August 1, 2026

Hello Fellow members,

As we turn the calendar page to August (AKA Dog Days), outdoor activities here in the South tend to slow to a crawl. The good folks in the North (ACBS HQ) have declared August 15th International Vintage Boating Day, so maybe that’s something you can participate in locally. The good news is that things start picking up in September through November on the boat show circuit, as well as other opportunities to enjoy our hobby.  More on that in the body of the newsletter.

We finally received, or so we thought, the proceeds of the Bill Baker estate earmarked for the scholarship fund, Unfortunately, due to a bank error, these monies have yet to be applied to the scholarship fund. John Justice is working with the estate’s bank to correct this matter so we can start the awards process. We have received formal requests for scholarship funds from Beaufort County Community College and Carteret County Community College, as well as our on-going scholarship for Cape Fear Community College. Thank you, Jim Alexander, for your efforts in aligning us with these institutions,

At the moment, I find myself in a very unusual situation; I have no operational power boats at this time. I can’t remember when I could be saying this, but it’s true. Father time is slowly catching up with me, so I have been lessening my load. I recently passed along “Shaken, Not Stirred”, our 15’ Cavalier, to a new owner in South Carolina. Although I still have the Jersey Speed Skiff I’ve been working on, but I’m not really sure I’d call it a user boat. Anyway, I have lots of friends with classic boats, so that will get me by in the short run.

That’s all I got for now. Y’all stay cool and get out there when you can!

Yours in classic boating, 

Alan Hills, President