See the New Solo 14 video

Newsletter March 2010 By Harold Aune VP

Heirloom Quality Products

One thing we’ve noticed over the past 25 years is how much our classic boat owners love their boats. Sometimes when forced to sell through circumstances beyond their control they call us and their voices reveal the emotional attachment they feel for their boat. It is rarely without regret that they part with their “pride and joy”.

So it was fitting that a recent article in Utne Magazine which showed up on our desk this week in their Emerging Ideas section hit the nail (bronze, we
hope) right on the head.

“Tim Cooper, head of the Centre for Sustainable Consumption at Sheffield Hallam University in Sheffield, England and editor of the forthcoming book “Longer Lasting Solutions”, called for “slow consumption”, the consumer purchasing equivalent of the Slow Food movement, (which seeks to build consumer awareness and appreciation of food and its connection to community and the environment).

Saul Griffith, 2007 MacArthur Fellow and serial inventor, in the same article, refers to making stuff that lasts as  Heirloom Design “The best way to lower the quantity of energy required to manufacture and distribute consumer goods, he argues, is to make those products not only durable but also repairable and upgradeable.”

We have always believed in this and more and it’s why we’ve stuck to our philosophy that a boat should be a lifetime asset for personal and family pleasure. The Whitehall Spirit® classics, all 2000+ of them, will be in service for generations keeping their owners fit, healthy and happy. Leaving behind no oily footprint will account for a healthier environment as well.

Shown below are two of the first 14’ Whitehall Spirit rowing models built by us in 1985. Unbelievably they have been used continuously in a rowing boat rental service ever since and are still going strong. I personally have used up more than two brand new cars since then….

One thing about our new thermo formed models that we like is that they’re 100 percent recyclable. They are our solution to the growing demand for lower quality cheaper priced product. Though they do not have the impeccable teak woodwork, flawless fiberglass hull or solid bronze fittings, these boats are top quality and are built to handle hard use in keeping with our general standards with further benefits as well.

Want to Watch a New Way to Tango?

View the 2 minute video clip of the new Whitehall Spirit® Tango 17™ in action. It’s fast, it’s fun and so maneuverable even a child can do it.  It even includes the new “Tango 17” melody especially composed for us by Nelson Brunaski. It kept us humming for a week! If you like it we can email you a Mp3 copy of the file. Click here or on the picture to view the video!

Rowing Club Opening – Opening Day!

The grand opening of the new Whitehall Spirit® Rowing Club™ fittingly took place on a beautiful sunny day with hardly any wind and warm enough for shirtsleeves. We were really pleased with the attendance as around two hundred and fifty people came by over the three-hour event.

Our special guests including John Sayre, Julie and Colin Angus, Brad Vickers and Adam Kreek were all present along with Captain George Vancouver a.k.a. Lawrence Irvine, donned in the Captain’s full regalia.

After a brief period of “speechifying” and eating inside the Canoe Brewpub Restaurant, we all adjourned to the docks. Soon every boat was out either transporting non-rowers or being sampled by the rowers in the crowd; some of whom are now new club members.

This new convenient affordable way of getting people into the sport of slide seat rowing is an exciting venture for us and so far we have received nothing but positive responses from all concerned. Click here to see a slideshow of the club opening: A few of the pictures are below. The new Whitehall Spirit® Rowing Club™ website is at www.whitehallrowclub.com.

 

As you can see in the pictures above spring is on the way here in Victoria. You are welcome to give us a call or send an email. We always love to hear from you.