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Download the entire
Summer 2007
issue here.
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Cover
Story Written by Capt. Bob Cerullo. Photography by Jay Paul The famed yacht designer and author, Francis Kinney, once observed, “There is something about boats which makes one feel they are living creatures — each as different from her sisters as human beings are from each other. The very fact that one refers to a boat as ‘she’ shows that since time began men have loved their boats.” Equally intense is the relationship between a boat designer and the boat he or she builds. The Sherry L was conceived during a conversation Larry had with a long time customer of Jennings Boat Yard, charter boat Captain Jim Loop. Captain Loop told Larry Jennings that he was going to retire from charter boat fishing and wanted a boat he could use for his own fishing pleasure. He said “I want a comfortable and easily maintainable boat with a minimum of teak.” Loop had considered several boat builders on the Eastern Shore but chose Larry Jennings to build his new boat. Larry said when Captain Loop mentioned he wanted a new boat, “I took him over to see the Midnight Sun, a boat I had just finished. He was really impressed with that boat and we sat down and started talking about what he wanted in a boat.” Jennings and Captain Loop discussed the boat at length so that Larry could understand precisely what Loop wanted his boat to be. Larry then drew several sketches of the kind of boat he envisioned. Once they were both in agreement on the size, type and layout, Larry set about making a half model of the boat he planned to build for Captain Loop. Jennings and Loop attended the Annapolis Boat Show and, as Larry described, “We crawled through everything up there so Captain Loop and his wife could put their hands on various boats and determine how they wanted their boat to look.” What they agreed to custom build is officially described as a 42-foot fiberglass top express motor vessel. Captain Loop said he wanted a large cockpit for fishing. He said Larry came up with the idea of an aft steering station so Loop could fish alone. Loop and Jennings worked closely together every step of the way to be sure the boat would be just what Loop wanted. The design and shape of the hull, however, was left completely up to Larry Jennings. Captain Loop said he was very impressed with the abundance of ideas Larry came up with just out of his head. Once the half model was approved, it was sent down the road to Randy Cockrell at Tiffany Yacht’s where the precise shape translated into automated router cut wooden stations. Those stations were then set up in Jennings’ boat building shop to begin the actual building of the boat. With the stations secure, the stem and the keel were laid in place with the boat skeleton upside down at that point. The basic structure of the chine and shear were established then the cold molding was begun. Strips of cedar were cut with a tongue and grove edge then glued in place onto the stations which were placed at two foot intervals to form the shape of the hull. Once the entire hull is formed with cedar strips and glued, the hull is covered with two layers of 1208 fiberglass cloth and epoxy on the sides and three layers on the bottom. The next step was to turn the hull right side up and remove most of the mold stations. The same coating of two layers of fiberglass on the sides and three layers on the bottom were applied inside the hull. This step creates a strong and waterproof covering over the cedar and makes for a very stiff and light hull. During our discussion of the actual process of installing the engines, I was surprised to learn that the engines are installed then removed a couple of times so that various systems can be set up. When the exhaust, water pipes and wiring were finalized the engines were once again removed from the engine room so it could be thoroughly cleaned, faired and painted. With the painting complete the engines are permanently installed. During my visit to Jennings Boat Yard, Larry Jennings showed me another boat in the process of being built in his boat shop. He described the testing process he uses to make sure his designs actually will work on the finished boat. Jennings used a tunnel arrangement for the positioning of the propeller. To test how it would work he built a scale model and actually towed the model around in the water to see how it handled. It was not until Larry and the owner were satisfied with the performance of the model that the design became an integral part of the boat. Similar attention to detail was given to the building of the Sherry L. Jennings is particularly proud of the performance numbers for tunnel design as used on the Sherry L. With the two Yanmar diesel engines humming at 3000 RPMs the speed of the Sherry L is 26 knots. At wide open throttle, 3400 RPMs, she will move along at 31 knots. Larry said he was amazed at the early fuel economy numbers but was reluctant to quote them because he wanted to be absolutely sure. Larry said, “I do a tunnel on my boats that was kind of cutting edge at the time I was building the Midnight Sun. A lot of the production boat builders are now doing the tunnels because they work so well. With the big diesels you have today you can use a deep reduction gear and swing a bigger propeller at a better shaft angle which is much more efficient. You don’t need as much power to achieve the same speed. If you look at my boats from the stern you can see the definite shape of the tunnels.” Just inside the boat’s entrance door there is a beautifully designed electrical control panel that got my pulse beating faster. It puts every onboard circuit in plain sight and easy to reach. The main cabin is spacious and free of clutter by design. A spacious double bed adorns the front cabin. There is more than enough closet space in that cabin for two to live comfortable aboard on weekends or vacation trips. The roomy shower makes for comfortable bathing on overnight trips. Opposite the varnished wood trimmed galley is a dinette with a beautifully crafted and highly polished wood table. I asked Larry about the absence of a flying bridge. He said the owners simply did not want a flying bridge but, he designed the boat structurally so that a flying bridge could be easily added at any time without reinforcing the cabin. One of the things Captain Loop wanted and got was a cabin he didn’t have to worry about getting dirty. He said, “The way the cabin is designed, if I need to, I could power wash it without any damage.” The Sherry L is 42-feet long with a 14-foot, 3-inch beam. She draws 2 feet, 8 inches and displaces 28,000 lbs. She is uniquely designed to meet the requirements of her owners without compromise of quality or convenience. During every step of the intense process of transitioning from a basic idea of what the boat would be, to the half model and then on to the formation of the nearly living creature that is the Sherry L, the cumulative knowledge and skill of boat designer and builder Larry Jennings were put to the test. Captain Jim Loop told me he is delighted with his boat. “It is everything I wanted. She is dry, powerful and beautiful.” As you may have already concluded from our cover photo of the seductively beautiful Sherry L, and her predecessor Midnight Sun, this beautiful siren of the sea has passed the test of superior design and boat building with flying colors. This creation assures that the art and science of building great boats is, as it has been for more than 100 years, alive and well in Virginia’s Northern Neck. Jennings Boat Yard |
Also in this issue: Swimming to Help Kids Bridging the Rappahannock From the Ground to the Glass Northern Neck barley becomes single malt whiskey in Sperryville. Bushfield The Skinny on Guinea Growing Green Get Your Grill On The Boat Guy Rosie Bay Poetry by Bill Glose. |
