Classic watercraft celebrated at Newport Beach festival
Among three first-time entries of Balboa Yacht Club’s eighth annual Newport Beach Wooden Boat Festival was Newport Beach resident Evan Krisher with his 28-foot 2002 mahogany-carbon runabout, which he named the Godfather.
Krisher purchased the boat from Orange Coast College after it was donated by the family of its previous owner, who had died. As he was disassembling the boat he found a towing card with that owner’s name on it and was able to connect with his son, who sent him a box containing the craft’s original building plans.
“I spent six months taking it down to bare wood after its original factory varnish was aged from 2002,” said Krisher. “I thought I basically stole the boat from the college for 40K; little did I know I [would spend] more to restore it than I paid for the boat.”
Jason Armstrong displayed his 65-foot trawler, a 1966 Drake, for the first time at the show. Armstrong said the vessel, named Vintage, was made to go to Baja in the 1960s and ’70s “and we still fish [off] this boat a lot.”
Cory Glass, also of Newport Beach, named his 19-foot 1938 Chris-Craft after his mother, Jackie Mae. Glass, who spent nine months doing restoration, is the fourth owner of the vessel and keeps a history album of original paperwork, photos and stories of previous owners.
This year’s festival also included a successful online silent auction of on- or near-the-water experiences donated by individuals and businesses in support of the festival’s efforts toward “maritime education, preservation and recreation,” according to the event’s website.
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