Sea Dance

Leaving Sausalito

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crossing the bay with the Golden Gate as a backdrop

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out of the Golden Gate with San Francisco in the background

Sea Dance in her early years, photo circa 1967, probably taken on the lower Niagara River.

The above photo and following text was sent by Bill Stinson, current owner the C320 Moondance moored in Anacortes, WA.

"My father's name was William (Bill) E. Stinson. He passed away in 1975 at the age of 61. He bought Sea Dance, factory direct, from Whitby Boat Works in Ajax, Ontario. I think the cost in 1965 dollars was about $6,000US.
The boat was purchased with a buyer furnished, used, Grey Marine 25HP engine. The engine was removed from our previous wooden Mason cutter and was rebuilt in our basement.
The christening took place in April of 1965 on the upper Niagara River in North Tonawanda, NY. I can remember ice still blocking the main river flow that day. Champagne was gently poured over the bow fitting.
The boat was moored at Youngstown, NY during the boating seasons until August, 1967. Winters were spent on a cradle at Wilson, NY. Cruising grounds included Lake Ontario, Toronto and the upper St. Lawrence River. At least one transit of the Welland Canal was made from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. The Erie canal was probably transited as well. She did some racing at Youngstown and Toronto.
In the fall of 1967, We moved to Seattle. A special trailer was made to truck the boat across the country. A new Ford F250 pick-up was used for power. My father drove alone via I-90 all the way. Truck and trailer were both sold soon after the trip. Sea Dance was re-launched at Shilshole Bay Marina in Seattle."

Continuing the story in September of 1967:
"My father lived aboard for a couple of months while he started his new Boeing job. The boat stayed at Shilshole for about a year. After that, she moved to the Seattle Yacht Club in fresh water.
Weekend cruises and club races revolved around central Puget Sound. Port Madison was a frequent destination. A catalytic propane heater was installed for year round cabin comfort. I remember a fine sail on New Years Day.
Two major cruises were undertaken to the north. The first was a three week trip to Desolation Sound in British Columbia. On that trip we got as far north as Thurston Bay. Friends delivered the boat to and from Lund, BC so we could spend the full three weeks up north.
The second trip was a two week affair with the same delivery arrangement. The focus this time was Princess Louisa Inlet. The return run was made by us this time.
The boat held up well during these years. My father replaced most of the original mahogany with teak. He felt the teak was better suited for the salt environment. The original rudder was also mahogany. A screw that transmitted torque from the shaft to the rudder sheared once causing a turn-back. The rudder and rudder hardware were hopefully replace with better materials at some point. The galley arrangement was revised to add counter space but I can't remember the details."

Thanks for the info Bill!

Tue, 22 July, 1997 .. From: "Scott Stinson"
Peter,
My personal recollections are somewhat less detailed than my brother Bill's, but I do recall memorable sails on Puget Sound, the inland passage of Vancouver Is. up towards Thurlow Bay, and of course the Great Lakes sailing out of the Niagara River near Youngstown NY.
My personal favorite without a doubt was sailing up Jervis Inlet north of Vancouver B.C. The inlet is long, and zig zaggy. It is a large / deep body of water surrounded by huge mountains and waterfalls everywhere. We "ran" almost all the way up the inlet with following seas.
A person can bring their boat right up to the shore's edge to view the waterfalls. Towards the end of the inlet, Princess Louisa takes a right turn. To enter the inlet requires going through an entrance which has moderate to fast tide currents both in and out depending on the tide. Our dad of course chose a "moderate" inlet waterflow. What a trip!
I can still recall the moonlit nights, and beautifully clear waters. At the end of the inlet is Chatterbox Falls with snowfields and glaciers up on the mountains.
I look forward to going back someday with my children.
Scott S.
Vashon Wa.

From the scant records that came with the boat I have been able to derive the following bits of historical trivia:

July 7, 1993: Peter and Sandi Ehlert purchased her from Russel Burton Watson Jr. in Richmond, Ca.
September 19, 1986: Watson purchased her from Dale Ahlstrom in Oakland, Ca.
August 1, 1984: Dale Ahlstrom got a cruising permit at Prince Rupert, B.C.
July 1, 1983: Sea Dance entered the US at Ketchikan, Alaska; Dale W. Ahlstrom at the helm.
June 4, 1979: Dale W. and Susan S. K. Ahlstrom bought her from a Mary Joe Clark in Seattle, WA
March 18, 1976: Joan Clarke had a purchase survey in Seattle. WA

----------------------------------- Sea Dance gear updates:
We still have the mahogany rudder, why change?
She now sports standard slab reefing, the original roller boom is still in place with the sliding gooseneck on a track (for leach tension) still in operation. We don't run a genoa or a spinnaker, plenty of wind in SFO area! I will rig for more sail area when I bring her down to our place in Punta Banda.
Ahlstrom converted her to a Yanmar 2GM20 13 horse diesel in about '82. Serves very well, pulls 5.5k at 2200RPM, about 0.75 pints per hour. Original glass fuel tank, Racor filter.
We still have the Loran but only use GPS (Garmin 45). The masthead strobe and spreader lights never have worked, on my to-do list.
The sink was moved forward with a removable panel on the end for leg room below the sink. The stbd. bulkhead has a removable shelf for headroom. A bit of a hassle, but it works. The Force 10 cabin heater on the Stbd bulkhead was diesel from the main tank, I converted it to propane. The diesel 2 burner gimbaled cooktop was updated to a Force 10 2 burner propane gimbaled cooktop by me. I installed a 20lb. steel propane tank in a home built, drained, open top, plywood box in the stern lazerette.
There is a foot actuated sea water galley pump. The original knot log died, I changed it out to a Standard, used the original transducer.
We built a bridge across the walkway in the v berth with new foam cushions to span the total area.

I have found her week point in rough weather: ME!
(rough weather = full gale, pooped [twice in two minutes], pressed down with spreaders less than 5 feet out of the water, green water constantly covering the deck)

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back in the early 2000's (I can not remember the date at the moment) I was too involved in too many things and had not sailed her in a couple of years.  I made the grand decision to donate her to the Boy Scouts of San Diego.  I obtained an appraisal for tax purposes, and it was a done deal.  I have made worse decisions but not many.

Shortly late I got an email from John Porter, the new owner via the Scouts.  He had discovered this web page and had a few questions. We have lost contact.