(Charleston, SC)- We love these stories from the frontiers of sailing anywhere
in the world. Even from a river in Charleston, South Carolina!
Recently, Rick Hall, President of Hall Marine/ Sea-Ray/ Scout of Charleston wrote-"Hi Guys- The story about how I got to sailing a J/100 is probably "atypical" .........kinda of a strange contradiction of sorts as I am a powerboat dealer here in the Carolinas and Georgia that sells Sea Ray, Boston Whaler and Scout.
I grew up outside of Charlotte, NC racing Windmills and Lightnings during the late 60's on Lake Norman with my dad who built his own boats in his garage wood shop. We got into the boat business in the mid 70's with Chris Craft and, later, with Sea Ray. In the early 80's, we bought a sailboat business that did pretty well for a time......I was one of the riggers. I remember when the very first J/24 was shown at the Charlotte boat show and, I believe, Rod Johnstone was there. The new J/24 was the talk of the show as it was so "radical" for it's time. Later, I came to the College of Charleston and sailed 420's on the sailing team and crewed on various boats here including what I think was the prototype J/30.
Fast forward a few years and I returned to Charleston to establish a powerboat dealership and, in the course of doing boat shows and various events, got to know Bob Johnstone who lived in Charleston at the time and was representing J/Boats. I sailed with Bob several times onboard his J/105. One day he told me about the new J/100 and that he was having one built for his personal demo boat. Once I saw the drawings, I was in.
My family took delivery of "Radiant" in late 2005 and we have enjoyed many wonderful days around Charleston Harbor and offshore sailing "Radiant". We have never raced her, just love to daysail. The photo is a typical Wednesday when I found myself caught up at the office, looked out the window at the beautiful weather, and decided to go for a sail. I get a lot of interesting comments around the docks...like 'aren't you the Sea Ray guy...what are you doing on a sailboat?' Just Love it!
The attached photo is from a local professional photographer here in Charleston named Alistair Nical who owns 'Coastal Insight.' He captured this shot on a weekday afternoon, thought you would appreciate this.
Have a great Thanksgiving! Rick Hall- Charleston, SC"
