64 Professional BoatBuilder
YARD PROFILE: Schooner Creek
wall and I-beam come out, and the
doors roll up for sufficient clearance to
move the boat outside on a hydraulic
trailer. A 300-ton crane will hold up
the roof of the building until the boat
clears; then the stub wall and I-beam
will be replaced and the crane freed to
lift the boat off the trailer and lower it
into the water.
Marketing
Most of Schooner Creek’s new con-
struction comes from designers, who
in the past have included Robert Perry
(PBB No. 97), Kurt Hughes, John Mar-
ples, Tom Wylie (PBB No. 165), and
the late Bill Garden. “It’s just a case
of somehow getting in contact with
the designer and having them aware
of what you produce,” says Rander.
“Designers want to keep their custom-
ers happy and have great boats they
can show off. So if you, as a builder, can
produce those things, you get to be a
friend of that designer for a period of
time; it’s a win-win for all.”
Schooner Creek also benefits from
its longevity. “We’ve been here for-
ever,” Rander says. “People see one of
our boats somewhere and are inter-
ested. We also have a good reputation
in the Hawaii charter industry. So
when someone wants a new boat,
we’re often the ones they talk to first.
them—that is, once the second cata-
marans’ hulls and bridge deck are laid
up and connected. Presently under the
cabintop mold, the bridge deck mold
will go outside to join the cabintop
mold in storage after the second bridge
deck is laminated. Then the two hulls
of the next catamaran will be posi-
tioned where the mold was, and the
bridge deck dropped in between. “It’s
like coordinating a dance,” Flanigan
says.
And what of the hull mold? It’s kept
indoors safe and dry; the outside space
between the stations is used for stor-
age of gear and supplies on temporary
shelving.
Patterns were made up for all deck
sections. “As we move this boat out
and the next boat in and start building
it,” says Rander, “we move the patterns
back up to the flat table on the mez-
zanine. We’re always looking for ways
of making things easier.”
When it’s time to move out the first
boat, the building is set up so a stub
and attached to the deck of the cata-
maran, so a second cabintop can be
started while the mold is still in place.
The second cabintop and mold will go
into storage until they’re ready for
The nearly complete 28' (8.5m) ocean-
voyaging rowboat, built of carbon fiber
and foam, displaces 2,587 lbs (1,172
kg). The boat is designed to carry 500
lbs (227 kg) of supplies and 1,000 lbs
(453 kg) of food.
This view from atop the first catamaran looks across the shop floor at the hull mold. Note temporary storage between stations of the mold.
SchoonerCreek172-ADFinal.indd 64 2/22/18 3:47 PM