SHORELINES

14 a p c s hor e l i n e s.c om | 2016 Vol :4 them out of the sun, these boats will last forever." And, notes their owner – who tells friends he's "saving up for a fiberglass boat" – wooden boats more than hold their value. Like Clark, Jeff Baggett owns both old and newer wooden boats, which are stored at his property on Smith Lake. One is a 1965 Chris-Craft Super Sport in original condition, with a 327 Corvette engine. The other is a 30-foot, triple-cockpit Hacker-Craft, built in 1999 from a 1937 design by powerboat pioneer John Hacker. Located on New York's Lake George, the Hacker Boat Company (founded in 1908) is the world's largest builder of classic mahogany motorboats. "You can't call it a reproduction because they never stopped making them," Baggett says. "Nick Saban owns the same boat, except the upholstery is crimson." This blast from the past combines classic streamline style with modern construction and technology – the best of boat worlds. "I love fast stuff," declares Baggett. Having restored and raced cars, he relishes the tradition of craftsmanship and performance that vintage powerboats embody. At the Trident Marina dock, onlookers are admiring Bill Weber's Chris-Craft. Sure enough, someone asks if he'd sell it, and at what price. Weber pauses, thinking of the countless hours he put into restoring Betty Mae, perhaps imagining his young great-grandsons one day taking the helm. "I can't arrive at that figure," he replies. —JEFF BOOK Above: Photo by Bernard troncale – The beauty and craftsmanship of vintage boats are evident in this image of the Chris-Craft's bow pointing toward the horizon of Smith Lake. Centerfold: Photo by Bernard troncale – Dudley Weber and his father, Bill, open up the throttle of the Chris-Craft's Hercules four-cylinder flathead engine.

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