Dockside - Late Summer 2011

Mid-Summer 2011

Picnic Perfect: Fun food and drink ideas

Wakeboarding

Takes Off

PLUS:

Hangin’ with the Shockwaves

Shoreline Landscaping

✦ Lakeshore Restoration ✦ Erosion Mitigation ✦ Retaining Walls ✦ Natural Buffers ✦ Beach Patios & BBQ Pits Small to Major Projects Local references available—code compliant work

2

Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011

952-496-3105 www. mngreen.com

Lake Minnetonka...

DOCKSIDE Publisher:

Jennifer Sorenson jsorenson@swpub.com

Editor:

Angelo Gentile agentile@swpub.com

Designer:

Brian Sorenson

Paradise Style!

Save $3 per ticket!

Daily Public Tours & Private Charters

Use Code SWP0311 Online!

Contributors this issue: Richard Crawford, Kristin Holtz, Daniel Huss, Sarah Tieck Advertising Sales: 952-345-6477 Dockside is published quarterly by Southwest Newspapers. For advertising information, call 952-345-6477. For general comments and questions, send e-mail to agentile@swpub.com or call 952-345-6676.

• Company Parties • Client Entertaining • Rehearsals • Weddings • Receptions • Birthdays • Sweet 16s • Anniversaries

Visit us online at: www.docksidemagazine.mn All contents copyright © 2011, Southwest Newspapers.

ABOUT DOCKSIDE MAGAZINE

2011 PUBLIC CRUISING SCHEDULE! Mon-Wed-Fri. 11:30-1 PM Narrated Sightseeing Cruises ....................................................................... $13.50 Tuesday Night Happy Hour & Pizza Cruise Free Pizza! ................................................................................................................................... $25.50 Sunday Brunch, 11 AM-1 PM Includes Brunch, Sodas, Juices & Coffee! ........................................................................ $30.50

We love our lakes in Minnesota, in every season. Dockside Magazine covers lake life all year round.

Publishing four times a year, the magazine invites readers to enjoy an engaging mix of features covering lifestyle-related stories and recreational-oriented topics, capturing the passion we have for playing and living on our gorgeous Minnesota lakes.

We focus our attention on Lake Minnetonka, Prior Lake, and all of the scenic lakes in our southwest metro region.

Welcome to life on the lake.

To advertise, contact Jennifer Sorenson, 952-345-6477, jsorenson@swpub.com.

952.474.8058

216538

www.TwinCitiesCruises.com Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011

3

departments

features

Marina

14 Boat Finds Discovering those diamonds in the rough.

Lake Lifestyles

8

Making a Splash Hanging out with the Shakopee-Prior Lake Shockwaves.

Dockside Edibles

6 Recreation

Picnic Perfect Noshing on the deck or the dock.

ON THE COVER Wakeboarding? Eden Prairie’s Kevin Brooke has it down, upside down, on Lake Riley. Photo by Daniel Huss.

11

Wet, Wild, Wakeboarding Finding a sport that’s leaving water skiing in its wake.

All contents © 2011, Southwest Newspapers

Visit us online at www.docksidemagazine.mn

SCAN TO SEE THIS BOAT IN ACTION!

Life looks better in a TAHOE®.

STANDARD WITH SMILE ENHANCING TECHNOLOGIES.

Every TAHOE runabout comes with our exclusive Smile Enhancing system. Using comfortable and versatile layouts, high-performance hull designs and powerful engine pairings, this innovative system is sure to widen the smiles on everyone’s face, resulting in pictures and memories you’ll be laughing about for years to come.

BRAINERD, MN 218.829.1111 RAMSEY, MN 763.323.8272 SHAKOPEE, MN 952.233.3434 RICE LAKE, WI 715.236.2628 Q

Q

Follow us on:

Q

Q

facebook.com/tahoeboats

CRYSTALPIERZ.COM YSTALP

Q

S 2,000 SAVING

$ GET

on the purch

FO

Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011

Q5 SF packag

e

TIME ONLY! R A LIMITED

TAHOE® Q5 SF

22,995

$

PRICE AFTER SAVINGS!

Boat, Motor & Trailer w/MerCruiser® 4.3L 190HP Plus dealer prep and destination charges.

Q

BUY ANY NEW BOAT PACKAGE AND RECEIVE UP TO 20% OFF MOST ITEMS FROM BASS PRO SHOPS® FOR 2 YEARS. SOME RESTRICTIONS APPLY. See www.basspro.com/vip for details.

Boat photos may show optional equipment. Details in pricing, savings, features and promotions may vary by location and are subject to change without notice.

See your local dealer for complete information. Prices shown are based on United States Currency or Funds. © 2011 Tracker Marine Group

4

ase of TAHOE

Editor’s Note A mix of contributors

This issue of Dockside features a mix of writers.

Sarah Tieck, who wrote our Dockside Edibles story on cool food ideas for picnics, is just one of several talented freelance writers who contribute to the magazine. She regularly writes for Dockside and her work has appeared in a number of other magazines, such as Minnesota Monthly.

Additionally, because Dockside is a part of Southwest Newspapers, Inc., we also call on the creativity of writers, reporters, and editors who work for our seven community newspapers.

From only $2995

Dan Huss wrote the feature in this issue on the wet and wild sport of wakeboarding (those are his photos, too). Huss has worked for the Eden Prairie News for nearly 15 years. He’s an award-winning sports writer and editor and also has received the Eden Prairie High School Distinguished Service Award, which is presented by the school’s coaches.

Kristin Holtz wrote the story on the Shockwaves and shot the photos. She is a staff writer for the Shakopee Valley News. In addition to producing an impressive variety of news and feature stories for that paper’s print and online editions, she also works as an assistant editor for our company’s magazines Dockside and Savvy.mn.

Richard Crawford regularly produces the boat-related pieces for our magazine’s Marina department, including the story in this issue.

Crawford, who lives in Deephaven, has worked for more than 25 years in the newspaper business. He is the publisher and editor of the Chanhassen Villager and publisher of the Chaska Herald.

As always, we welcome your ideas and thoughts about this magazine. Contact me at agentile@swpub.com.

See and Demo a WR17. Visit www.windrider.com and click EVENTS or call 612-338-2170.

Do you want fun, versatility, affordability and simplicity in sailing? Easy handling WindRider is your answer! WindRider trimarans have foot pedal steering, below-the-boom seating, and a forward facing cockpit. Because WindRiders are quick to launch, durable and low maintenance, you can spend more time in the water sailing. Happy Sailing.

Angelo Gentile Editor, Dockside

1226 Linden Ave. Minneapolis, MN 55403 www.windrider.com

Scan here for video! or call 612-338-2170 to have a video mailed to you.

Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011

5

Call Justin at 952.715.1273 to schedule your design consultation today!

Dockside Edibles

www.GGPoutdoors.com Experience excellent landscape design and exceptional customer service. From unique landscape designs, consultation, installation and complete maintenance services, GGP Outdoors Inc. offers unparalleled professionalism with over 20 years industry experience. Qualityy of service is key in creating your our d dreamscape.

FREE

Landscape Design Consultation (no stipulations) New clients only. Present coupon after estimate.

Not to be combined.

Services include:

• Fire Features • Water Features • Natural Stone Veneers • Patios • Walkways • Walls • Outdoor Kitchens • Complete Landscape Design • Full-service Lawn Care

217218

ANDERSON WELDING SERVICE GENERAL REPAIR • WELDING • BRAZING • TRAILER HITCHES WINDOW SECURITY BARS • BOAT DOCKS AND ACCESSORIES

Picnic Perfect

You create the need, I’ll find the solution!

RONNIE ANDERSON Dunwoody Graduate 492 NORTH PRIOR AVENUE ST. PAUL, MN 55104

651.646.8321

ESTABLISHED 1930

By Sarah Tieck

203601

VXR® CHANGES EVERYTHING.

IN STOCK NOW! BIG ENGINE + LIGHTWEIGHT HULL = 0 TO 30 MPH IN 1.8 SECONDS. Outpacing everything else, the VXR comes stock with a robust 4-stroke, 1.8 liter High Output Yamaha marine engine that rockets across the water with just a touch of the throttle. No other PWC offers this much displacement in a performance value package – without the added cost of a supercharger. This affordable powerplant is precision matched with an ultra lightweight NanoXcel® hull engineered and built to maximize the excitement of edge-to-edge lean. The all-new VXR offers the best all-around value while delivering the highest fun factor on the water.

Watercraft • Parts • Accessories • Service 1301 Greenwood Ct - Shakopee, MN 55379 (952) 224-2054 www.citiesedge.com ©2011 Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A. All rights reserved. Follow instructional materials and obey all laws. Ride responsibly, wearing protective apparel. Always ride within your capabilities, allowing time and distance for maneuvers, and respect others around you. Don’t drink and ride. For more information, visit yamaha-motor.com or call 1.800.88.YAMAHA. 184940

6

Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011

Hot trends, cool ideas for summer parties.

Eating seasonably and local is a trend that never goes out of style. But that’s not why blogger Kathy Lewinski and her husband explore the farmers’ market in the summer months. They are there in search of food inspiration. “We walk around and see what is available then create our week’s menu based on what looks good,” she says. “Talking to the farmers about what they are growing is a great place to get ideas too.”

Get Out of the Kitchen: There’s nothing like the scent of a grill on a summer night. “In the summer for us it’s all about the grill and the smoker,” Lewinski says. “We love to throw a pork butt or some ribs on the smoker in the morning and have a bunch of people over to eat it in the evening.”

You don’t have to cook anything in your house, says Tessa Leung, owner of the award-winning Söntés restaurant in Rochester. She makes use of the grill and fresh herbs from the garden by creating compound butters and then using them to panfry fresh-caught fish or as a steak topper.

It never hurts to have a favorite food that friends and family can anticipate. Leung’s friends devour the “Magic Onion” — a cross between French onion soup and fried onions, while Lewinski likes her dad’s Memphis ribs.

“I find the real crowd pleasers to be classics with a twist, like my Iowa Burgers and Grilled Strawberry Chicken, with plenty of freshly shucked corn-on-the-cob and cold watermelon on the side,” says Kristin Porter, blogger behind the popular Iowa Girl Eats.

Food Adventures: Fusion foods and global flavors are always popular. “I adore recreating meals that I’ve eaten while traveling, like Homemade Pasta allo Scoglio inspired from a trip to Southern Italy, or spicy Shrimp and Sweet Corn Maque Choux that I thought about for days after a trip to New Orleans,” Porter says.

Food inspiration is everywhere for Lewinski, too. “I like to recreate or reinvent dishes from restaurants where we’ve eaten,”

she says. “Food blogs are also a great resource, especially those from people in an area similar to yours as they are often cooking what is in season for you.”

Cocktail Hour: Summer drinks are bright and savory, making use of what’s fresh and in season, Leung says. “Fruit and herbs are huge in drinks right now.”

Slimmed-down drinks are hot. Porter’s summertime staple is her Skinny Mojito.

“A sprinkle of sugar is muddled with fresh mint leaves and a fresh lime wedge, before ice, light rum, and diet lemon-lime soda join the party,” she says.

More restaurateurs are offering wine dinners — Lewinski puts an at-home twist on it by pairing beers with food in summer.

And, she’s been serving beer from Harriet Brewing when entertaining. “For the summer it is hard to beat a cold beer,” Lewinski says.

BLOG RECIPES Pasta allo Scoglio: http://iowagirleats.

com/2010/09/26/how-to-make-homemade-pasta-cook-fresh-seafood/ Iowa Burger: http://iowagirleats. com/2011/04/23/the-iowa-burger/ Grilled Strawberry Chicken: http://iowagirleats.com/2011/04/06/easy-grilledchicken-dinner-how-to-not-stop-mid-run/ Skinny Mojito: http://iowagirleats. com/2010/07/04/just-relax-and-take-itslow/ Dad’s Memphis Ribs: http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com/2008/06/dads-memphis-ribs.html

HOW TO MAKE A MAGIC ONION Peel an onion and trim the ends. Set the core side down. Then cut two slices — about 3/4 of the way down — forming an X. Stuff a beef bouillon cube into the center, then stuff 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter into the cracks. Double wrap in foil and grill for about one hour.

Get the Muck

Over 65 years service experience

OUT!

Tune-Ups Major to Minor Repairs All Major Brands Boat, Motor and Trailer Repairs Authorized sales & service

952-445-4400

133 Prairie Street South • Shakopee www.shakopeemarine.com

Marble size AquaClearTM Pellets clear your lake or pond bottom.

Safe. Sound. Secure.® Since 1916 Save money with Auto-Owners Insurance Multi-Policy Discounts!

Call or visit us

223 1st Street East, Suite 100 Jordan, MN 55352 952-492-2300 www.ibjordan.com

Beneficial microorganisms. Restore balance in natural and man made surface waters.

Increase water clarity. Improve water quality.

Eliminate black organic muck.

A 10 lb. bag treats 0.5 to 1.0 acres $69.95 A 50 lb. bag treats 2.5 to 5.0 acres $269.95 Apply weekly for 4 weeks, then monthly to maintain. No water use restrictions!

FREE SHIPPING!

800-328-9350 www.KillLakeWeeds.com/71LX

Our

56th year

Or wri wr write te e for fo FRE FREE REE E infor in information format mation ion to: to:

AQUACIDE CO.

10748, PO Box 10748 10 748,, DEP DEPT. T. 71LX, 71LX, White Bear Lake, MN 55110-0748

Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011

7

Lake Lifestyles

Making a

Splash!

Every summer, the Shakopee-Prior Lake Shockwaves perform an impressive array of crowd-pleasing tricks and acts on the water.

Story and Photos By Kristin Holtz 8

Dockside â—† Mid-Summer 2011

Standing atop a six-person pyramid while being pulled across a lake at 18 miles an hour isn’t exactly for the faint of heart. But it sure makes spectacular entertainment.

The human water-skiing pyramid is just one of a large number of stunning tricks and acts performed every summer by the Shakopee-Prior Lake Shockwaves. The show team has been dazzling audiences with towering pyramids, highflying jumps, and uncommon barefoot water skiing for more than 50 years.

With about 50 performers, the group is the largest and most visible facet of the ShakopeePrior Lake Water Ski Association, performing its live-action show across Minnesota and the Midwest each summer.

Behind the scenes Making those daredevil tricks look effortless requires months of work.

Show director Tyler Pickney of St. Paul began designing this year’s show, “Prime Time Ski V,” back in January. It features acts inspired by television shows such as “Laverne and Shirley,” “Baywatch” and ESPN. A new trick, the one-act show, will include a pyramid, barefooter, and jumper all at once. The oldest water ski association in the state is also bringing back the barefoot pyramid.

By April, skiers begin dry-land practice and are on the water May 1. They meet two evenings a week at the private Quarry Lake in Shakopee.

pyramid, dock starts, and synchronization. They also learn how to “bail” safely and wrap knotfree ropes.

Show team members must be versatile and team players, says Surkamp, who skied 20 years with the Shockwaves.

To pull those skiers on a lake or river, the club’s custom boats use twin 225-horsepower engines.

“You need the power to pull this amount of people off the dock,” explains boat driver Nat Svela, who began skiing with the club at age 6.

Svela, of Prior Lake, followed the footsteps of his dad, Dean, who drove towboat for 20 years.

Having skied the acts, Svela knows the show patterns. The secret to multi-skier dock starts is the timing, he says. “It’s a feel, and you sure get it after driving for awhile.”

Family skiing: Mom Melissa helps with sound and Ella, 4, attends every show.

“What better way to spend your summer than being out at the water with your family,” Tim says.

Residence: Shakopee

Family affair For many club members, Shockwaves is a family affair.

Paul and Doreen and their kids – Maggie, 18; PJ, 20; Donny, 22 – all perform.

Patrick Fitzgibbons, 19, was just a toddler when his parents joined the club. “We were all pretty much born into it,” he says about his siblings.

Age: 11

How she started: Her grandparents live on a lake.

Shockwaves performer: 4 years Family involvement: Mom, Denise, is a former show director; sister, Shelby, 8, also skis.

Favorite act: Doubles because it’s the most challenging. “It’s just you and another guy and you don’t have anybody else,” she says.

Erik Gorsuch Age: 23 Residence: Minneapolis

Show team members say what they love most are the friendships formed over the years.

Shockwaves performer: 8 years

Svela, the boat driver, compared it to being part of a big family.

Family involvement: Previously, dad managed the dock, mom helped with costumes and sister skied.

The Shakopee-Prior Lake Shockwaves is made up of skiers from age 8 to mid-40s.

Yet, beyond the family togetherness and the forging of friendships, in the end, the skiers are performers who love the adrenaline of show time.

Skiers perform the inverted pyramid, clockwise from top left, Denise Hennen of Shakopee, Jenny Bushek of Plymouth, Sara Bahnsen of St. Paul, Charlie Woodson of Minnetonka and Mike Aretz of New Hope.

“It’s really cool when you build that big pyramid and you’re skiing by and the crowd’s cheering,” Tim Fitzgibbons says.

Facing page:

Acts: The guys perform barefoot, pyramids, trick skiing, and jumping. Molly, the girls’ pyramid.

Without a permanent show location – future plans are to make Quarry Lake a public park – boats, the ski jump, floating dock, and equipment must be transported and set up for each show.

“It’s a great way for a family to spend a summer,” Paul McGinty says.

During practice, skiers rehearse climbing the

Residence: Shakopee

Dani Hennen

Performers

Eleven years later, she still only wears skis once, for the ballet line.

Tim, 44; Patrick, 19; Ryan, 16; and Molly, 11

The club has about 50 pairs of water skis of different lengths and purposes, as well as dozens of ropes, helmets, costumes, and lifejackets.

Take the McGinty family of Lakeville, which has been part of the team for seven years.

Sara Bahnsen, 16, had never skied when she joined the club. Like many girls, she started as a climber on the shoulders of a male skier clambering to the top of a pyramid.

Fitzgibbons family

Equipment

“When you start practice, it all feels disjointed and you wonder how it’s going to come together,” says Michelle Surkamp, a SPLWSA board member and former show director. “Somehow when you have that first show it all works.”

Knowing how to water ski is not a Shockwaves’ requisite.

Profiles

Favorite act: Barefoot skiing. When he started at age 8, he was the top of the barefoot pyramid. “Now I base it. It’s a cool progression,” he says.

Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011

9

Beyond the show team Founded in 1957 by Jim Petersen, the 180-plus-member ShakopeePrior Lake Water Ski Association is more than a show team.

Club members compete in state, regional, and national tournaments in three traditional disciplines of slalom, jump, and trick skiing.

The club also offers general public ski and wakeboard lessons, as well as clinics and open ski nights. They have a junior development team for ages 8 to 16.

Learn more at splwsa.org.

Watch the Shockwaves 7 p.m. July 20 – Plymouth Parker’s Lake 6 p.m. July 23 and 1 p.m. July 24 – Hoyt Lakes, Minn.

1 p.m. Aug. 7 – Prior Lake TBA Aug. 10 – Plymouth Parker’s Lake

10

Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011

Recreation

A sport that’s leaving water skiing in its wake

Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011 11 Story and Photos By Daniel Huss

resembles something in between a water ski and a kneeboard. The rider stands on the board with the feet pointing off to the side of the board.

Riders like wakeboarding because wakeboards allow lift off the wake, making a multitude of tricks in the air possible. In short, wakeboarding is like slalom skiing sideways on a short, but wide slalom ski.

Boats change, too Wakeboarding’s popularity has exploded.

And, as Mueller explains, it has even influenced the type of boat and accessories that people are buying these days.

Andrew Larson, a soon-to-be Eden Prairie High School senior, spent four years learning how to perform a wakeboard flip (invert). Now, he makes it look like child’s play. Lake Riley is his playground.

In his younger days, Rob Mueller had been a kneeboarder, and a pretty good one, too, before setting foot (feet?) on a wakeboard.

“I’ve never been on a kneeboard since,” says Mueller, a salesman for the Mueller family-owned Minnesota Inboard Water Sports inboard dealer in Excelsior.

With a nod to the Y generation and its preference for wilder and more extreme forms of recreation, the 24-year-old wakeboarder explains the sports popularity—both on area lakes and nationally—by lauding its boundless creative side.

“It’s pretty tough to hit the limit,” he says, “so there’s always room for progression. Besides, kids don’t like to do the same things their parents did.”

Is he taking a shot at waterskiing? “There’s still a following,” he says of the crowd that prefers waterskiing to wakeboarding.

Like Mueller, Andrew Larson, a soon-to-be Eden Prairie High School senior, gets it. “It was a blast when I first started wakeboarding,” he says, “and it’s a blast today. It’s fun no matter what.”

He’s just saying that because he can do fancy tricks like raleys, inverts, grabs, and who knows what else, right? “It took four years before I could do my first flip,” Larson explains. He says he’s been wakeboarding for eight years. “I learned to slalom ski last summer. I guess I wanted to see if I could do it…

Wakeboarding is more fun.”

So, just what exactly is wakeboarding?

According to the Boat-Towed Sports Glossary, wakeboarding is a form of waterskiing where both feet are attached to a board that

12

Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011

“Used to be that, when people bought boats, they’d say, ‘oh, I don’t want one with a tower.

Now, they have to, if just for resale. This year, we sold five boats without towers, 80 with towers.” The towers are needed for water sports like wakeboarding.

The same goes, Mueller says, for boats with ballast systems.

Ballast?

Ballast, in terms of water sports, is the act of adding weight to a boat in order to create a bigger wake. A bigger wake, in turn, means bigger air for wakeboarders and bigger air means more time and opportunity to do tricks.

Although there are all kinds of ways to add weight, the Fat Sac brand is considered the “water bladder” standard. With the aid of a pump, you can fill and empty 400-500 pounds of water within minutes.

A new wakeboard boat can cost upwards of $80,000, Mueller says.

On occasion, Larson, the high schooler, gets to ride behind one of these tricked-out boats. Most of the time, however; he rides behind an older boat.

Larson performs a trick called a raley--body extended back with board above your head. Larson landed this raley. If he didn’t, they’d call that a faceplant.

“A Larson ski boat,” he says. “It has a tower and two fat sacs.”

A Great Day on the Lake starts with…

What about wakesurfing?

Mueller is quick to sing the praises of wakeboarding. However, that said, he is also the first to admit that wakesurfing is quickly becoming the next big thing.

Similar to wakeboarding, wakesurfers ride a boat’s wake on a reducedfat sized surfboard. You start like you’d start on a wakeboard. Once you get going, however, you can surf without being attached to the boat. It’s like riding an ocean wave, only not.

Wakesurfing might be the next big thing. Here, Eden Prairie’s Mitch Lenhard hangs 10 on Lake Minnetonka.

“[Wakesurfing] is taking over,” says Mueller. ‘There’s not a boat we sell that goes out the door without a board.” With wakesurfing, “There’s not the risk of getting injured and it’s more social. Even though you’re behind the boat, you still feel involved. You might be surfing, but you can still carry on conversations.”

Another advantage wakesurfing has over wakeboarding or waterskiing is that you can surf in rough or busy water.

As a testament to wakesurfing’s rise in popularity, Mueller says that five years ago, he sold two to three different kinds of wakesurfing boards. “Now,” he adds, “we offer 20 models and we sell some 300 boards a year.”

Beyond wakesurfing, wakeskating is still another water sport on the rise. Its ceiling, however, is limited.

A new deck, boat or jet ski!

Stop in to South Metro Federal Credit Union and talk to a loan officer about a Home Equity Loan for that new deck or a loan for a new boat, jet ski or RV.

Boat and RV Loans Seasons change. Lifestyles change. Experience both with a boat, camper or RV. South Metro Federal Credit Union will lend up to 100% of its NADA value (new OR used!) and you can take up to 60 months to repay.

Your home could be your best borrowing alternative.

Home Equity Loans • • • •

Variable or Fixed Rate Loans Loans up to 80% of your home’s value Up to 15 years to pay A second mortgage, so you can keep your lowinterest first mortgage If you live, work or worship in Scott County, join today.

“It’s difficult to do,” says Mueller. “I bet there are only five people in Minnesota who can jump the wake on a skate and I probably know all five.”

Still committed to wakeboarding For now, wakeboarding’s popularity continues to be strong. Indeed Mueller and Larson and other similarly inclined thrill-seekers can be found frequently this summer on area lakes, doing whatever it takes to get out and enjoy that big air.

For example, at the end of May, Larson and classmate Kevin Brooke were already heading out to Chanhassen’s Lake Riley on three different nights. “We come out at 7:30 on weekdays,” he says.

“We’ll each take a couple turns and then we’ll go home.”

Question: Who pays for the gas?

Whatever it takes.

2573 Credit Union Drive, Prior Lake • (952) 445-0888

www.southmet.com Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011

217387

“We mow a lot of lawns,” says Brooke.

13

Marina

Boat Finds

Local boat restorer looks for diamonds in the rough A 1964 Chris Craft Super Sport was discovered as part of Mahogany Bay’s vintage boat treasure hunt. It had 240 hours on the hour gauge and had been in mini storage since 1988. The engine was serviced and ran “perfectly.”

As part of the treasure hunt, a website was created to list the lost boats with three finalists receiving scale models of classic boats.

Some of the boats listed at www.vintageboattreasurehunt.com are for sale.

While the official treasure hunt ended in June, Mahogany Bay continues to look for “lost” boats and will be adding them to the website during the course of the summer.

By Richard Crawford

became the dominant boat material.

For more than 30 years, a Spring Park man kept a classic wood boat under a tarp at his home. When fiberglass boats came on the market, the wooden boat was put under wraps and it has remained there since this summer.

Minnesota was home to 239 boat builders over the years, Kaul explains. Today, however, there are only 17 wood boat manufacturers worldwide.

After hearing about a vintage boat treasure hunt, the brainchild of Mahogany Bay classic boat company, it was time for the boat to come out of the closet.

Many wooden boats were burnt when fiberglass arrived on the seen in the 1960s. “Our quest is to find wooden boats in barns, boathouses, garages, etc., and transition these lost boats into the hands of people that will preserve them for all to enjoy again,” says Kaul.

It was ironic, says Tom Kaul, director of new business development at Mahogany Bay, that the boat owner only lives about a mile from Mahogany Bay headquarters on the shores of Lake Minnetonka.

In recent months, people from all over the metro area, Iowa, and Wisconsin have surfaced with wooden boats that have been idle for years.

The Vintage Boat Treasure Hunt was created to find lost wooden boats that haven’t been used in many years, preserve them and get them back on the water for all to enjoy, Kaul explains.

“The idea was to find lost boats, and we found a bunch of them,” he says.

Salvaging existing wood boats is important to the classic wood boat enthusiast because the number of boats manufactured has dropped substantially in recent decades, since fiberglass

14

Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011

“A lot of people have them in storage and just forgot about them,” he says. “Now they can do something about them before they are no good anymore.”

The contest allows Mahogany Bay to share its expertise and show owners their options to restore the boat to its original condition either by themselves or through a professional restorer and also to have owners better understand the historic value the era of classic wooden boats, Kaul says.

Using wood for boats (a brief history) ◆ Most boat manufacturers did not survive World War II. Despite this, many other manufacturers came along to replace them, using the revolutionary new material, plywood, as their lumber. ◆ By 1960, many of the venerable names in traditional wooden boats were gone: Hacker-Craft, Dodge, Gar Wood, Ventnor.

Hundreds of smaller wood boat builders saw orders dry up as new players, schooled in the new disciplines of FRP (fiberglass reinforced plastic) and aluminum construction, brought their products to market. ◆ Today, the material for building boats has evolved over the past three centuries from mostly wood, to wood, fiberglass reinforced plastic, aluminum, steel, carbon fiber, Kevlar, polyethylene, polypropylene, even ferrocement. Now only a very small percentage of boats and yachts are wood.

Source: Mahogany Bay

Dockside â—† Mid-Summer 2011

15

The

Gardener Have you dreamed of having a personal gardener?

DREAM NO MORE. The talented team at The Mustard Seed can be you personal gardener for the day, for a project, or all year long. Call today to discuss your dream.

BONUS COUPON

$200 Off

SAVE

THE DATE!

Family Fun Days July 16 -17 th

Any Project Installed

by our Landscaping Department

th

11 am – 3 pm both days

HURRY… valid through July 31, 2011!

Based on 10% of purchase. No warranty on sale or discounted plants. Not valid on previous purchases. Must present coupon at time of signing. Some Restrictions may apply.

WIND TURBINE COMISSIONING July 14th

6055 Hwy 212 • CHASKA 952-361-9954

6055 Hwy 212 Chaska

Award Winning ® Voted “Best of the Southwest

Metro Landscaper”

(4 Miles West of Hwy 41 on 212)

® Chanhassen Chamber

“Business of the Year” ® Hedberg Award of

LOOK FOR THE BIG RED BARN

Excellence for Outstanding Design, Craftsmanship & Installation ® “Friend of the Environment” Award ® MN Environmental Initiative

“Partnership of the Year Award” CERTIFIED Professional

16

Landscaping & Garden Center

952.361.9954

Sign up for our E-Newsletter www.TheMustardSeedInc.com

Open M-F 9-8, Sat. 8-5, Sun 11-4

“ROOTED IN INTEGRITY AND FOUNDED ON FAITH…”

Dockside ◆ Mid-Summer 2011