StarCraft Introduces New 1957 Ski Champ – It’s Complicated, And Yet Makes Perfect Sense

Brand Spanking New PHOTO Thomas Gruenauer, someone call Kent, or Steve? Holly?
Thanks to fellow WoodyBoater Thomas Gruenauer for sending this in from the big Toronto Boat Show. A Brand new 2025 1957 StarCraft Ski Champ limited edition boat. Yes, NEW, and yet, vintage all in the same breath. Here is the copy from the web page on it.
“Introducing the retro 1957 Starcraft Ski Champ, a stunning tribute to the golden age of boating. This direct replica of the iconic 1957 model captures the timeless charm and style of the era, offering an unparalleled vintage experience. With its sleek, retro design—modeled after the 1956 Chevrolet, complete with iconic rear fins—the Ski Champ effortlessly evokes the spirit of the 1950s when recreational boating first soared in popularity. Whether you’re cruising the lake or pulling up to the dock, this limited-edition, once-in-a-lifetime vessel is sure to turn heads and transport you back to the good ol’ days of summer. Don’t miss your chance to own a piece of boating history and relive the golden era of leisure on the water.”
Okay, lets break this down. Because why would StarCraft do such a thing. And at this price point. $16,995 is roughly $1,500 in 1957 Numbers. And yes, the 25 Mercury is included. So actually they even kinda managed to retain the same price point. Which is also cool as hell. But of course this still invites the question. WHY? It’s not like this is going to make StarCraft or SmokerCraft the parent company rich. In fact they probably are loosing money on it. Below is a video Matthew Kaprash from StarCraft explains it. Now, not sure if it’s a Canadian thing, or just over it, having to explain it over and over again. WE GET THAT FOR SURE. So ya gotta kinda separate that lack of emotion. Because this thing is cool as all get out, Maybe he is beyond thrilled in a Canadian Way. HA.
SO WHY? Well, Marketing. It’s real, and yes you can buy it, and yes all that is correct, but as a marketing tool it’s pure genus. Marketing these days, especially Branding is very difficult to make work in traditional media. So companies have resorted to innovative ways to communicate stuff. And reintroducing a very popular model, gets folks talking. Talking about StarCraft’s family heritage, and then that moves over to folks like us here, who talk about it, like right now, and BAM you have fed the viral beast. AND NOTHING, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING is better than 3rd party endorsement. Is it risky? Yes, but there in lies the brilliance of this. It makes you look without saying to much. Which is what I did, and found myself very impressed with the Company History and Values. So, there ya go. Complicated and yet Simple, and you now have had your marketing lesson for the day. I NEED A BOAT RIDE! And no, not in a beer can, a real boat A WOODY BOAT. See, RISKY!

HERE IS A LINK TO THE WEBSITE. They are only making 200 of these, so CHOP CHOP if you want one.
Well done, and it can be entered as a “contemporary classic” at a boat show!
Converting $16995 Canadian to US $11,895 for a boat, 25 hp and trailer; seems like an exceptionally good price to get into boating; with that light hull should have a great smile quotient
Canadian? I’m not so sure. No bumpers dangling.
The ACBS seems to be math challenged…1/25/1975 – 1/25/2025 = 49 years?
oh boy!
So after some deep research this is Correct. Its how stuff like this is done. So the ACBS is correct.
You are going to have to collect a bunch fingers and toes and show me how you can count from 1975 to 2025 and only come up with it being 49 years ago!
January 1975 – 0
1976 – 1
…
1985 – 10
1995 – 20
2025 – 50
Or are we not counting the COVID year?
I don’t want to sound like a “Grumpy Ol’ Man, but while I like the effort, the FIRST thing that catches my eye are the seat backrests. First thing was the color, HOT on a Summer’s Day, Two, no seat cushions, that back angle will hurt when hitting waves.
I love the color combination and what Mercury did with their outboard option.
Somehow I dont think folks would buy this for comfort. Its a fun conversation thing and like I said, brillient marketing
I hope they can sell as many as they can build. Imagine if G.M. built a “new” 55 Chevy, or 63 Corvette?
I know NISSAN remade, or would restor the 240 Z’s and Mercedes will restore a car at the factory. Kinda cool.
Slept in today, and it felt good. I just read the post. That is a cool little boat! I have a friend who had a Starcraft Dart. It was much like the boat featured. A 62 model, with a 69 25 Evinrude on it. We had a lot of fun in that little boat. This brought back a lot of memories. Starcraft makes a good boat (even though they are not made of wood). I have a lot of friends and family who own Starcraft’s. I have a 14″ fishing Starcraft. Great, fun little boat that requires very little maintenance. I hope they sell a lot of these little beauties.
I want One!!!
Jaguar recently produced a couple of new Etypes.