CARL SCHUMACHER
A
lameda yacht designer Carl Schumacher is used to looking at the world from more than one perspective. Some of that ability may stem from his grow¬ ing up lefthanded in a righthanded world, a condition which forces those affected to stretch their minds farther than their righthanded counterparts. For Schumacher, that training comes in handy, especially consider¬ ing the vocation he’s chosen for himself. Drawing pleasure boats is not a surefire way to fame and success, yet he has set a course for himself that may well end up there. At least he hopes so. “I was raised to believe that I should do the work I enjoy, try to be the best at it, and eventually the money would start coming in,” he says. For most of the five years he’s been work¬ ing independently, Carl’s office was a small, dark, concrete room with one large window overlooking the Alameda waterfront. Re¬ cently, however, he moved a few hundred feet to the north into a bright, wood panelled space, whiqh is adorned with trophies, photographs, books and even a full-size El Toro dinghy. Though not significantly big¬ ger, the new work area does exude a sense of moving up in the world. Indeed, with the successful Express 27, in full production and the winning custom designs of Summertime Dream and Wall Street Duck to his credit, Carl appears to be attaining his goals. Bespectacled and mild mannered with a bushy brown mustache, Carl isn’t one to stand out at a party or in the bar. In private, though, he’s quite capable of carrying on animated conversation, jumping from his upbringing in Newport Beach to theories of hull shape to thoughts on working for big corporations. “Sometimes I think life would be easier if 1 saw everything in black or white and I just charged ahead with what I thought was right,” he says. “My tendency is to see everybody’s point of view. Oh well.” To many, Carl appears self effacing, and almost shy, but it should also be pointed out that he is doing what many only dream about. At the age of 12 he began to realize he really wanted to draw boats for a living. Since then he hasn’t wavered in that pursuit. There have been times when the whole idea seemed preposterous, but his own desire and the support of his wife and family have lit the way. John Wayne he isn’t, but Gary Cooper will do just fine.
13 eing in, on and around boats has been part of Schumacher’s life ever since his father built a 22-ft Bill Garden design in their Southern California backyard back in 1954. When he was eight, they moved to the page I 29
Carl Schumacher.
developing waterfront community of Newport Beach. The family boat provided opportunities for outings between his dad’s busy schedule as an aiding pilot. At ten Carl started racing eight foot Sabot dinghies at the Balboa YC, graduating to the 15-ft Snipe later in high school. There was more to boats than just sailing, though. “He was always tinkering,” recalls Newport Beach racer and sailmaker Dave Ullman, who taught at the Balboa YC junior
program. Carl started sketching boats at a young age and he used to build and race model sailboats with Ron Holder (who later designed the trailerable Holder 20). In fact, the drawing board Carl uses today was a Christmas present he received when he was 12. “I set it up in my room,” he recalls, “and just started sketching.” Carl’s father, Richard, no doubt influenc¬ ed his son’s choice of vocation. He had wanted to be an aeronautical engineer but didn’t have the money to afford college at the time. Besides his commercial flying, Carl’s dad designed and built model
