Let the Show(s) Begin!!!

Our 2013 show season is about to start in a big way. We are off to Tavares, Florida for the Annual Lake Dora Antique & Classic Boat Show. It's one of the biggest in the country. It runs March 22nd-24^th, 2013. For more information go to http://acbs-sunnyland.org. All of the images in this story come from the Lake Dora Show. Click on any of them to get a better view.

This show features antique & classic boats (see the article listed to the right for more about what they are), sea-planes, Amphicars, Jersey Skiffs and other raceboats, as well as a variety of vendors. People come from from all over the US and Canada to be there. The boats are always special. Among the vendors are The Rope Locker, Bigshipsalvage.com, Bar Craft Boat Bars, and many, many others too numerous to describe here. It's worth seeing for yourself.

 

 This is the first in a series of three antique & classic boat shows that we have done yearly for nearly 20 years each. Those are Lake Dora, Florida in March, St. Michaels, Maryland in June (the largest antique & classic boat festival in the Mid-Atlantic and a personal favorite) and Clayton, New York in August (home of the Antique & Classic Boat Society).

.

Of course, we also do new boat shows and we will be at the Bay Bridge Boat Show in Stevensville, Maryland April 20^th– 21^st. It's Big! Antique & Classic Boats will be there, as well, sponsored by the Chesapeake Bay Chapter of The Antique & Classic Boat Society.

Check out their website at http://www.chesapeakebayacbs.org

 Since most of our models involve carving wood, we get invited to many Carving/Decoy/Art shows. In fact, as soon as we leave Lake Dora, we'll be headed to the Easter Decoy Festival in Chincoteague, Virginia on Friday and Saturday, March 29^thand 30^th. We will also be at the Havre De Grace Decoy and Wildlife Art Festival in Havre De Grace, Maryland May 3^rd– 5^th. In November, we'll be at the world famous Waterfowl Festival in Easton, Maryland.

 


We've written some stories in the past about some of these shows with lots of photos on this blog, so you might want to take a look back. For our current show
schedule go to http://intothings.com/shows00.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's probable that we will be adding other shows and book signings throughout the year, so put the address in your favorites and check it for new additions.

We Got This Email The Other Day...

Our book, “Fundamentals of Model Boat Building”, has received many excellent reviews from some very knowledgeable people, but I don't think that any is more meaningful than this one. It's not a review in the standard sense, but I think that it speaks volumes.

I am going to let Joe Szymanski do the talking through the email that he sent us, along with the photos of the model that he made, the first model boat that he has ever done, after reading our book.

“JOHN - Back in 2011, I picked up a copy of Fundamentals of Model Boat Building when you were at the PRAD Festival at the Calvert Marine Museum. I enjoyed reading the book last winter, but then just added it to my library. Then late this summer & fall, I kept paddling by a pretty like crab skiff on St. Johns Creek and your book came back to mind -- I thought "that would be a fun little boat to try to model from scratch..." So I remembered my camera on subsequent paddles, and tried to snap some pictures of the boat in the water. I had some extra time over the Christmas holidays, so I launched into the effort of trying to estimate dimensions, develop 3-view scale drawings, etc. After several matboard prototypes, I was happy with the basic hull shape and proceeded with a wood model. (See the attached picture for the model in its current state of completion.) I had never built a model boat before...”

This is the photo that he sent with his email...

He continued...

“...it was a thoroughly enjoyable experience & mental exercise to go through the process as guided along by your book. Thanks for the inspiration and hopefully I'll see you back at PRAD some year in the future.

Sincerely,
Joe Szymanski”

Here is Joe's finished model:


Here's a shot of the subject boat:


We think that when you look at the original boat and look at the first model boat that Joe ever made, he deserves an excellent review. 5-Stars!!! Thank you, Joe!

Joe and I have corresponded by email following this one and he offered to send more photos of his model during the phases of building it. Here are some of them...

 

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

 

 

 

Have you made a model after reading our book? We'd love to hear from you with photos or not. Our emails are johninto@intothings.com and nancyprice@intothings.com.

Love Him or Not... (Book Review)

 

Capt. Larry Simns has probably had some effect on your life if you are in any part of the seafood industry, if you like to fish, if you are concerned with water quality, if you love to eat seafood, if you live or work near the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed, are a politician in the Maryland State House, or for a variety of other reasons. If you don't know his name, or the only thing that you do know about him is his name, then you should read this book.

In the newly released The Best of Times on The Chesapeake Bay, An Account of a Rock Hall Waterman, Capt. Larry Simns (the n is silent), and co-author Robert L. Rich, Jr. tell the story of how he grew up in the small harbor town of Rock Hall on Maryland's Eastern Shore. He began his education in seafood harvesting at six years old, he went through brutal but valuable apprenticeship with seasoned and unforgiving Captains in his teens and he grew to become a respected Captain and seafood business owner in young adulthood. He recounts how he reluctantly found his voice as he began his rise within local groups of watermen to become a legendary advocate for them and the Chesapeake Bay in response to critical declines in seafood populations in the early 1970s. In his 40 years as President of the Maryland Watermens Association, he was not only recognized for his work by professionals with interests in the fisheries from Maine to Alaska and the Gulf Coast, he also worked with Senators, Governors and U.S. Presidents.

If you spend any time with a waterman,it would be difficult not to notice that theirs are very tough jobs. Many of our neighbors start their day at 3:00am. They work when it's 20 degrees outside. They work when it's 100 degrees outside. The brutal apprenticeship that Capt. Larry went through was important for learning to live in an environment that might be idyllic one moment and potentially deadly the next. There are some very exciting moments in the book. In fact, Capt. Larry went through more than one situation where he almost didn't survive.

 

He clearly explains how various finfish, oysters and crabs were harvested, having experience with pretty much every method used. He explains how "The Bay" changed after Hurricane Agnes. A resulting drop in seafood harvests coincided. Other factors including pollution from other sources led him to the chain of events that made him the powerful advocate he is. He discusses how he worked with others from various disciplines including biologists, environmentalists, and others to create policies that were not always popular. An amazing journey for a waterman from Rock Hall, Maryland.

 

There's a whole lot more here and I highly recommend this book. Most of the chapters are brief, but full of information. It provides an education about the Chesapeake Bay, Eastern Shore life, the history of its watermen, issues surrounding its protection and much more. One gets the sense that, knowing he won't be around forever, he would like for this book to help pass critical information to those for whom stewardship of the Chesapeake and the life within it will pass. We should pay attention.

 

For more information go to: 

http://www.thebestoftimesonthechesapeakebay.com/

Book Details

The Best of Times on The Chesapeake Bay, An Account of a Rock Hall Waterman

Lived by Captain Lawrence William Simns
Written by Robert L. Rich, Jr.
Illustrated by Ann Crane Harlan.

ISBN: 9780764342776Soft Cover 288 Pages 42 illustrations

 

By The Way, We Make Model Boats...

We've made over 300 models. Here are just a couple. We design and  make every single piece of every model that we do. It's very time and labor intensive. We also practice photogrammetry. We've made models of new boats, old boats, sail, power, ships-modern and ancient and many other things. As a result, we are able to make models of any boat that we can get sufficient information about. You can see more photos on our FaceBook page...

 

1958 Century Resorter - note the "aircraft carrier" foredeck.

1961 Shell Lake Escapade - These were made in Shell Lake, Wisconsin.
Very similar in  style to Dorsett trailerable cruisers.

1954 Chris~Craft 17' Custom Runabout.

Chris~Craft Sea Skiff Utility.

1947 Chris~Craft 22' Sportsman (aka "U22") in diorama display.

Ashley's Hope is a Chesapeake Bay Fantail Deadrise workboat.

Happie is a classic raised-deck cruiser.

The centerpiece of IWC Schafhausen's New York Flagship Boutique
at 535 Madison Ave. It is a half-hull model of "Azzam".

A Kennebec River Bateau; the model made for a historian who writes books
 about the American Revolution and the War of 1812.

A basic Chesapeake Bay Deadrise model. It is a waterline model with
scale pier and water to create a mini diorama.

62' NordHavn at 11" LOA.

Shepherd Utility Dashboard.

Trans-Atlantic Racing Rowboat "Ghurka Spirit" crossed in 66 days.

Modern Cruiser based upon traditional Lobster Boat design.

21' 1959 Century Coronado - Probably the only Century Coronado model
in the St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco.

Again; this is a very small sample of our work. For more information about
our models and related services, please go to

http://intothings.com
 

Fundamentals of Model Boat Building Should be on Your Holiday Shopping List...

Do you have a tinkerer? Someone that wants to make that model in the closet, but they've become frustrated? Do you have a child with artistic promise who could use something to help them focus their abilities? Do you wonder how a soon-to-be retiree is going to manage without going to work every day? Do you know a fantastic model maker who is looking for quality books that have information that they can really use? Do you know a boater that needs something to do this winter? Are you looking for a good book to read? Would you like to fill out that shopping list with something inexpensive?

 

You ought to take a serious look at “Fundamentals of Model Boat Building” by master model makers John Into and Nancy Price. Here are some reasons why...

Do you have a tinkerer? Making a model of the “Annie Buck”, a real Chesapeake Bay workboat is sure to make them very happy. Especially because the photographic instructions are clear and easy to follow.

Someone that wants to make that model in the closet, but they've become frustrated? “Fundamentals of Model Boat Building” provides all of the information necessary to beat that frustration and make model kit building enjoyable again.

Do you have a child with artistic promise who could use something to help them focus their abilities? “Fundamentals of Model Boat Building” not only teaches techniques, theories, how to see a thing and make a 3D replica of it, but how to collect information, organize it, come up with a plan of action and how to turn that plan into reality. It is a book that will continue to provide interest as they grow.

 

Do you wonder how a soon-to-be retiree is going to manage without going to work every day?

 “Fundamentals of Model Boat Building” teaches the art of “scratch-building”. Its readers learn how to see something that they choose and turn it into a model. Scratch-building has no limits. Easy to read and understand, the book is also thorough and thought provoking, leading to an avocation that is both challenging and fulfilling.

Do you know a fantastic model maker who is looking for quality books that have information that they can really use? Professional and experienced amateur model makers have praised this book for covering information that model makers usually learn the hard way, sometimes incompletely, by trial and error. Although the book is clear enough to be understood by a novice, it is presented in logical sequence and provides advanced information about materials, tools, special measuring tools and techniques, substitute materials, how to carve wood, how to draw basic plans, how to work with lines drawings, understanding offsets tables, how to measure a boat, understanding different types of construction design and much more.

Do you know a boater that needs something to do this winter? Boat lovers will find lots of information about boat design, including information about displacement hulls and planing hulls. A boater can use the 5 categories for differentiating boats from one another and test their knowledge regarding structural and measuring design features that can be applied to any boat. For example: “What is deadrise?”

Are you looking for a really good book to read? This is a “coffee table quality” book. There are stories about boats, the people that use them, what they do, how they do it, where they do it and how these elements are important to why a boat looks and performs that way that it does. What models are, how they are used in every area of life, some history of model-making, how models differ in construction methods and display types – these are some of the things covered in surprising detail. Several people with no previous interest in either boats or model making have been happily surprised at having found a unique book that is not only informative, but entertaining.

Fundamentals of Model Boat Building (ISBN-9780764331053) is a hard-cover book published by Schiffer Books, LTD. List price $34.99. It has160 pages with 264 photos and 94 drawings, all in high color, on fine paper. It has received numerous excellent reviews from magazines, blogs and readers. Available world-wide -It is not currently available for e-books.

To see some reviews and to find out where you can get your copy, please go to

 

http://intothings.com/fundamentals.html

 

For an extra special gift, you can also get a copy of Fundamentals of Model Boat Building

personally autographed by authors John Into and Nancy Price

please call 410-745-5954.

A Very Important Event At Our Local Hobby Store...

I did something really special yesterday. I went to a model contest sponsored by our local Hobby store. It only had one problem: not enough people were partaking in what was truly a special event. This may be partially because this store only recently opened, but I can tell you that it's also a result of the way our society has been developing. I think that a lot of people have lost sight of the value of hobbies. This has been a trend of the arts in general. It is said that if you want to make millions, don't study art... I think that you'll probably find that the happiest millionaires do have some background with art, whether it be paintings, literature, music or otherwise. This argument not withstanding, let me return to the hobby show...

I met people of all ages and all kinds of backgrounds. All had one thing in common: a passion about what they had made. I'm not saying they all believed that their works were masterpieces, nor is that so important. They all derived enjoyment from the things that they made or did and, interestingly, how the things that they made gave them a way to express to others what is interesting about things that they are passionate about. Theses things included airplanes, horses, tractor trailer trucks, tanks, boats, Legos (very sophisticated), and other things. Some things were perfect, and I mean really impressive, dioramas of real situations. Some were figments of the imagination. All were done with care.

I feel like one of the “old people” making models, having now made them for 50 years. I got to meet others with a lot of model making experience and that experience showed. For me, this is equivalent to other professionals acquiring study credits to maintain their expertise. It is like attending a seminar, providing opportunities to see how others have solved problems or come up with a new idea. For those who have made models for a while, you'll understand what I mean when someone surprises you with something humorous just for those who know it when they see it. Some of the model makers may not be the best model makers, per se, but what makes their models special is what they put into them insofar as details because they understand the thing they are modeling so well.

One of the gentlemen that I spoke with had a lot to say about art in model making. We both concurred that it is helpful if you are able to see things in the formations of clouds and that it is probable that most model makers and artists do so routinely. What is so great about this? It's an exercise in imagination. It's the ability to see forms. It's part of what I call “shapeology”.

I come away both happy and sad. I'm sad, because when I was young, hobbies were encouraged. A good hobby is akin to eating what's good for you except that what you are eating tastes wonderful. Hobbies are good for you. You exercise your imagination. You learn skills. You develop expertise. In our current times, time is swallowed up by things that may or may not have lasting value. Hobbies are a way of entertaining oneself. Now, we often simply seek to be entertained. Hobbies are also social. They may involve some mentoring, from a parent or friend. Often an older family member passes to those of a younger generation things passed to them from previous generations. At events such as these, peers compete on a friendly level, learning how to clearly discern differences in the quality and accuracy of what they create and how to further refine their own abilities. These are skills that they can later use to compete in the world on ability, rather than on aggressiveness. Many life long friendships have developed through sharing hobbies. Many of the best memories we have involve time spent on hobbies with a grandparent.

A lot of things in the passing of time within societies tend to be cyclical. My gut feeling is that sooner or later, hobbies will become more popular than they are now. They may not be the hobbies that I enjoy, but that doesn't matter. Let me postulate my thoughts on what I like in a hobby. It must be enjoyable. It seems to me that the passion of it correlates with the challenge within it. Those things that are a greater test of oneself are the ones that tend to have a bit of obsession about them. We'll see what time brings...

I encourage you to plan a visit your local hobby store and see what they have that might interest you. Make sure that you really look around. I bet that you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Not Another Storm Surge...

In the last few days we've again experienced "storm surge", which is something that caused a great deal of havoc here along the Chesapeake Bay during hurricane Isabel, back in 2003. That seems minimal compared to what has occured in the past few days from New Jersey to New York City and beyond because of Hurricane Sandy.

Storm surge has to do with water rising in response to winds from a storm. Storm surge along ocean beaches is usually larger and more intense than in bays and tributaries, where the intensity is controlled by a number of factors. Not being a Meteorologist, mine will be a loose explanation.

How storm surge occurs in a body of water such as the Chesapeake Bay has to do, not only with a storm's strength, but where the storm's center is relative to that Bay. The main winds of cyclones in the Northern Hemisphere spin in a counter-clockwise direction, thus a storm traveling on a Northwest track and coming ashore South of the Bay will create winds that move from the Southeast to the Northwest, which is to say up and into the Bay. Isabel traveled just such a path and piled great amounts of water into the Bay, resulting in a large Storm Surge. Many people were severly hit by flooding; some losing their homes to that storm surge, both along the Bay and throughout its major rivers and tributaries.


Track of Isabel is South of The Chesapeake Bay.
Image from NOAA.Gov




Our shop, which is along the water, was badly flooded in Isabel and ever since we have been wary of any major storm that comes up the Atlantic to our area.



Our workshop after Hurricane Isabel in 2003 (in the early
days of digital cameras).

Sandy,unlike Isabel, traveled a Northwest path, but came ashore North of the Bay and the counterclockwise push of water was largely out of the Bay. That is, during the initial impact. As Sandy moved inland part of that circular motion began to push from the Southwest, but with far less impact than Isabel. You may want to play with a compass and piece of paper to illustrate the principle.




Hurricane Sandy's path was North of the Chesapeake Bay.
Image from NOAA.gov

Twice, the storm surge from Sandy moved to within a few feet of our shop, causing a lot of stress, but neither time did it quite get inside. We were extremely lucky. From the information I could find I believe that our storm surge was probably about 3 feet above mean high tide. Here are two, very different photos of David and the Annie Buck, one from the first day that the rain bands came ashore, the second taken during the storm, but a short time before the peak of the surge. Notice the differences in, not only the height of the water, relative to the pier, but also how much higher the boats are floating.

An average high tide here is not much higher than this.

This is a dangerous situation. The storm surge has reached a little under 3 feet.
If you could see the shorelines, the creek looks much larger than normal.

We were lucky around here. A lot of other people faired far worse and our thoughts are with them. I know that there was a whole lot of damage North of us. Depending upon how bad that damage is, this storm may be remembered for taking the tall ship "Bounty". Like most hurricanes, there are a lot of stories that will come out of it.