CCB MEDIA PHOTO
Spectators watch a model boat race from the drawbridge in Woods Hole.
WOODS HOLE – The Woods Hole Historical Museum’s biennial Model Boat Show is underway Saturday and Sunday in Woods Hole.
This is the 10th biennial Model Boat Show. The show was started by sailors who love boats, but find April too early to work on a boat in the yard or to go sailing. But the model boats are just right to satisfy a craving for things nautical in the very early spring. The show is a celebration of the art and craft of boats built on a small scale.
The show is also an opportunity to view detailed workmanship. Some of the vessels are so small they can fit inside a light bulb, most are much larger, ranging from 12 in. to 12 ft. Most have fine detail. Some are stationary, exhibited inside; others go into the water. Some are powered only by the wind, yet steered by radio control.
The boats are exhibited in seven buildings ashore, stretched from the Museum’s own building and down the length of Water Street, and in two locations on the water. One of these watery sites is a shallow pool created especially for this weekend, where children are invited to sail models they have built themselves. The other water site is in Eel Pond, where radio-controlled boats are being sailed and raced in easy view from the drawbridge.
Many model boat craftsmen are onsite and talk with the public about their models. Some are working on their projects during the show and are explaining their techniques. This year — for the first time — there is a Dockyard Sale. The sale is an opportunity for modelers to sell gear they no longer need and to buy gear from other modelers.
Within the Show are a series of four illustrated presentations on model boat-related topics. Restorer of antique model boats, Tom Lauria will introduce the whole subject of model boats with a basic talk on “How to Look at Model Boats.” WHOI engineer Ben Allen will talk about small submersibles. The team of John Snow, President of the Vintage Model Yacht Association, and member John Stoudt will give an illustrated talk about the history of model yacht racing, and John Fries of the Fries Sail Design Company will talk about his newest high-tech boats made of carbon fiber with his own very modern kevlar sails. Immediately after his talk he will demonstrate his 2M boat sailing in Eel Pond.
Tickets, which are good for both days, are $12 for adults, $5 for kids, or $25 maximum for nuclear families.
