A Man And His Boat

[South FLA]

Dwight and I headed out this morning on a whim to the Loxahatchee Refuge, in less than ideal conditions. In Florida bass are notorious for shutting down after a cold front, but getting them to participate is just a matter of having the fish tell you what they want to eat and luckily we were listening to the small fish at least. The short, 3 hour fishing excursion, was successful in numbers, but a disappointment size wise! Nevertheless, you never know what the day can bring and to me there is no better story than a man and his boat. Upon coming off plane just after a 10 minute ride in the slightly cooled S. FLA air, we encountered a wise gentleman and what I assume was his lovely wife about to launch a mint condition Hyra-Sports VL 465! When I first saw from the stern I mentioned to Dwight "Look at the colors of that old Ranger," noticing the combos of brown and beige, I thought to myself no one would ever choose those colors today! So as Dwight held my decade old Ranger close to the dock and gave details of the days catch to the creel survey officer, I went to back the truck down. I could not help but start up a passing conversation with the man and commented on how great the gel coat looked on his boat. His quickly replied back with “…it’s been kept in a barn” and his wife quickly responded with "look at his truck" which was equally immaculate. So after loading my relatively new Ranger I gazed a bit more upon his beautiful gel coated tiny bass boat that was well laid out with original OEM equipment from bow to stern. I quickly snapped some pictures after asking if it was O.K. As I circled this gem of a boat I noticed Kevlar stamped in the hull and thought man what a beauty. I could tell the old man was glowing with his upkeep pride, since he mentioned that the guys over at Master Marine Repair refused to change out the trolling motor, because it would just ruin the entire look of this piece of Americana. Anyway, that was my amateur attempt to make the story interesting, and so I hope you enjoy the pictures at least.

[BassnChris]

Always enjoy looking and admiring a classic...........maybe because I have become a classic!

[00 mod]

Nice old boat!  I would fish it!!!

 

Jeff

[Darren.]

If she doesn't leak and gets you from point A to B, then she's a keeper. That she's a classic is frosting on the cake.

[Teal]

Sweet ride. I like that. Seeing that boat makes me want to put on a trucker hat and drink a 6 pack of Pabst Blue Ribbon.

[A-Jay]

Good to hear you guys got out on the water -

 

That sweet ride looks like it came for a time capsule.

 

Hope it warms up for you very soon ~

 

A-Jay

[Dwight Hottle]

Sweet ride. I like that. Seeing that boat makes me want to put on a trucker hat and drink a 6 pack of Pabst Blue Ribbon.

 

 

Forget the hat just bring down the PBR. 

[Jmrichardson2011]

I would love to have an old classic ride like that one to fish out of. Something iconic that just screams freedom and passion in those older boats  - can never quite put my finger on that specific tough but its there for sure.

[BassinLou]

Cool story. Quick question. Is Dwight living down here for the winter months or on an extended vacation?

[South FLA]

Cool story. Quick question. Is Dwight living down here for the winter months or on an extended vacation?

 I think both, lol.  I know he owns a place down here in Palm Beach Gardens.

[Bluebasser86]

What a nice old ride! Mine's the opposite, it's 6 years old and looks like it's 26    As much as I fish I'd spend a fortune just trying to keep it looking new. 

[RyneB]

beautiful classic.

[Dwight Hottle]

What a nice old ride! Mine's the opposite, it's 6 years old and looks like it's 26    As much as I fish I'd spend a fortune just trying to keep it looking new. 

 

 

Well you should see Robert's boat. Always looks immaculate.

[fadetoblack21]

I am quickly becoming a classic, so I always enjoy seeing these classics.