vintage ski/raceboat show?

[mowtorman]

The gathering yesterday went very well. Perfect day with little boat traffic on the lake and a nice breeze creating a little bit of chop. Winnisquam Marine's pontoon rides were a big hit and many new faces came down to see the Northland skis and share their stories. Many thanks to the Magnums and their generosity in sharing their boats. Thanks to Michael Testa State Farm Insurance and the city of Laconia for supporting the event. There was a demonstration of ski racing, nice to see. There were some beautiful boats, hopefully pics to follow. Look for us again same time next year!

PS. Thanks to Lynda Laflamme and the Lake Winnipesaukee Historical Museum at Funspot for help in gathering information about Laconia's watersports history as well as loaning trophies from the races to display. The museum is loaded with local aritifacts, including the wooden rudder from the Lady of the Lake. They have some great videos including the arrival of the pieces of the Mount Washington in Laconia from Vermont by rail, old black and white video of the 1959 national waterski championships, and early home movies of power boating on the lake in the 1930's. The museum is a fun stop on a rainy day and also sponsors local guest speakers.

http://www.lwhs.us/

[NHBUOY]

Am not happy we couldn't make the party this year.. BUT.. we are already getting a rocket, or two, together for next year.

[NHBUOY]

...ttt.. for The Penthouse...

[Mr Cooke's Crew]

Looks like a missile..lol, As far as next year goes, like Vince Lombardi once said " the knee...always the knee". Good catching up with you the other day Jay....keep in touch.

[gtxrider]

I finally am sitting down and down loading pictures. "GO SOX!!!"

[mowtorman]

twin Hydrodyne like this one very prominent back in the day, Vector is a classic thrill ride for sure, and yes that is a 200 (!) on it. Anyone seen any Sutphens around anywhere?

[mowtorman]

Wendy at the North Pole Tavern was nice enough to let me borrow and scan this pic. I would guess the vintage is late 50's or early 60's. The vantage point is still the same on Weirs Boulevard. It's not often you see boats this size on the lake these days. I don't know if this gathering was for a particular type of boat but they are of similar design and appear to be mostly plywood with a couple of aluminums. There also appears to be a couple of glass boats in the background. There was no information on the back of the actual photo. Anyone that might know anything about the makes of the boats or the event your input would be appreciated.

[BroadHopper]

Many of the small runabouts were actually boats built from plans or kits ordered from Sears Roebuck. My father built one and in the early 60's I built a 14' from plywood. I later fiberglass the hull.

One of my neighbor built a hydroplane from plywood. It was heavy but man it was fast for its size!

I can remember kayak kits using stretched canvas for the hull.

Most popular wood boats in their days were Penn-Yan and Pembroke boats. The Pembroke boats were made in NH and the Penn-Yan were made in a 'dry town' in the Finger Lakes area of NY.

[BroadHopper]

They were very popular waterski boats back in the '60's. Not only for the marathon races they were great for the slalom and jumping contests.

I believe Goodhue Marine sold them. Tuppy had a Hydrodyne with twin Quicksilver engines. 'It take two to do it'. Mom wasn't too happy when he docks at the family camp.

Can anyone remember Digangi's boat. I'm trying to remember if that was a Tahiti or Sutphen?

[tis]

My brother had a little boat like that when we were kids. I think the engine was a Scott Atwater (sp.?)

[mowtorman]

Check out article in the CItizen today. Presentation Tuesday Aug. 5th 7 pm. Lakes Region Waterski Boat Classic Sun. Aug 10th 10-4 at Opechee Park point beach, site of 1959 World Waterskiing Championships and Dick Binette's world record waterskiing jump in 1954.
See old friends and make new ones. Free boat rides at Opechee Park on Sunday Aug. 10th provided by Winnisquam Marine and sponsored by Mike Testa State Farm Insurance.

[mowtorman]

We had another great day on the beach where 60 years ago Laconia's Dick Binette set the world waterski jump record. Many thanks to Winnisquam Marine for providing a beautiful new pontoon boat and staff for free boat rides throughout the day. The weather was perfect with no wind and little boat traffic. The Magnums were again a big hit. We had several new additions including a Powercat, a Sharkey, and a Skater, there were quite a few skiers and a speed skiing demonstration. We enjoyed visits from a number of skiers involved in the races in the 60's and 70's. Many people took advantage of the free boat rides, many of whom who were local residents who had not had the chance to be on the water before. Opechee is a great hideaway from the large wakes of Winnipesaukee on the weekends. Many thanks to Mike Testa State Farm for sponsoring the event and the City of Laconia Parks Commission for supporting the event. Look for us again beginning of August next summer, plenty of time to get your vintage ride ready for the water. If you haven't already please consider taking the time to view the Laconia waterski exhibit at the Laconia Library put together by Brenda Kean. Many interesting articles, pictures, artifacts and skis. Happy Mowtoring! Hopefully pics to follow.

[SIKSUKR]

Hey,I just noticed that in that photo of the 4 skiers I see bare feet on the ski and no boot.Was this just a "trick" where the rear foot was pulled out and put in front of the front foot?

[Excalibur]

The family's back then knew how to enjoy the lake and I couldn't believe my family rode around the lake in such a small boat.

They had a great boat for its day and won a few long distance waterskiing races. I couldn't find our original slide picture of the boat to post but I found a picture of the boat on the web because Roy Rogers had one !!


http://powercatboat.com/23.html