Replica of "Spray" being built

[capt jake]

And it is right downtown! I will have to go take a peak later this week as my motor is at the shop in the same general area!

http://theolympian.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050808/NEWS/813

[Mike Pennington]

That was an inspirational interview. The man's living my dream.

[capt jake]

I'll say! 16 years! Surprised I haven't spotted it, as I travel in that area occasionally.

[Stump]

Awesome!!

[Frank Hagan]

"Replica" of Spray? That's always cracked me up, as there are no lines for the Spray that Joshua Slocum sailed ... he cut three feet off the stern of a boat, much to the chagrin of the locals, and made it "funny looking".

Bruce Roberts sells a Spray series, is that what he's building?

[ChrisObee]

I would guess not. unless he has completely done his own thing with the deck houses. The lines of the hull don't look right either. It looks like it has more beam than the roberts spray.

[Brad Lustig]

The ship builder said the neighborhood seems more excited than he is about the boat's completion.

I can't imagine why? A 30' sailboat larger than the surrounding houses that's been under construction for 16 years? And the neighbors will be glad to see it completed? I just don't get it :wink:

It is a beautiful boat and cool story, though!

[John Turpin]

In the picture, notice the woman digging a hole in the ground next to it. Could this be for the builder? You can only push a wife so far on these lengthy projects. Trust me.

[neilbraun]

In the picture' date=' notice the woman digging a hole in the ground next to it. Could this be for the builder? You can only push a wife so far on these lengthy projects. Trust me.[/quote']

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Ken_Potts]

According to the article the builder purchased the plans from Pete Culler's widow.

Also I think the builder has been working on that boat longer than he's been married so she better not be digging that hole for him Presumably she knew what she was getting into.

[Brad Lustig]

Well, he originally said he'd have it finished in 6 years. He's been married for 12. And he's been working on it for 16 years. I like how he's blamed the extra 10 years on his committment to his wife. I think if it were up to his wife, he'd have finished in 5 years. Believe me, I've tried blaming my committment to my wife for not finishing projects around here. It just doesn't work

[Ken_Potts]

Aww, Man - And here I am with only my job to blame for taking so long on my boat.

Oh yeah - My job is what gives me the money to build...

[boatbuilder.org]

I moved back to Olympia about 15 years ago and got a place not far from from his boat and saw it several times a week ever since. Being a professional boatbuilder myself, it's been an interesting thing to watch. He did a very nice job, inside and out.

---Joel---

[brian watkins]

A few observations:

1. The lines of Spray were taken off after her round-the-world voyage, and there are enough pictures that the original design can be reconstructed. Most replicas have a deeper keel, and I believe this includes the one that Culler and his wife lived aboard and chartered (Spray, as built and ballasted, was potentially un-safe).

2. Spray, by modern standards, is a huge boat for it's length. With it's beam of about 14 feet (I'm going on memory), it's actually the size of most modern 44-48 footers. That's a very big project, especially if built to "yacht" standards.

3. Going to be fun getting it out of the yard!

[capt jake]

I think that Joel (boatbuilder.org) may be the same Joel from Devlin's shop? Am I correct?

[boatbuilder.org]

I'm the same guy.

---Joel---

[Frank Hagan]

Welcome, Joel. You guys do beautiful work!

[capt jake]

Yes, welcome Joel! I stop by your place once in a while just to drool. Last time you showed me the Surf Runner. Tha is a sweet boat!

[capt jake]

Well he launched it yesterday. I wish I had known, I would have gone down to watch it!

From 'The Olympian'.

Family launches labor of love

After 16 years, man sees his handmade boat set in water

BY CHRISTIAN HILL

THE OLYMPIAN

Zoya Nicholyavich endured for more than a decade while her husband, Nick, chased his dream.

She accepted the time they spent apart as he worked countless hours crafting his boat by hand in their front yard or working overtime to pay for its construction.

Nicholyavich sometimes would call her daughter, Liliya Stefoglo, on the telephone and lament that she was tired of it. Her daughter told her to look ahead to the fun the couple would have sailing together.

So on Friday, just before the 49-foot-long gaff sloop eased into Budd Inlet for its maiden voyage, Nicholyavich got more than just the knowledge her husband's all-consuming project was over.

She was presented with an "endurance award" -- a trophy featuring a sailboat -- for her sacrifice as her husband's "first mate."

"This is not an easy thing to endure," Stefoglo said after she christened the boat by breaking a bottle of champagne on the bow of Thunder. "I think she deserved that little trophy to the fullest and more."

The couple met when Thunder was nothing more than a wooden skeleton. They married 12 years ago, four years after Nick started the project.

"We were waiting a long time for this day," Zoya said. "My husband has more patience than any other person I ever knew. He's an amazing man."

And one who doesn't give up.

Thunder is a replica of Spray, the vessel famed Canadian sailor Joshua Slocum completely rebuilt and sailed solo around the world beginning in 1895. His book about the journey, "Sailing Alone Around the World," was published five years later. Slocum disappeared during a subsequent voyage to South America.

Sailing always has been in Nick's blood; his father and grandfather were sailors. When he read a book in 1980 about building and living aboard such a replica, he found his calling.

He set out to build his boat in 1989 with minimal assistance, the most basic of tools and a generous mix of patience and determination.

His perseverance paid off at 1:17 p.m. Friday, when Thunder settled into the waters next to Swantown Boatworks to the cheers of nearly 50 family members, friends and neighbors who turned out to see how the story would end.

"It's just right. It's just right," Nick said as Thunder sat perfectly level in the water.

Asked how he felt aboard his ship at last, the man of few words quoted a proverb from the Bible: "A longing fulfilled is sweet to the soul."

The couple plan to sell their home on Bigelow Avenue and live aboard Thunder until their new home is constructed in Boston Harbor.

His ship's mast won't be set until Monday, so Nick and Zoya stood at the wheel to motor Thunder around the marina to dock on the other side of the pier.

With a dream now realized, the scene spoke of many happy voyages to come.

[JeffM]

Hurrah for the Captain (and his long-suffering wife)! When he has some experience with her, I would like to know if this boat can be made to duplicate the amazing trick of holding course for long periods without attention to the helm. I am fascinated by that capacity of Slocum's boat, and wish I knew what characteristics of the boat made it possible.