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Hi everybody

After roughly one year of  intermittent  – I was still working at the time – building my new Power Skiff 14, I was able to launch the boat in August and have it officially approved and tested by the relevant Swiss naval authorities (don’t laugh, landlocked Switzerland, in my case the Canton of Berne has got a state authority for almost everything, including boats…).

That’s me, aged 62:

Here are some pictures from the construction phase (I increased the freeboard by 4 inches as compared to the original plans,  to make sure the final product would a) be in compliance with the relevant regulation and b) not be swamped in case I got into a storm, as I had the impression that the original design was a bit low) :

This picture was taken when the boat was launched onto the lake of Thun (Bernese Oberland, at the bottom of the Eiger and Jungfrau mountain range…):

This picture was taken immediately after launching the boat. The captain’s cap was a Christmas present from my children, which evidently had to be worn on this very special occasion:

As getting into the boat after swimming in the lake was a bit difficult, I added a removables ladder that just works fine.

To cut a long story short, it has finally been a very rewarding – if at times a bit tiring and sometimes frustrating experience building  my third boat . (I have built a dugout canoe when I was a kid, and I have built a boat from two VW microbus roofs welded together – this is a true story!- in my teens).

I would like very much to thank the Glen L crew for their always quick and helpful support in various stages of the project, I am also very grateful for the help from the Glen L’s forum that came up with very valuable advice at critical times. The take home message clearly is that you have to screw up somtimes before you get miracle solutions. Thanks  a lot, Bill & Co!

The boat is powerd by an 8 hp motor that gives it a speed of almost 15 knots with one person on board, which was quite a surprise to me. It runs very smoothly, handles waves very elegantly and is a pure joy in all respects! No wonder my children and I spend quite some time on the lake now.