It’s One Thing To Love Your Lapstrake. It’s Another To Trust It With Your Life!

David out to sea..

Winner of the past two years biggest balls award and again this year goes to fellow and long time Woody Boater David Konick and his trusty side kick Sea Skiff. For those of you who are new to David. David likes to go fishing.. OK, nothing exciting there..Sea Skiffs are perfect for that.. Ya see, David likes to go real fishing. Like for Tuna.. Like 30 miles out at sea.. 30 miles.. in the Atlantic Ocean.

I got nuthin more I can add to this image. Who caught who?

That’s not just Lapstrake love. It’s, well a bond of man and fastener. If you look closely Davids skin actually is starting to look like planks of wood. When he had surgery, the Dr. used silicon bronze… rim shot here… Davids nice Sea Skiff has been featured here on Woody Boater countless times as have his stories of fishing. But it would not have been a Lapstrake Love week without mentioning it again, And with some new images.

What is cool about Davids  Chris-Craft Sea Skiff, is it’s factory color, it’s great early lines, and the fact that David uses the crap out of it. It is what Woody boating is in it’s purest form. It has blood and guts all over it, used all the time.

I wasn't kidding!

Continually maintained, up dated and deeply loved. One of Davids runs in his own words.. I chee wawa!

“I know you all think I am crazy to go that far out, but I grew up fishing out of Lewes, Delaware and Palm Beach so I know what the weather can do.  I don’t go out if the forecast is “iffy” and when I am out, I watch it.   And the Sea Skiff is the best boat I ever ran including some 40+ footers.  Yes it is a wet boat in a sea, but it is the best handling in any  kind of sea I have ever run — bar none..  If it gets rough, you just have to slow down. Even at 10 knots, I am only 2 or 3  hours offshore and you just have to grit your teeth and tough it out.  As the advertisement says — it is “brawny”!  I have a GPS and also a marine CB radio in case of trouble — also TowBoat  insurance!  They come and bring you home up to 50 miles.

On a nice day.. You can see.. Russia?

One time I had to run through a thunderstorm about 15 miles offshore on the way home.  It got pretty black. The rain beats down the sea, so that’s not an issue, it’s the lightening that bothers me.  I put the top up and figured there’s no way lightening could come through that canvass.  It won’t will it?”

Shot right before hurricane Earl

Davids Sea Skiff is a 1954 Model, No. SK22-155, built in the Cadillac, Michigan plant Delivered May 1954. This was before they moved Sea Skiff production to Salisbury, MD.
Below is a great video slide show of the history.

The original owners were the grandparents of Robert Henckel (Chris Craft Parts, Inc)
in Harsen’s Island, just across the river from Algonac. Until I bought her in Sept 2007,
she never left Harsen’s Island.

The second owner was Michael Martin, Grosse Point Farms & Harsens Island, Michigan
All original — Model K engine.

Dang. Good stuff and a wonderful way to bring Lapstrake love to a close.. Thanks to the gang that all chipped in. We got a bunch of fun shots from readers and will share them soon.