Another road trip…

[sirbob]

Traveled to Michigan this week. I’ll be up here for 2-3 weeks? No real time frame pinned down.


Left LA on Monday - first stop was in Salt Lake for a visit with friends and family. If you are in the area, I recommend hitting up The Cotton Bottom for cold beers and great burgers. I had the garlic burger and it was great!

 

[RitcheyRch]

Safe travels.

 

[240Hallett]

Dragging the boat behind you this trip?

 

[sirbob]

Dragging the boat behind you this trip?

Not this trip - using a friends boat that’s local .

 

[sirbob]

From SLC we headed up to Mt Rushmore. Stayed in Custer in a neat little motel. Very well kept.

Obv the Sturgis rally was going on so lots of bikes in the area!!

 

[sirbob]

Mt Rushmore…

 

[sirbob]

From Mt Rushmore it was off to Michigan. Heading to the UP via Minnesota and Wisconsin.

 

[sirbob]

Arrived at The Boardwalk Hotel in St Ignace. This is a hotel a friend has been working on and restoring for the last 3 years. It came out great and is setting a new standard in town!

The Boardwalk Hotel

Luxury Hotel and Cocktail Bar in St. Ignace, MI

boardwalkhotelup.com

The town does fireworks every Saturday night right in front of the hotel. They decided to call the bar “Fireworx” both because of the show and the art which came from Jimmy McNulty - an artist that uses the wrapping paper from fireworks to create his works.

 

[RichL]

Always enjoy your road trips. Please keep the pictures coming.

 

[sirbob]

A day run to Mackinaw island. If you go be sure to hit the butterfly museum

 

[sirbob]

Doing a little work at the hotel!!

 

[sirbob]

Hit the Wooden boat festival in Hessel

 

[sirbob]

Douglas Lake / St Ignace…

 

[HST4ME]

Hessel is a good time

 

[HNL2LHC]

Looks like you are off to a great start. Keep the photos coming!!!

 

[throttle]

Road trips always well done by @sirbob

Travel safely

 

[sirbob]

Today was a day run to Petoskey, Michigan

It’s a gorgeous little town right on Lake Michigan.

 

[sirbob]

Back to Mackinaw island for lunch at the Grand Hotel. This place is a lot like the Hotel Del in Coronado.

And a couple of other pics from around the Boardwalk Inn

 

[Taboma]

Hit the Wooden boat festival in Hessel


View attachment 1415687 View attachment 1415691

Sorry to interrupt another of your fascinating Road Trip Threads, but having been raised by a father with a passion for old wooden Chris Crafts, I had to know a little more about "Teaser" and that amazing "The Capitol Marine Motor".
Found this vintage ad for "The Capitol" converted Aero-Marine Motors. Interesting they refer to them as motors vs engines.

Still unable to identify exactly which vintage V-12 this was converted from, I continued my search.
Next was learning more about the history of this beautiful "Teaser" itself, which led me to this article on about this well known vintage boat aficionado, Mr. Hal Orchard.

39' 1924 Sweepstakes Racer "Teaser" - Dodge

Hal and Nancy Orchard are long time lovers of antique wooden boats and were great friends of mine. Hal is a well known and documented car and boat restorer, famed for restoring 8 Dusenberg Model J's over his tenure. The first 11 photos are from his personal collection, the rest I took in 2009...

www.thatoldboat.com

And this.

"40' 1924 Sweepstakes Racer "Teaser"​

Hal and Nancy Orchard are long time lovers of antique wooden boats and a great friends of mine. Hal is a well known and documented car and boat restorer, famed for restoring 8 Dusenberg Model J's over his tenure. The first 11 photos are from his personal collection, the rest I took in 2009 at Obexers Marina in Lake Tahoe. Hal played a very large role in locating and saving Teaser and also locating the very rare Wright Typhoon V-12 marine engine -which he purchased / traded from a gentleman in Australia."

(More on Hal Orchard later)

Now I felt confident it was a Wright Typhoon, and images confirmed the valve cover bolt arrangement was correct. That information led me to another article in "Engine History.org" where various posts explained more history of Wright Aeronautical and how the Typhoon were their V12 marine engines and it was there I found this post by Mr. Robert Neal, who had authored and published books on Packard and Liberty Marine Engines.

enginehistory.org :: View topic - Wright Aero's marine engine

From Robert Neal.
"According to Wright Aeronautical data, they produced 167 Wright "Typhoon" marine engines from 1925-1932, which they called the Wright Tm (T marine) engine.

The same material says they produced only 264 of the aeronautical versions of the engine, so the 167 marine engines were a rather significant part of the sales of the design.

Another point of interest is the fact that Auto Engine Works of St. Paul began, in about 1930, to purchase surplus Wright Tornado aero engines and marine convert them and sell them as Capitol T-12 Wright Tornado Conversion Marine engines. These would result in marine engines in direct competition with the Wright Typhoon, using their own engines in doing so. It was cheaper than the Wright Typhoon and no doubt did a lot to drive it off the market. I don't know how many of these engines Capitol sold, but i would not be surprised if it didn't approach the sales of the Typhoon.

The end result was that of the total of 431 Wright "T" type engines built, well over half probably ended their life as marine engines.

Bob Neal
_________________
Mr. Neal published books on both Packard and Liberty engines. He died on 20 February 2015. "

For anybody who's interested, here's another link about this legend of the antique boating scene, Mr. Hal Orchard, who's responsible for the amazing restoration of "Teaser" so her beauty can continue to be shared by all.

The restoration images of "Teaser" and other projects are available for viewing or for sale on the "That Old Boat" (thatoldboat.com) website.

Hal Orchard - 1925 - 2017 - Dodge

This is a quick boating tribute to Harold John Orchard (October 9, 1925 - March 1, 2017) "Hal", "H.O", "Oats", was a great friend and personality. Hal was loved by anyone who had the privilege of meeting him. He hailed from Buffalo, NY and was lucky enough to settle down in the warm climate of...

www.thatoldboat.com

There's an image on this tribute page that shows a Liberty V-12 (Not a Wright) being removed, perhaps the original engine ?
The transom of these Sweepstakes Racers were notched, prop shaft exits transom and is supported by a swivel on the bottom of the rudder.

Another imagine showing the notchback and rudder support ----- What a beauty on a trailer.

Again, sorry for the interruption, now back to another of sirbob's entertaining travel adventures.

 

[sirbob]

Today’s day trip was Harbor Springs MI. A really nice town full of venture cap guys and titans of industry.

 

[sirbob]

Sorry to interrupt another of your fascinating Road Trip Threads, but having been raised by a father with a passion for old wooden Chris Crafts, I had to know a little more about "Teaser" and that amazing "The Capitol Marine Motor".
Found this vintage ad for "The Capitol" converted Aero-Marine Motors. Interesting they refer to them as motors vs engines.

View attachment 1417048

Still unable to identify exactly which vintage V-12 this was converted from, I continued my search.
Next was learning more about the history of this beautiful "Teaser" itself, which led me to this article on about this well known vintage boat aficionado, Mr. Hal Orchard.

39' 1924 Sweepstakes Racer "Teaser" - Dodge

Hal and Nancy Orchard are long time lovers of antique wooden boats and were great friends of mine. Hal is a well known and documented car and boat restorer, famed for restoring 8 Dusenberg Model J's over his tenure. The first 11 photos are from his personal collection, the rest I took in 2009...

www.thatoldboat.com

And this.

"40' 1924 Sweepstakes Racer "Teaser"​

Hal and Nancy Orchard are long time lovers of antique wooden boats and a great friends of mine. Hal is a well known and documented car and boat restorer, famed for restoring 8 Dusenberg Model J's over his tenure. The first 11 photos are from his personal collection, the rest I took in 2009 at Obexers Marina in Lake Tahoe. Hal played a very large role in locating and saving Teaser and also locating the very rare Wright Typhoon V-12 marine engine -which he purchased / traded from a gentleman in Australia."

(More on Hal Orchard later)

Now I felt confident it was a Wright Typhoon, and images confirmed the valve cover bolt arrangement was correct. That information led me to another article in "Engine History.org" where various posts explained more history of Wright Aeronautical and how the Typhoon were their V12 marine engines and it was there I found this post by Mr. Robert Neal, who had authored and published books on Packard and Liberty Marine Engines.

enginehistory.org :: View topic - Wright Aero's marine engine

From Robert Neal.
"According to Wright Aeronautical data, they produced 167 Wright "Typhoon" marine engines from 1925-1932, which they called the Wright Tm (T marine) engine.

The same material says they produced only 264 of the aeronautical versions of the engine, so the 167 marine engines were a rather significant part of the sales of the design.

Another point of interest is the fact that Auto Engine Works of St. Paul began, in about 1930, to purchase surplus Wright Tornado aero engines and marine convert them and sell them as Capitol T-12 Wright Tornado Conversion Marine engines. These would result in marine engines in direct competition with the Wright Typhoon, using their own engines in doing so. It was cheaper than the Wright Typhoon and no doubt did a lot to drive it off the market. I don't know how many of these engines Capitol sold, but i would not be surprised if it didn't approach the sales of the Typhoon.

The end result was that of the total of 431 Wright "T" type engines built, well over half probably ended their life as marine engines.

Bob Neal
_________________
Mr. Neal published books on both Packard and Liberty engines. He died on 20 February 2015. "

For anybody who's interested, here's another link about this legend of the antique boating scene, Mr. Hal Orchard, who's responsible for the amazing restoration of "Teaser" so her beauty can continue to be shared by all.

The restoration images of "Teaser" and other projects are available for viewing or for sale on the "That Old Boat" (thatoldboat.com) website.

Hal Orchard - 1925 - 2017 - Dodge

This is a quick boating tribute to Harold John Orchard (October 9, 1925 - March 1, 2017) "Hal", "H.O", "Oats", was a great friend and personality. Hal was loved by anyone who had the privilege of meeting him. He hailed from Buffalo, NY and was lucky enough to settle down in the warm climate of...

www.thatoldboat.com

There's an image on this tribute page that shows a Liberty V-12 (Not a Wright) being removed, perhaps the original engine ?
The transom of these Sweepstakes Racers were notched, prop shaft exits transom and is supported by a swivel on the bottom of the rudder.

View attachment 1417067

Another imagine showing the notchback and rudder support ----- What a beauty on a trailer.

View attachment 1417068


Again, sorry for the interruption, now back to another of sirbob's entertaining travel adventures.

Thank you for adding this info! The owner was being interviewed by the local paper (he is in white standing next to the boat) and telling the history of it while we were standing there.

Your research adds a lot of depth to the history!!

 

[Taboma]

Thank you for adding this info! The owner was being interviewed by the local paper (he is in white standing next to the boat) and telling the history of it while we were standing there.

Your research adds a lot of depth to the history!!

I find myself imagining how interesting that 100 year old history would be told from the boat's perspective --- oh my, the stories it could tell.

Mostly, I'm humbled by the visions and passions of the Hal Orchards of this world.

PS: You've shown me that Michigan is so much more than it's "Detroit" stereotype I associate with the name, thank you.

 

[sirbob]

I find myself imagining how interesting that 100 year old history would be told from the boat's perspective --- oh my, the stories it could tell.

Mostly, I'm humbled by the visions and passions of the Hal Orchards of this world.

PS: You've shown me that Michigan is so much more than it's "Detroit" stereotype I associate with the name, thank you.

There really is a lot of great nature and beautiful little towns in MI. The northern summers are really something with all the boating etc to be had here.

I would encourage people to try it - as nice as any vacation spot in the country!

 

[sirbob]

Coons…

And a skunk. With a squirrel along for the ride.

 

[sirbob]

Saturday night @ Fireworx Bar in the Boardwalk Hotel, St Ignace.

 

[Willie B]

… looks like you and your traveling pal are having a great time… Very happy for you… Great pics and diaologue… Keep it all coming

 

[sirbob]

Sunday dinner at Legs Inn. A great place for sunsets over Lake Michigan. This place is almost 100 years old. It was founded by a Polish immigrant and serves traditional Polish food. The Grandson is now running it and is a friend to my friends up here. Great location for family fun and groups to enjoy the lawns while waiting for your table.

Legs Inn

www.legsinn.com

 

[sirbob]

Made another run to Macinaw island to have lunch and see the Paul McCartney & Wings tribute band play at the Mission Inn.

 

[TonyFanelli]

Today’s day trip was Harbor Springs MI. A really nice town full of venture cap guys and titans of industry.

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What a cool town!

 

[sirbob]

What a cool town!

Really nice place. The indoor boat club was epic / lots of really big boats parked inside with tables and ping pong tables etc right on the docks.

Pretty much need to be a member of private club if you have a place there. They even have private restaurants!

Very high end folks enjoying summer season at the lake.

 

[throttle]

 

[rivermobster]

Fantastic pics Jim. Thanks for sharing!

 

[SJP]

Great trip! What a good time. Thanks for uploading the pictures. MI is pretty nice in the summer.

 

[sirbob]

Today’s run was to Cedarville - we ate at the Tipper Room. Nice place on the water that is owned by the same folks that own the liquor distiller in Cedarville.

Stopped into Hessel to pick up some gifts for friends back home.

 

[sirbob]

Drinks on Susanna last night

 

[sirbob]

We decided to make a swing by The Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation.

I didn’t take many pictures but I did get a shot of the experience center- my son works for Ford and this is where he has his meetings when he is back here. He got a kick out of me being there!

 

[sirbob]

Stopped my drive a little earlier in the day to just sit in a corn field in Nebraska to drink wine

From there we found the oldest Resturant in York Nebraska to have a wonderful dinner - escargot followed by steak and lobster!

They had a great dance / music venue that sadly was not open last night.

If you’re passing by stop at Chances R in York Nebraska !!

 

[sirbob]

Passing though the western part of Nebraska and into Colorado…

Found a nice little place for the night in Denver.

 

[Joe mama]

Thanks for the trip!!!! Not sure your girlfriend looked happy in the children of the corn field. Lol

 

[sirbob]

Thanks for the trip!!!! Not sure your girlfriend looked happy in the children of the corn field. Lol

Haha - in that pic she was on a work call

While I was having fun !!

 

[BoatCop]

All my family are Yoopers. Primarily from Marquette, Negaunee, Iron Mountain areas.

My Great Uncle was the first Commanding Officer at the (then) brand new Coast Guard Station on Mackinac Island in 1915, when the Coast Guard was formed form the combination of the US Lifesaving Service and Revenue Cutter Service. Due to his previous service at USLSS Station Marquette and Two Heart River Lifesaving Station, he was the first pick for the Mackinac job. Back then it was a pretty snobby place, with Uncle John & Aunt Lena spending a lot of time hob-nobbing with the socialites. He and his crew spent more time doing surf boat drills for the tourists, than doing actual rescues. He was there until he retired in 1923, passing away in 1926 at age 56. 32 years as a Surfman was rough in those days.

Cool little island community, as long as you want to walk, bike, ride a horse or carriage everywhere you go.

 

[sirbob]

All my family are Yoopers. Primarily from Marquette, Negaunee, Iron Mountain areas.

My Great Uncle was the first Commanding Officer at the (then) brand new Coast Guard Station on Mackinac Island in 1915, when the Coast Guard was formed form the combination of the US Lifesaving Service and Revenue Cutter Service. Due to his previous service at USLSS Station Marquette and Two Heart River Lifesaving Station, he was the first pick for the Mackinac job. Back then it was a pretty snobby place, with Uncle John & Aunt Lena spending a lot of time hob-nobbing with the socialites. He and his crew spent more time doing surf boat drills for the tourists, than doing actual rescues. He was there until he retired in 1923, passing away in 1926 at age 56. 32 years as a Surfman was rough in those days.

Cool little island community, as long as you want to walk, bike, ride a horse or carriage everywhere you go.

Yea it’s not quite as snobby today - the tourist far outweigh the socialites these days!

Looks like you followed in a great family tradition!

 

[sirbob]

Hung out in the Highlands area of Denver last night - off to Aspen today

Almost 30 years ago we lived in Denver for a minute. This part of town was the getto. It’s crazy to see the amount of houses being redeveloped in this area today - it’s turned into a very cool area!

 

[sirbob]

Made our way to Aspen - lots to talk about here!!!

 

[sirbob]

How about a few street scenes in Aspen…

Here is a rarity for the Porsche folks out there. One of the very few built 993 club sport models. I don’t think these were sold in the US? As I approached to take a picture I see a guy squatting down to take a pic of the rear fender and wing then I notice it’s Jeff Zwart!!!!

One of the most winning pikes peak drivers and a true Porsche legend for not only his driving but also his photography and film making about Porsches. He has also written a number of books about Porsche.

This is not a car you would expect to see driving around in the rain on a Sunday!!

 

[sirbob]

We are staying at the Hotel Jerome but I think we’ve had drinks at most of the places in town lol.

This place knows how to do a minibar in your room - just in case you needed a drink in a pinch!!

 

[sirbob]

Guitars, hats and boots!

 

[sirbob]

I love the diversity of the house architecture. Some places are original restorations and others are knock out modern homes. And Aspen real estate has to be pretty near the top of the food chain!!

A couple of listings in town…

Take a look at this home I found on Realtor.com
230 E Hopkins Ave, Aspen
$45,000,000 · 3beds · 4.5+baths

https://apps.realtor.com/mUAZ/lyhcjcfu

Take a look at this home I found on Realtor.com
227 E Main St, Aspen
$16,950,000 · 4beds · 4.5+baths

https://apps.realtor.com/mUAZ/b1q77wns

 

[throttle]

For the win! Looks like such a great time!

 

[TonyFanelli]

Your doin it up right!