THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 5, 1994 TAG: 9406050038
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE STONE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: 940605 LENGTH: Long
``This is the best weekend of the year,'' Eddie Boone of Norfolk said as he and his girlfriend indulged in the sounds of the Rhondels on the main stage at Town Point Park.
{REST} ``I got my beer. I got my babe. I got my music,'' Boone, 23, said. He grinned. She didn't.
Heather Hayes, 21, elbowed Boone in his ribs. ``Excuse me, but I get second billing behind your beer? Your beer?'' she said.
If Boone is a little sore this morning, he likely won't be alone. A lot of folks may be moaning, with the sun as bright as it was.
The few clouds there were Saturday underlined just how clear and blue the sky was, as Norfolk's Harborfest and Portsmouth's Seawall Festival kicked into high gear. By late morning, sunburns were already visible.
And the mercury was on the rise. T-shirts were ditched, and the taps were flowing full tilt. People downed thousands of gallons of lemonade, iced tea, pop and beer, paying with cash this year instead of the tickets so roundly criticized last year.
``We heard the people,'' said Janet Thornhill, Harborfest chairwoman. ``There were a lot of complaints from people and vendors about the tickets.''
The heat appeared to be no bother for a group of men who were toiling away as others relaxed: the six two-man teams competing in the second annual Quick and Dirty Boat Building contest.
The contest was modified this year to encourage more creative designs.
``There's been a tremendous learning curve from last year,'' said Charlie Ellin, one of four judges from the American Society of Naval Engineers, Tidewater Section. ``Last time we had a lot of what we called `sandboxes' with no easily distinguishable bow or stern. This year, the variety of designs is really great. . . . No two are the same.''
One craft even had a viking flair, with a dragon head at its bow and a green tail at its stern.
At 10 a.m., with a handful of curious, if somewhat confused, spectators watching, each team tore into its pile of plywood, lumber, nails and caulk, intent on building a victorious craft.
Within half an hour, discernable shapes were apparent in the haze of sawdust and sweat. The contestants shouted orders, directions and tips back and forth.
``This is for fun and entertainment,'' Ellin said. ``But don't kid yourself. The competitors take this dead seriously.''
Few tools were available. Teams generally had to rely on their hands, feet, their own weight and a lot of ingenuity in fashioning safe but hydrodynamic vessels from a few sheets of plywood and two-by-fours.
Some boats took on canoelike shapes. Catamaran designs also were in evidence. One craft was 26 feet long, the smallest just 8 feet.
Only one team from last year was back - Glenn Winstead and Scott Ward of Vanwin Coating. They returned for the fun of it, they said.
``Last year's was the first boat I ever built in my life,'' Winstead, 43, of Chesapeake, said. Same for his partner: ``We're just backyard boat builders,'' said Ward, 36, of Virginia Beach.
At 96 minutes after the start, Compliance Engineering Inc. finished.
``It's our first year,'' said engineer Rick Goldbach, 25. He and Kevin Gaudet, 33, a planner, became teammates after their company's boss tapped them to be in the contest.
The slender craft they designed will be favored by calm seas. ``It doesn't float high, but it's maneuverable and comfortable,'' Gaudet said. ``We're hoping for friendly seas.''
But would it float? Yes, insisted Goldbach. And if it doesn't, ``Kevin gets the credit.''
The world will know at noon today when all six craft hit the Elizabeth River for the race that is the final part of the competition. The prizes - $500, $300 and $200 - go to charity.
by CNB