Lancer Craft Article for Sunnyland Club’s Magazine

I think as boys growing up most of us, now aging baby boomers were fascinated by the possibility of creating and building something. Maybe it was a snow fort, a motorized bike, or a model airplane. We were engaged by anything that had a motor, or some type of propulsion which could make it or us go faster. If you grew up in the 60’s, you’re probably like me and had a fascination about cars. We all remember fondly our first car. It was something special, although normally not something that would be considered safe by today’s standards. We would work on it, fix it up, maybe put a different motor in it, to ultimately make it go faster. We would then drive all around on the weekends up and down the strip, stop at a root beer stand, and just keep driving.

Well boys grow up and become men and fathers and life takes a different turn. Things and dreams of our youth are often forgotten or become out of reach. I became a dentist and ended up with 8 children. Roughly 40 years ago, I fulfilled my childhood desire of having a wood boat. She was a 1966 Century Resorter 17. I remember my brother and I having the engine torn down on the 4th of July, but unfortunately we never did get her running. I sold that boat and about a year later bought a 1966 Century Coronado. I really didn’t know anything about a boat, being a car guy. I understood engines, but really nothing else nautical. Well my Coronado had a bad bottom and she sank at my dock when both bilge pumps quit running. This was in 1988. I was really disheartened by wood boat ownership, so I decided to sell my 1966 Wood Coronado and I bought a 1985 Fiberglass Coronado instead. She was a beautiful and powerful craft and we set the record one Summer pulling 18 tubers with her.

Through these projects I really got an education. I built up a collection of approximately 80 boats and I opened and self-funded a classic boat museum in Cassopolis Michigan. What I really became fascinated with was the 50’s and 60’s boats and how much automotive influence was in their design. Nothing will ever come close to the design work from Century and Chris Craft, which rivaled the car industry during this time period. My other fascination came during the late 60’s when the major manufacturers were trying to convince the public to buy a fiberglass boat. These transition years were really fascinating, and I quickly became interested in fiberglass boat restoration as well as wood preservation.

Having spent the last 40 years in the vintage boat hobby, and having restored, bought, and sold many boats, it started to become obvious to me that no one was actually making the boat that people wanted to buy. The wood boat hobby has a rich heritage, and I’m a big part of that, but today’s buyer wants something new that is dependable, designed properly, with classical lines and feel, but without maintenance. They want to be able to trailer it and keep it in their garage without worrying about wood drying out or the need for soaking. Even though today’s restoration techniques make a vintage boat water-tight with minimal maintenance, and can be refitted with updated power, there is still trepidation from first-time buyers.

Several companies are building completely new wood boats from scratch with all of the latest techniques, and these are really some of the most beautiful exquisite crafts ever to have been manufactured. If you haven’t had the chance to look at these magnificent builds make sure you do.

However, I still had my head wrapped around fiberglass and I was quite impressed by a company called Elite Craft that was started by the Smith Family in the 70’s. The Smiths designed and built a beautiful 20′ runabout and used a process to make the fiberglass appear to be wood. I’ve had the pleasure of owning a 1991 Elite Craft and was really impressed by the overall quality of the boat. At the same time, the Dana Phillips Family built a new fiberglass runabout in a 20′ and 23′ length out in California. They had fiberglass hulls and real wood decks. As is the case with many small manufacturing companies, challenges arose and for a variety of reasons production never grew to the point whereby they became known in the boating industry.

After a lot of negotiation and family input, I was able to pull my resources together to start manufacturing these fine crafts again ….. reigniting my childhood dream of building to build my own boats. Through the Smith Family, I became acquainted with John Hemken of A&M Manufacturing – which has boat factories located in Chiefland, Florida & Alachua, Florida. John and I shared the same passion for old cars and frankly for just building something cool. I decided to call the company Lancer Craft Boats. With John’s manufacturing and production background and skill set, we were able to put the funds together to bring the family brands of Elite Craft and Classic Craft boats back to life. Through another acquaintance, we were able to purchase the tooling and molds to reproduce the Ventnor runabout. We have also added a 21′ utility styled after the Century Coronado, a 27′ runabout, as well as an electric runabout called the Current.

Roger Pecina

We are excited to present our entire line of wood-grained fiberglass boats at the 2024 Chigago Boat Show. We are paying homage to several of the greatest boats ever designed and built. This boat education has been a fascinating journey for me and I am looking forward to bringing them to you for your enjoyment. I really hope you like our offerings!