Gar Wood, the Enzo Ferrari of Powerboat Racing

Filed in archive Classic Boats on November 30, 2007

When I was a teenager growing up in Toronto's Beach district I fell in love with the graceful and very fast wooden-hulled power launches operated by the Toronto Harbour Police. (Only once did I get to ride in one, when three of us overturned a sailing canoe a mile offshore at 6AM and had to be rescued. The police docks were located six miles away but that powerful craft reached us in nine minutes.) Similar boats owned by well-off cottagers could also be seen in the Muskoka Lakes, 100 miles to the north, made by local builders with then-famous names like Ditchburn, Greavette, and Minett. I especially remember one that had seen use as a pre-war racer. The hull featured a long deck with two seats at the stern, powered by a much-modified Packard V-12 engine that gave off a glorious sound as it skimmed across the water, rooster tail streaming out behind.

I was reminded of this when checking an article in The Garage Blog by Gary Faules in which he writes about Garfield Wood, a legendary powerboat builder whose Gar Wood and Baby Gar racers dominated many competitions in the early part of the 20th century. Powerboat racing during that period was so popular that close to half-a-million spectators lined the shores of the Detroit River in 1922 to watch the Gold Cup Regatta! The Garfield Wood story is fascinating and Gary does a fine job of reducing it to blog length... not always easy. After you've read it, click on the Port Carling Boats site for a look at many examples of beautiful wooden powerboats built for racing and pleasure use. The site looks like it was designed by the same guy who decorates pawnshop windows but don't let that deter you. It's rich with photos, information, and links.