“I don’t know how to do that. But I will figure it out and get back to you.”

This is my favorite part about working at Rockport Marine; I utter these words or similar almost every day. “Figuring it out” could take a couple of minutes, or it might take an entire day. It doesn’t really matter—either way it’s an enjoyable, challenging and rewarding way to spend your day.

At its core, design is puzzles and problem solving. The puzzles we have at Rockport Marine tend to be large, with a gajillion pieces ranging from new to beyond repair. There are pieces missing and there are extra pieces. Some of the pieces you will need are available in a catalog. Some you will have to invent and manufacture yourself. They are expected to fit together perfectly into a finished assembly whose physical beauty, quality of craftsmanship, elegance of engineering, and prowess under sail or power will inspire all who step aboard. Oh, I almost forgot. It should also last forever. Or maybe almost forever. Some of our grandkids might pursue this line of work and it is probably okay if a few things need fixing by then.

Rockport Marine is a busy place. So there are always puzzles in abundance. We don’t see most of them in the design office because they get solved by the crew and the project managers every day. The solutions take the form of ingenious jigs, and tools improvised or invented that increase the accuracy, efficiency, or otherwise improve the execution of the task at hand. I’d be surprised if we see 1% of the puzzles, but they tend to be good ones so I thought I might share a few.

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It’s been a while since I posted about the goings on in the design office here a Rockport. If you’ve been keeping tabs on us in other ways—Facebook, newsletters, or out on the water—you already know it has been a busy summer here at Rockport Marine and I hope you’ll forgive us for the radio silence from the design office. Every project is an all hands on deck effort as completion dates approach, and ADVENTURESS has proved no exception. We had a spectacular turnout at the launch, engine trials and sailing trials went smoothly, and we got to show her off at the Fife Symposium in Castine alongside a few of her cousins. Perhaps most memorably we had a fantastic few days of casual racing in the Castine Classic Yacht Race, the Camden Classic Feeder Race, and the Eggemoggin Reach Regatta. In fact, if there was a downside to that whole week it was that from the foredeck I never got to see how good she looked going about her business. It would be fair to say she was well received. In fact I think ADVENTURESS is the first of our projects to draw enough traffic to the website to crash the server. She did it twice.
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Late last week I went to an event at 10 High Street, an art gallery here in Camden, Maine.

I was there to support a friend whose paintings are featured there this month. At one point during the evening, I found myself on the receiving end of an inquiry about Spirit of Tradition yachts. You might expect, as my conversation partner did, that given what I do for a living and where I am permitted to do it, that I would be able to define that term. No sooner had I stammered something about performance underbodies coupled to long overhangs and modern sails, rigging, and mechanical systems, that several exceptions to my supposed rule sprang into my mind. As I prepared to extract myself from the conversation and further embarrassment, my interlocutor followed up with “Are there Spirit of Tradition powerboats?”

At this point Jessica Stammen, my friend whose work I had come to admire, came to my rescue and I was permitted to talk art instead of boats for a few minutes. Now I know considerably less about art, but the difference is that I am not expected to be able to speak intelligently on the subject and this was much more to my liking. By the way Jessica’s work is exceptional and I encourage you to stop by Ten High Street if you happen to be in the area. If you’re not in the area you can check out her work here…
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