TOPIC: 2015 Antique Boat Museum Show - Clayton, NY

Just got back from 51st annual Clayton show with my 1966 MFG Niagara. I had planned last summer to attend this show with it, even though my Niagara is a very simple, entry-level outboard fiberglass boat - not even the Custom model but a base one, and powered with a 1963 Mercury 350 twin in Phantom Black and lots of chrome.

I wanted to see if in among all the beautiful mahogany craft, a small boat like my "Little Blue" could fit in with the "big-boys". It's all un-restored and in great shape. I didn't care if I won anything - just wanted to be there.

In any case, it took the ACBS award for Best Non-Wood Boat at the show, which really astounded me. My personal favorite fiberglass boat was a gorgeous restored 1955 Arena Craft Barracuda.

The show itself was fantastic. The ABM people were first rate and as our North Coast Ohio Chapter of ACBS was the featured chapter this year, there were lots of activities to keep us busy when not looking at all the boats. Lyman was the featured marque, and there were about 45 of them there, out of a total of 84 or so boats. My wife and I also have a friend who works at the museum and we learned a lot of things from her we did not know before about both the museum and the 1000 Islands region. We took part in the parade and then took 'Little Blue" on a 1000 Islands cruise before pulling her out and heading home.

It was an even bigger surprise when I went to the WoodyBoater blog this morning, and there was a shot of the yachthouse leading today's posting, part two of Clayton coverage. There on the right, docked behind the Barracuda, was "Little Blue".

Amazing! I'm thinking maybe it fit in because of the molded lapstrake-style of those pressure-molded hulls MFG made, making it look more like a Lyman.

Check out:

www.woodyboater.com/blog/2015/08/05/clayton-o-smith-jr-part-deux-and-it-just-keeps-getting-better/

Also:

www.woodyboater.com/blog/2015/08/04/its-here-kent-o-smith-jr-reports-in-live-ish-from-clayton-ny-part-1/

In any case, it was a great show! Highly recommend that everyone in this hobby should attend at least one Clayton show in their lifetime. It was on my bucket list, for sure.

Congrats!! There is a lot to be said about an original boat in great shape. They are only original once.

I have a Rexcraft lummie that is in good, but far from perfect, original condition that I've been holding off restoring. But I'm redoing a Merc Mk 58 for it now, so I may have to rethink that once I have a shiny motor on a not so shiny boat.

Very cool, congrats Dave and thanks for sharing!

Nice. That's a show I want to get to someday