Knot in a hurry
by Bob Kay
Continued
Construction and History
"Knot In A Hurry" was originally
christened "90 Factor" and she was built by Garry Snider in
Belleville, Ontario Canada. Her construction began in 1985 and she took 5 years
to complete. Garry Snider was actually a school teacher at the Sir James
Whitney School for the blind. He was also the Commander of the Belleville Power
and Sail Squadron. Garry had planned to retire and take his vessel to the east
coast of Canada. I speculate that his choice of name for the boat was a
humorous reference to a qualifying factor in Garry's teacher's
retirement plan.
Sadly, Garry never realized his dream, cancer
deprived him of that. When he became too sick, and needed hospitalization,
Garry realized he would no longer be able to use the boat and he reluctantly
parted with his dream tug/trawler.
The second owner, Douglas Booth
of Kingston Ontario, purchased the "90 Factor" from Garry on a
handshake and a gentleman's agreement. The vessel was renamed "Knot In
A Hurry". Doug told me that Garry openly cried when he sold the boat. Doug
told me he also often visited with Garry during his illness and all Garry
wanted to talk about was his boat.
Garry Snider finally succumed to cancer
. At his funeral, many of his close friends spoke about
how much Garry loved his tug/trawler. I am told his family had a picture of the
boat etched onto Garry's tombstone and it can be seen in the Belleville
cemetery. I would say this is the type of love only a boat builder/owner can
truly understand and from what I am told by others about him, Garry personified
that unique type love for a boat that was built to fulfill a dream.
A few years later, "Knot In A Hurry" was
noticed docked in a National Park in the 1000 islands on the St. Lawrence
River. It was spotted there by a nautical surveyor who recognized the vessel
and knew the original builder. The surveyer told the then current owner that
during the vessel's construction, he had used it as one of his teaching
aids since he lectured on marine construction techniques and he also visited
the construction site several times with his students during the boats
different stages of construction. It was considered an excellent example of
fine boat building tecniques.
I am Bob Kay and I am the third owner of this fine
boat. I first encountered the boat during the major power black out of the
summer of 2003.
My wife and I were on vacation in Ganaoque, Ontario
and due to the black out, we were forced to spend an additional night in the
area of the Saint Lawrence River in Eastern Ontario. On that last night of our
vacation, I found myself bored and flipping through the pages of the small
local newspaper when I came across a short advertisement describing this
"unique pocket trawler" that "may be for sale." I decided
that any unique boat that "may be for sale" warranted some further
investigation!
I called the phone number and managed to speak with
the boat owners wife. She said her husband was very busy at this time as he
worked for Ontario Hydro and had to restore electricity to millions of people
across Ontario. She said I would have to call back later.
This was the last night of my vacation. I was
leaving in the morning. This phone call was not actually going to happen.
Being a determined sort of person, I decided to
make the phone call the next day before leaving for home and actually spoke
with the owner, Doug. He told me he was not available to personally show me the
boat but I was welcome to go and look at it on my own. I had been looking to
purchase a boat for several months and up to this point, I would say
half-heartedly. When I saw this boat it was honestly "love at first
sight". My wife even piped in said that "it was cute". Every
boat I had previously shown her received only negative reviews. This was indeed
a very positive endorsement!
For the next few months, I found myself talking
about nothing else but this boat I looked at along the St.Lawrence River. I was
coming to realize that my conversations indicated I had a dream. That dream was
to own this particular boat and have it docked near me at Harbour West, my
local marina in Hamilton, Ontario. I knew I would enjoy my free time on this
boat and be there every opportunity I had. During this time I also maintained
communication with Doug by email and telephone. The subject of purchasing the
boat and a price still was not broached.
By the fall of 2003, I finally mustered enough
courage and made Doug an offer to purchase the boat. Before he would accept my
offer he was insistent that I visit him in person before he could solidify any
deal.
In December of 2003 I drove four hours from
Hamilton to Kingston, Ontario to finalize our agreements and conditions and
finally meet Doug face to face. This is also when I learned the story of Gary
Snider and the history of my new boat. Having finally met me, Doug wanted to
make absolutely sure that he, as well as Garry Snider, would approve of the
prospective new owner.
I think I came to the complete understanding at
that point that this boat was built on a dream and the lagacy of a man. To
carry on that legacy, the second owner needed assurances that I would give the
boat the same care, respect and attention that both the previous owners had
given it. I quickly realized it was not just a boat purchase - I had become an
integral part of one man's legacy. In order to continue the legacy, I had
to make promises that I would always feel committed to keep.
We finalized the agreement and I had the boat
trucked from Kingston to her new home in Hamilton during the month of April
2004. Our boat always turns heads and draws a curious crowd wherever we go. It
is truly a unique boat and I am very proud to own her and her legacy.
My wife and I have added our own personal
decorating touches to the interior of our boat while maintaining the original
blue water trawler look and traditional lines. In all, we spent no more than an
additional $6,000.00 to make the boat exactly as we would like it. We have
enjoyed a wonderful first summer on our boat and we are looking forward to many
more. We thought long and hard but in the end decided we could not have picked
a better name for our boat and so she remains "Knot In A Hurry".
"Knot In A Hurry" winters resting in a
covered boat shed enjoying the cold dry winters of Canada and spends her
summers plying the waters of the south western end of Lake Ontario and Hamilton
Harbour. If you happen to see her out there in your travels in the area, offer
her a sound of the horn or a friendly wave, Garry would love it!
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