Almost ready to row

Deepa Bharath

There will likely be a few family feuds and plenty of happy memories

this weekend at the Newport Harbor Nautical Museum, where 20 families

will each try to build a rowboat in just 16 hours.

This is the first time ever that the museum is hosting this Boat

Building Event, said Glenn Zagoren, the museum’s president and chief

executive.

The event is the brainchild of Wooden Boat Magazine, which pitched

the idea to the museum, he said.

“We thought it was a great idea,” Zagoren said. “We set out to get

20 boats built, and all the spots were sold out in two days.”

Each family pays $75 to build a 9-foot wooden rowboat that costs

about $450, he said.

“But more than the money, it’s a family team-building

opportunity,” Zagoren said. “It’s an event where everybody

participates. They’re all in it together.”

The boat calls for a lot “construction work,” he said.

“So we’d do most of the heavy cutting,” Zagoren said. “We’d like

everyone to come in with 10 fingers and leave with 10 fingers.”

Families will also try to float and race their brand new boats

under the supervision of Orange County Harbor Patrol deputies Sunday

afternoon.

There will be trophies and awards for all families, including one

for the best boat, the team “with the best intentions” (if not the

best product), the youngest and oldest teams and the team with “the

most enthusiasm.”

“We don’t want anyone to leave disappointed,” Zagoren said.

He said Newport Beach will have the Wooden Boat Magazine’s biggest

boat building event in Southern California. Five boats are being

built at the San Diego Maritime Museum, he said.

“Next year, we may even have 30 or 40,” Zagoren said. “The

response this year has been overwhelming.”