there was no question, beyond the triple digit speeds, this was a passion project and incredibly done restoration
Shortly after hurricane Irma struck, Joey Clawges was in the Keys helping his in-laws clean up the mess. They noticed a boat for sale, a Hewes Red Fisher 16 with an old early nineties Merc 150. The sign said it ran but it didn’t, so Joey got it for the price he wanted
For most boat restorations the project is a labor of love and many aren’t worth restoring. Fortunately, in this case, the boat is so unique and so incredible it deserved all the labor and love it received to bring it back.
For John Wilson, ever since his Dad brought home a 1990 31 Scarab, he was hooked on performance boats.
The fact that we have featured quite a few George Linder designed 21 Challenger, Shadow and others is a testament to the design and the appeal for boats in that size range.
One thing that I hope has always been apparent with my articles is that we appreciate the budget boater. With boats, especially performance boats, it’s easy to get carried away and only report and test the expensive exotic boats
When it comes to getting on the water, let’s face it, the cost of boats is a factor. But I’ve said it before, the size of the boat and the money spent don’t correlate with how much fun you can have.
Although I have always loved the classic boats out there, more so than ever I have been admiring the old Cigarettes, Magnums, and the other nameplates from Thunder Boat Row.
This story is not a typical restoration article, this is a survivor story of a true classic, a 1976 21 Challenger. As most readers know, this the original George Linder 21 SOB that was later copied and duplicated numerous times by many manufacturers.
If you spend anytime on Instagram and follow the performance boat tags, you have probably come across several popular accounts in the North East that showcase what single engine performance boating is all about
When researching some performance reports for the Mercury Racing 60R, I came across Geoff Colmes’ re-powered classic Hell’s Bay Whipray
The first time I met Ray Lee was at the Miami Boat Show a few years ago and since then I have run into him at various boat events over the years.
When it comes to rare race boats, there aren’t many that are as jaw dropping in design as the Ocke Mannerfelt designed B-28 boats.
For Ray Plasch it was almost love at first sight. He was looking for a boats and wanted something performance orientated
We have readers from all over the globe and quite a few from Norther Europe; Norway, Sweden and Finland. As a result, I connected with a reader from Norway named Toffen who owns a beautiful original Phantom 25’
When it comes to performance boats there is one name that has stood out more than any other, Cigarette.
For every restoration we feature there is always an underlying theme, a family project, a classic hull, or even a first time restoration. In this case, you could say all the boxes were checked. The 1976 Allison is a legendary hull, as almost any hull carrying the Allison nameplate is
For Sam Nesius, the idea of selling his 1989 Checkmate Starliner changed when he was getting it ready to show to a potential buyer.
For so many boat restorations, the project is more than the boat itself and is usually a combination of the connection to the boat, the actual work involved and family. Boating of all kinds is synonymous with family, friends and adventure; there is an undeniable ability boats have to bring people together
Personally, I love an ambitious boat project. When it comes to boats, the sky’s the limit if you have the imagination
