Here is a good action shot to start the year off right. This is Mariner #707 KETCHUP, owned by Dixon Pearce of Manahawkin, New Jersey, competing in one of the National Championship regattas in years past. A member of the Surf City Yacht Club, KETCHUP is an active racer - this past September, Dixon and his wife Angie came in second in the Mariner Class (out of seven boats) at the Yacht Club's 61st annual regatta. Thanks to Read Howarth for the picture.

Mike and Jan McCormack are shown here racing their Mariner #2707 VINLAND during the 2009 Labor Day Sailboat Race on Sebec Lake, Maine. Although there were only four boats competing (including a Hobie Cat, an International 110 and O'Day 20), everyone had a wonderful time and there was even a trophy presentation following a reception. VINLAND is currently at Stuart Marine in Maine for some work over the winter.

Here is Roger and Sally Livingston sailing GHOST (#4096) this past summer on Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island. Roger writes that this is when they were "sailing with the Northeast Trailer Sailors... mostly MacGregors. It was a beautiful day, but when the winds picked up in the afternoon, the Mac's dropped their sails and motored down the Bay. We continued to sail, and even with their 50 hp motors, they didn't catch us until late afternoon."

One of Jim Watson's projects last year was to paint on the name of his boat (#1647). He writes, "I played with lots of names. Nothing too serious, mind you, as it is a pretty small yacht. I'd always collected model sailboats, and I'd owned a Laser for years. But this was the first 'real' sailboat. It was definitely not a toy. Ah-hah... So, NAUT-A-TOY was born." Here she is tied up at Sturgeon Lake, ready for 2009.

This shot was taken by Bill Hicks back in June of 1965, and it shows his friend Bob Wester securing Mariner #30 MICES for "the first trip to the salt." Bill writes, "Joan (wife) and I rigged a homemade trailer for the keel model and pulled MICES from Lake Lanier near Atlanta to Panama City, Florida for a cruising vacation. We had a ball." Check out the follow-up to this picture (August 31st-September 6th of 2009).

This is L'EMERAUDE, Mariner #1588, during a September sail last year. Owned by Hubert Cormier, she is one of the many Canadian Mariners and is sailed in New Brunswick. She is one of the "mid-model" boats, retaining the mahogany coaming tops, forward hatch and the classic "bump-top" cabin from the earlier-style boats, but made into a "2+2" by raising the cockpit floor and adding two quarter berths as well as enclosing the cabin. One would be hard-pressed to find a nicer-looking boat.

Paul DiMarco lives in New Hampshire and owns Mariner #1357 ABIGAIL. He writes, "Here she is pictured with her prior owner on Lake Massabesic in Auburn/Manchester, New Hampshire. I began refinishing the cockpit sole and coamings with epoxy/varnish. I hope to have her back on the water in May." A towing mishap with a tractor nearly put ABIGAIL through Paul's living room window, but a quick last-minute maneuver saved his house - and, more importantly, of course, his boat!

Jeff Freedman purchased his 1969 Mariner REALITYWAVE in 1976, and, according to him, he has "waxed the hull every year for the past 35 years." Here is a picture of Jeff with Bart Kaplan as crew finding "a clear lane with plenty of Barnegat Bay breeze on an upwind leg of the 2008 Nationals at Surf City [New Jersey]." She has raced competitively in a number of the past National regattas.

Nick and Eniko DeMarco are the proud owners of Mariner #1848 Rover. Nick writes that this picture "is one of our favorites of all time." The DeMarco's ROVER is part of the Mariner Fleet at the Narrasketuck Yacht Club on the south shore of Long Island, New York. Narrasketuck has the distinction of hosting the very first Mariner Nationals in 1967, and this year it will be held there in July. According to Nick, however, "the best sailing days are in the fall."

This beautiful picture is courtesy of Andre Barata of Santa Clara, California. He and his wife took their recently restored 1967 Mariner to Lake Tahoe last year. Andre writes, "The wind was really slow that day, but the beautiful emerald green water and the mountains in the background made you forget about time. We anchored our Mariner at the Emerald Bay in Lake Tahoe and went for a hike. I couldn't help but stare at the boat the whole time."

Since today is my wife's birthday, I humbly offer this picture of her sailing with me onboard ORION. This was taken on the day of ORION's first launch in Connecticut (July of 2007) as we took a short sail around the Niantic River. Notice that this shows ORION before her major restoration which occurred that winter. Liz has been very tolerant of my boat obsessions, so today I say "thank you" for her tolerance and patience!

Peggy MacDonald and her husband Larry Lewack live in Vermont and own Mariner #3086 WINDIGO. This picture was taken during a "camp-cruise" to the northern islands of Lake Champlain last year. When asked to provide a caption for this picture, Peggy offered several, including "Hot Babe Wanders Near Broken Down Boat", "Comely Woman Emerges From the Sea", and "She's Holdin' Up Good (the boat, I mean)"!

This picture, taken by Read Howarth during the 2008 Nationals at Surf City, New Jersey, shows Dave and Leslie Stapleford's #3237 GREYHOUND followed by Tom Boyer and Bill Clopp in #4059 GRUMPY GEEZERS (what a great name). The first race started in 5-10 knots of wind, eventually picking up to 15-20 by the last race that day. The Staplefords would go on to place fifth in the President's Fleet, while Tom and Bill took fifth place in the Championship Fleet.

The Southeast Connecticut Mariner Fleet organized a day-sail Rendezvous at the beginning of October last year. Here is Chris Albert (foreground, #2714 DOG DAZE) and Dan Meaney (#2024) sailing on the Niantic River. Although the original plan was to meet up with three other boats on Long Island Sound, a small craft advisory kept the participants in the more protected waters of the River.

Taken in October of 2008, this shot is from the 2008 Fall Windup at the Riverton Yacht Club in New Jersey. Here they are dodging the nearby moored boats as they head for the weather mark. Boats from left to right: #664 MARE (Harry Mayer), #2604 MY LIGHTNING (Newt Wattis), #3599 (Frank Pelosi), #3441 MOON (Chris Calhoun), and #938 PUPPY 2 (Richard Martin). Thanks to Read Howarth for the picture.

This beautiful late-afternoon picture of Mariner #3595 was taken by her owner, Zach Katzenmeyer of Starkville, Mississippi, this past March. She is "anchored for the night inside Perdido Key, Orange Beach, Alabama. [This was the] first sail in the Mariner [and the] first sail since my 11' Snark probably a decade ago. Needless to say, the Mariner left a great impression on our spring break!"

Riverton Yacht Club's last race of the season occurred on October 11th, and this great shot shows Chris Calhoun (#3441 MOON), Fred Rapp (#919 RAPP-A-TACK), Chris O'Brien (#2781 O'MITZVAH!), Harry Mayer (#664 MARE) and Dave Oldham (#1534 FROGGER) duking it out at the starting line. Photographer Byron Campbell writes, "Interestingly, I believe that FROGGER was last at the start but first at the finish for the first race."

Chuck Hawley, expert sailor with over 40,000 miles under his belt ranging from ultra-light sleds to the maxi-catamaran Playstation, serves as West Marine's VP of Product Information. He writes, "My family owned [Mariner] #143 for over 30 years, and it sailed out of Santa Cruz and at Fallen Leaf Lake in the Sierra. Great boat... I did sleep aboard when I was a kid, and it was always a great adventure." This picture is similar to #143 and is from an old advertisement.

Having already made an appearance as a "Picture of the Week" last December, #3306 QUIXOTIC deserves to be featured again. Owner Barry Waldman, hoping to get pictures of QUIXOTIC underway last month, "dropped my youngest son Matt on shore and he clicked away. After we picked him up, he said we were too far away, but what I got is what I got." Looks good from here, Barry! QUIXOTIC received new running rigging, blocks, and new sails at the end of last year.

Here is another great shot taken by Byron Campbell at Riverton Yacht Club, New Jersey. Chris Calhoun is at the helm of #3441 MOON as she glides by the Yacht Club pier. MOON has made regular appearances on the Yacht Club's racing circuit. Riverton is a tricky place to race; last year's Nationals proved that knowledge of the Delaware River's intense current is crucial to planning one's strategy.

Taken during the 2008 Mariner Nationals at Surf City, New Jersey, this shot shows #1880 as she heads for the windward mark. Owned by Steve Goldberg and crewed by Hank Schleckser, they eventually took second place in the President's Fleet. Surf City Yacht Club, host to the largest Mariner Fleet in the Association (and from where Orion was sailed before I bought her), will be holding practice races this coming Sunday, May 30th. Thanks to Read Howarth for the picture.

Steve Hock, owner of #3627 WHITECAP and VP Communications of the Mariner Class Association, recently returned from a remarkable five-day trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. He and a friend sailed 140 miles, experiencing pristine beaches and marshes, battling weeds and mosquitoes, dodging sandbars and exploring beautiful places quite possibly never seen before by human eyes. His narrative has been accepted for printing in an upcoming Small Craft Advisor edition!

Look at the detail of all these Mariner models! Or are they...? This picture was actually taken by yours truly at the 2009 Nationals at Riverton and slightly altered with the focus area narrowed, colors enhanced, and other techniques known as "tilt-shift photography" to make everything appear miniature. These boats are getting ready to be launched on Saturday morning. Light winds plagued last year's Nationals, allowing only two races on Saturday and one on Sunday.

William and Claire Mangum of North Carolina own #2372 REBECCA and enjoyed a spectacular sail late last year. William writes, "This was truly a perfect day on Lake Norman - changing patterns of clouds and sun in a deep-blue mid-October sky. Claire, my wife, said it was just like the sky in Ireland, before she snapped the picture. The wind was a steady, gentle breeze." He also wrote in a previous e-mail: "I love the Mariner. Seeing her sheer from a distance makes my heart go pitter patter."

This fantastic shot of Mariner #1130 was taken by her owner, Scott Cummins. At the end of May, Scott and his friend took this picture "of the Mariner at rest... after a seven-hour trek across the southern part of Kentucky Lake and back. You can't tell from the picture, but we had good 12-15 knot breezes for most of the day. I tried to get some action shots, but none came out as well as this one." What a great picture.

Mariner #2253 was prominent in many advertisements for O'Day Sailboats from 1971-1973, including one of the first advertisements featuring the new streamlined cabin top. I now have 21 different O'Day Sailboats advertisements on this website from 1966 to 2010. If you have an old ad featuring the Mariner I do not already have, please contact me - I would love to add it to this website.

Stuart Marine continues to repair, refurbish and restore old Mariners. The boat pictured here is PAS DE DEUX, a 1965 keel Mariner that has been restored to better-than-new condition. The extensive work has included new paint inside and out, the addition of a battery with a compass and Garmin GPS unit, new wood panels and cockpit sole, new hardware, new cushions, new opening portlights - new everything!

This picture was taken by yours truly back in October of 2007. It was nearing sunset, and I took this shot as I approached Niantic Bay. The quotation is by E. B. White, famed author of books such as Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little and father of noted naval architect Joel White. This and many other quotations relating to the sea can be found in the compilation Essays of E.B. White.

Greg Allen of Dothan, Alabama owns #2023 CONSTANT SORROW. This picture was taken as he was "sailing in the eastern end of Choctawhatchee Bay between Freeport and Destin in the panhandle of Florida. My buddy took the photo from his 1973 Buccaneer." When asked about the name of his boat, he writes that his friends "refer to it as the boat of constant sorrow, borrowed from the movie O Brother, Where Art Thou?".

Mariners are graceful under power as well as under sail. Chris Albert and daughter Michelle in #2714 DOG DAZE are followed by Roger and Sally Livingston in #4096 GHOST as they motor toward New London this past Friday during the Southeast Connecticut Mariner Fleet Rendezvous. It rained almost the entire day on Friday, and the winds were non-existent until we were well on our way home, but we still had a great time.

Bruce Linder and "first mate" Kate have worked very hard to restore Mariner #2940. Residents of Springfield, Massachusetts, they took their boat out on the 16th of July, the last day of their vacation. Bruce writes, "We went back to an area off the main pond at Otis Reservoir where we had swam before. This time, wanting to get a little closer to shore, we dropped anchor about 50 feet out and tied to a tree leaving the boat in 2-3 feet of water. Had a blast."

Eric Lesniak finally got the chance to sail his Mariner, #3485, after refurbishing his centerboard. However, his sea-trial was short-lived. "After finally getting underway, two pop-rivets on the boom bail sheared off from the downward stress of the mainsheet. So I quickly gave everything else a once-over, dropped sail and motored in to replace the corroded pop rivets - all four of them. It was a very hot July day, but after eleven years of no sailing, it felt great to be back in the saddle!"

The Narrasketuck Yacht Club is home to a pretty impressive number of Mariners, and this picture shows several of them tied to pilings and also on trailers. Active since the start of the Mariner Class Association, Narrasketuck has seen its share of good times and bad through the years, but Mariners have always had a constant presence. The Mariner Fleet there is continuing to rebuild after a short period of slow activity, and the Club was proud to host the 2010 Nationals at the end of last month.

This great action shot was taken during this past Nationals. Skipper Frank Pelosi and crew Joseph Law are sailing Mariner #3599 on a windward leg of one of the races. Members of the Riverton Yacht Club Mariner Fleet, Frank and Joe came in third place in the Championship Fleet - they had come in second at last year's Nationals. Frank is also the current Mariner Fleet Captain at Riverton and has been a member of the Class Association since 2008. Thanks to Alan Hlavenka for the picture.

Rich Weston is the new VP of Membership in the Mariner Class Association, and he and a friend recently trailered Rich's boat, #2290 SWEET CAROLINE, from Riverton, New Jersey to Lake Owasco, one of the Finger Lakes in New York. Rich writes, "What a great time we had. The lake was quiet and peaceful during the week, and most times I was on the water I was the only boat in sight." 

Tim and Erin Reiche have just completed a total restoration of their boat, #2170 MAGGIE. This shot was taken shortly after launching at Lake Nockamixon, PA. Tim writes, "The boat found water today and we had a blast. I'm holding off on good vinyl boat letters from a local company so these numbers are just laminated and taped to the side of the hull." Congratulations!

This fantastic picture is of Mike McCormack's #2707 VINLAND during September 4th's Labor Day race on Sebec Lake in Maine. Mike writes, "The night before the race Hurricane Earl was approaching up the east coast... Overnight we had heavy downpours.  In the morning it was overcast and still raining... By 1pm race time it was partly cloudy with a temperature near 70.  An amazing weather transformation!  It was very exciting racing."

A surprising number of Mariners were produced at an O'Day factory in Canada, and this boat, #1589 BLUE EYES, owned by Jonathan Demers, is one of them. Jonathan sent me this picture of him sailing on Lac-au-Sorcier (The Sorcerer's Lake) in an extremely secluded spot in Quebec. He writes, "I'm probably the only sailboat that ever went there. The only thing is, I better not mess up, because there's not too many people around [to help in case I get into trouble]. It's just such a great place, though."

Who says sailing in the rain isn't fun? Roger and Sally Livingston (#4096 GHOST) sail down the Thames River past the Groton sub base (General Dynamics) in the rain during the 2010 Southeast Connecticut Mariner Rendezvous. While it rained all day on Saturday, everybody wore their foul weather gear and closed the hatches, and we had a good time despite the conditions.

A couple weekends ago, Steve Hock (#3627 WHITECAP) and Ed Wise (#2862 CHRISTINA T, pictured here) met at Public Landing, Maryland and sailed their boats to Chincoteague Bay. Steve writes, "Sailing was great! I got [to Public Landing] and went north to overnight. Ed got there later Thursday night. We met up Friday and sailed together and overnighted together. It's really a great location and I'll definitely go back."

Riverton Yacht Club photographer Byron Campbell sent me this picture taken on July 21st during the Wednesday night summer racing series. He writes, "The guy (crew) in the photo is Fred Linden sailing on FROGGER, #1534 which is owned and operated by Dave Oldham (hidden by the mainsail). They are racing for the finish line!" FROGGER is a veteran of the racing circuit having participated for many years in Sunday and Wednesday racing series as well as many National Championship regattas.

Taken during the 2010 Mariner National Championships at Narrasketuck Yacht Club (Long Island, New York) back in August, this shot shows Harry Mayer and George Bader heading for the windward mark on the second day of racing. Their boat, #664 MARE, came in first place in the President's Fleet that weekend.

I usually dedicate this column to pictures of other Mariners, but this week I shamelessly present ORION as the "Picture of the Week". This was taken last week before my afternoon sail to Jordan Cove. Standing on the beach, I put the camera down as close to the water as I dared, and the result was an interesting perspective of the boat and the sand under the water. There are not many boats left on the Niantic River, and it is getting time for ORION to be pulled out of the water soon.

Paul DiMarco, owner of #1357, just started sailing and racing regularly this summer - this picture was taken during the Richmond Cup race at the Massabesic Yacht Club (New Hampshire). He crewed on his friend Bill's Catalina 22 for most of the season but finally decided to try his own boat in a race with Bill as his crew in the picture above.  They ended up finishing last, but after the Portsmouth Ratings were applied they actually beat three other boats.

Andy Atwater keeps his Mariner, #3007 at the Lake Glendale Sailing Club in Pennsylvania. While he enjoys sailing her by himself, he also enjoys his position as a sailing instructor at the Club. As Andy writes, "Our Club - starting its 47th year - has a sailing camp every summer. We teach kids in the Sunfish, but I try to get the kids out on a bigger boat so they can see the similarities. (And no, we didn't take them all out at once!)"

Bill Hicks owned Mariner #30 MICES for a few years beginning in 1965, but "the only flaw was the keel on the boat. I was able to soon trade for #1580 - a centerboard boat - and the rest is history." Here is #1580 Victory anchored at the entrance to St. Andrew's Bay, Florida.

Newt Wattis is a member of the Surf City Yacht Club (New Jersey) and sails #2604 MY LIGHTNING. This past summer, he writes, "four Mariner families took a Sunday afternoon trip through the back creeks of Manahawkin Bay to sail in places we have never been before. Some places were about as wide as a Mariner and quite challenging with wind shifts from the preferred direction. Next year we are planning a couple more back creek adventures."

Stuart Marine, the current manufacturer of the Mariner, is offering a "Pick Up and Repair" service for the winter. They will come and pick up your boat for free, bring it back to their Rockland, Maine facility and perform whatever work you request, including having them wash or repair your sail, winterize or repower your outboard motor, or make sure your trailer is up to snuff. 

Here is a fantastic action shot courtesy of Read Howarth from the 2008 National Championships at Surf City, New Jersey. #3599 (skipper Frank Pelosi and crew Mike Baldacchino) has rounded the windward mark and is surging ahead as #584 (skipper Paul Coward and crew Ginney Fine) is in hot pursuit. High winds dominated Sunday's racing and made for an exciting finish with only one point separating first and second place in the Championship Fleet. 

How nice it is to have your boat ready to go at a moment's notice! David Stone's Mariner, #3647 BIGENUF tied up at his mother's home on Pensacola Bay in Gulf Breeze, Florida. This was David's "first weekend back in the water after 17 years in my back yard and six months of restoration. [This shows] the mouth of Gilmore Bayou with Dead Man's Island in the background. Across the Bay is Pensacola. It's good to be back in the water!"

Barry Waldman, owner of #3306 QUIXOTIC, was a member of the Mariner Class Association for only a short time, but he made a lasting impact on the Association. After experimenting with various pieces of clothing and iron-on Mariner logos, his efforts inspired the creation of the Association's online store which features items for sale with the Mariner emblem and class logo. Last Friday I learned that he succumbed to cancer a few months ago - rest in peace, Barry. You will be missed.

Ed Killian's son took this great picture of their boat CAROLINE's mainsail during their last sail this fall, and what a perfect way to wrap up another year of fantastic "Pictures of the Week". That makes 112 different Mariner shots since this website was first created in November of 2008. And, for all of 2010, this website has averaged a remarkable 1,300 unique visitors per week.