I sat next to Todd Warner at the Lafayette Club Minnehaha Fund Raiser in the spring of 1996 and found his salesmanship strong and healthy. I had a couple of glasses of wine and my resistance was down, so I paid my fee and signed up my membership in the Antique and Classic on the spot. It has been one of the luckiest chance experiences of my boating career.
I’m not active in the club, but I thoroughly enjoy involvement at a distance, so to speak. My parents had a cabin on Shadywood Point on West Arm on Lake Minnetonka. I can recall sleeping in the upstairs attic with the windows open and hearing the waves splash along the shoreline all evening long. My dad had a variety of boats. His favorite was a molded plywood runabout he built from scratch. It was powered by a Speedy Twin 22 horse Evinrude. We had to duck our heads every time he started it because the open flywheel starting rope would come whistling by. I learned to water ski behind that boat. The boat has long since deteriorated, but I still have the engine and continue to look for an appropriate vintage boat to hang it on. We also had a step boat that wanted to flip over anytime you tried to negotiate a turn. The hull had a step built in it about halfway back from the bow. It was fast, but dangerous. We finally sold that one. I often wonder where it is today. 

We also had an ice boat. It was a huge thing with the tiller in the stern and a monstrous gaff rig sail and large jib. My nephew still has it. Dad had bought it out of the want ads and we brought it home on a warm summer Saturday when I was just a kid. There was no breeze to speak of, so we set it all up in the front yard of our St. Louis Park Home. We raised the sail and mom called us all in for lunch. A moment later, a policeman appeared at our door and asked about the ice boat. A breeze had come up and the boat had sailed down the hill in the front yard onto the street and was stopping traffic. You could see in the lawn where the three runners had cut through as it sailed off. 

When Larson Boat works in LittleFalls, Minnesota began to manufacture aluminum boats, they just couldn’t seem to make the venture profitable. So they sold the division to some local investors and they hired my father to run the operation. The name was originally Larson Watercraft, but later changed to Crestliner. I’ve been around water and old boats my whole life, but many of my fondest memories originate at the Excelsior Amusement Park when I first rode one of the inboards they used for providing rides to the public. Seeing many of the restore Chris Crafts and Hackercrafts at the August Boat Show brings me back to those good old days.

My Grandfather, Axel Lindquist, used to tell us stories about running away from Malmo, Sweden when he was thirteen. He talked about being a deck hand on the old square rigger sailing vessels. It was always one and for the ship and one hand for yourself. That meant that while you were up top in the rigging, you to hang on for dear life, but were required to continue to perform your duties with at least one free hand. He told about being up in the rigg-ing during a storm for thee days before he was allowed to come down. Grandpa died at age 93 and we never recorded any of his wonderful stories. That is what prompted me to become active in the Steamboat/Streetcar Division of the Minnesota Transportation Museum (MTM.)

reg Benson and I began our volunteer work on the Minnehaha as common bilge painters during the winter of 1993. We have both gone on to better things. He’s become Vice President of the BSLOL and I’ve become active in the MTM. I appreciate the many commonalities our two organizations share. I was fortunate to acquire a 1954 Larson dual cockpit runabout last summer. It was powered by a 35 hp electric start Evinrude. My original thought was to put the Speedy Twin on it, but the 35 really is perfect for it. The engine, however, has had some difficulties. It stranded me on at least three occasions in the middle of Minnetonka at about Sunday. I’ve been lucky. Someone has always come by to pull me back to shore. I’ve compared boats with Nancy Hoy, and here is certainly the standard I need to work toward. It’s only November, and I’m looking forewarned to getting mine back in the water and determining what needs to be fixed on the outboard. I look forward to the day I purchase one of the restorable Chris Crafts and set up a garage workshop to complete my dream.

I’ve attended many of the workshop-meetings at different locations around the cities. I’ve recruited some new membership for the club and worked at the club’s display at the Minneapolis Boat Show. But presently, I’ll have to remain a member at arms length until I can retire from an occupation that takes entirely too much time away from more important recreational activities. Have a great winter. I look forward to seeing you all at the 1998 Minneapolis Boat Show in January.