Down to the Sea

Americans seem to be getting ready for the day when the population explosion edges mankind off the land and into the water. They have been taking to the boats ever since war's end; today some 7,500,000 private vessels pitch, yaw, roll, bob and wallow in U.S. waters--about one for every 24 men, women and children in the land. And the $2.5 billion business they keep afloat is confident of booming new records in 1963. This week the boat business played host to the boat-hooked public at the 53rd annual Motor Boat Show in Manhattan's Coliseum.

In the well-established U.S. tradition, there was plenty of wall-to-wall luxury in the 500-odd models on display, from the lowliest stinkpot to the "queen" of the show--a 45-ft. 5 1/2-in. cruiser by the Century Boat Co., packed with spacious, gracious air-conditioned living for $61,670. Royalty is relative--this queen would be a mere lady in waiting to the great custom-built yachts of the world. And even at the Coliseum she was queen by a bare 3 in.; the Greenwich Yacht Co. offered one 45 ft. 2 1/2 in. long for only $45,465, and there were four other cruisers 40 ft. or longer.

The old tradition that a woman at sea is bad luck has long since sunk without a trace. Every boat seemed designed to appeal to the feminine eye for color and convenience, even in the sailboats, the last stronghold of the hornyhanded old salt. Most fetching was a 35-ft. sloop-rigged motor sailer made by that master of motorboats, Chris-Craft. With 563 sq. ft. of sail on a beamy (11 ft.) Fiberglas hull, Chris-Craft's "sail yacht" is powered by a hefty 60-h.p. engine that gives it a cruising speed of six or seven knots. In cabins finished in maple paneling, it sleeps six comfortably (two in a bridal suite aft of the cockpit) and sports two heads, one with a shower. Price: $24,495. This comfortable concession to the growing popularity of sail is echoed in a 31-ft. economy model by the Sumner Boat Co., which provides a cutter rig and a 108-h.p. Ford diesel motor for $14,070.

Outboards are the meat and potatoes of the boat business. Some 700,000 of them were sold last year, even though the price is going steadily up; in 1958 the average price of an outboard was $484, and last year it was about $600. Outboard innovation in this year's show is a 15 h.p. diesel by Scott at $1,095, designed for heavy-duty work loads and economical operation.

Real innovations were few among the catamarans, longitudinal step hulls and dihedral vee shapes that continued to compete with the conventional designs. A major trend is the increasing popularity of the inboard-outboard motor; in the 1961 show, 13 boats with inboard-outboard motors were exhibited, 38 were shown last year, and this year's show has 44. Inboard-outboards have the motor inside the hull (conferring more horsepower and greater prestige), while the propeller assembly is mounted outside the stern transom, permitting it to be raised in shallow water or for beaching and trailering to and from the yachtsman's water supply.

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