Bump's World

BANANA SPLIT

In the fall of 1975 I moved from N Conway, New Hampshire to North Andover, Massachusetts. I moved because I had been working for Eastern Mountain Sports running their x-country ski center in Interval, New Hampshire, but I got a promotion to be the company's ski buyer at their Boston headquarters. I was excited about getting a better job, however I was very concerned about what I would do with my leisure time. In the North Country I spent lots of time climbing in the summer and skiing in the winter. I knew I would get tired real fast of driving back and forth from New Hampshire. I grew up sailing on Narragansett Bay and had a boat in Marblehead when I was in my teenage years. I thought "I'm close to the water, so why not go sailing again.

When my brother Rick, another EMS employee, was visiting the EMS facility in Boston the following February we decided to go to the boat show. The show was at the Commonwealth Pier, which is now the World Trade Center. Rick and I wandered around looking at all the boats. When we visited the Sailboats Northeast display they had a boat called a Pointin 24 designed by Bob Evelyn. The salesman, Barry Blasdell said this was the fastest boat around and we could win all the races with it. The idea of winning all the races was very appealing to me, however the thing was really ugly. I mean really ugly. Next to it was a C&C 24. Barry said the C&C was also very fast but not a guaranteed winner. The C&C 24 sure looked a lot prettier, you could sit below and even spend some time there.

A couple of weeks later Rick came down again and asked how I was doing with my boat decision. I said I thought about it a lot, but was afraid that it was a lot of money and I had not even bought a house yet. I should mention that I also had gotten married in 1975 and had not yet mentioned any of this to my wife. She knew I was a great sailor and I did borrow a friends boat on our honeymoon for a couple of day sails with my new bride. My wife also knew I was capable of doing anything.

I got in Rick's car and we drove to Sailboats Northeast in Marblehead. We looked at the Pointin and the C&C 24 again and I was struggling to make a decision. My coach, Rick encouraged me to just do it. Barry could see I was struggling, so he said he had just gotten a listing on a C&C 25, which was like new. We drove to the owner's house where the boat was stored in his backyard. My eyeballs bulged out of my head and Rick said we'd take it. I always wonder why Rick says things like that when it's me doing the buying.

I made an offer and drove away wondering how I would ever pay for this. Rick assured me that was no problem.

I could not sleep for two days until Barry called with a counter offer. I said I would split the difference. They accepted. The boat was surveyed. I went to the only bank I had ever done business with, the North Conway Bank, and they gave me their first boat loan ever. One week later we closed and I was now the proud owner of a 1975 C&C 25 called the "BANANA SPLIT". You will never guess what color the boat was.

Over the next four years I raced and cruised the "SPLIT" every chance I got. I raced MORC and then PHRF. My first races the race committee asked me to take my own time because they couldn't wait for me to finish. Over time the "SPLIT" went faster and faster and I got to build a trophy case.

I cruised from Boothbay to Long Island Sound on my 25 foot sailboat. I circumnavigated Cape Cod. Often my wife and I cruised with another couple. We had plenty of room. Wherever we went people smiled and gave us thumbs up aboard our bright yellow boat.

I sold the boat when I left EMS to become a yacht broker. I paid fourteen thousand dollars and four years later I sold her for thirteen, five. The "BANANA SPLIT" was the best investment I ever made. She probably was the best boat I've ever owned.

Please mail comments to me at Bump@newwaveyachts.com

Bump Wilcox