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Profile of a Member: Scott Wahlberg I grew up in Connecticut and spent many summer days at my Grandparents cottage on a lake in Massachusetts. That’s probably where the love of boats and motors started. Neither my grand parents or parents had money for a “big” boat so we had fun with rowboats and outboard motors. While there were a couple of Centurys on the lake, most were outboard runabouts, rowboats, sailboats and of course the emerging fiberglass runabouts. My first motor was a Neptune Mighty Mite. It wasn’t much and it didn’t run all that well but I had fun with it. I was just a kid and that was my very own motor. As a teenager I built an eight foot hydroplane that was powered by the family Evinrude 5 ½ Fisherman. It seemed like a speed demon but in fact it wasn’t that fast at all. When you’re six inches off the water anything seems fast. It was a fun boat so it really didn’t matter. How I made it to Maryland is another story, but that’s where I met my wife, Carol. We bought a house in White Marsh and have lived there for the last 21 years. My grandfather’s Star Craft boat and the family Evinrude came to Maryland soon thereafter. It wasn’t long before we realized that if we wanted to be on the water around the Chesapeake Bay we needed something bigger. At the time, around 1984, I worked in an auto body shop repairing wrecked cars. Our combined salaries allowed us to buy a 1969 Glaspar runabout with a 65 Mercury. The boat wasn’t much but we had a great time with it cruising all over the upper Chesapeake Bay. After a couple of years it was time to upgrade to a 17 foot inboard/outboard bowrider. That was fun, but we got into water-skiing so a Mastercraft tournament ski boat was next. We had a great time with that boat too but after a while it was time for a cruiser. Next came a 1983 26 foot Carver. We kept that for about eight years and then sold it. Sometime during this time I got the desire to collect old outboard motors. It started slowly but has since grown to about 80 motors. I found out about the Antique Outboard Motor Club (AOMC) and of course joined. If you have old outboards you have to have an old boat. My first classic boat was a 1959 Whirlwind with a 1959 Mercury Mark 58A. That’s another boat I had a lot of fun with. Next came a 13 foot Sea King, also made by Whirlwind. We bought a 14 foot Thompson lap strake runabout, that has yet to be restored. After reading the Bob Speltz book on outboard boats I decided I had to have a Berglund. The lines of the boat were like none I had ever seen. There were about 3000 made so the prospect of finding one didn’t look good. One day while at an AOMC swap meet in Connecticut I saw a paper stapled to a telephone pole. For sale: 1958 Berglund with a 1959 Johnson 35. I had to have it and ultimately was able to buy it. A 1958 Johnson Super Sea Horse 35 was found, and in about a year’s time I restored the boat and motor. It’s a wonderful boat that gives a great ride. My wife is great. Although she acts like my motor collecting is kind of strange she never fails to show guests our “museum” of old motors. She goes to swap meets with me and spends all three days at the St. Michaels meet. She finally got her own boat this year, a 14 foot Feather Craft, with a Johnson 18 Electric Start. Owning the Feather Craft has made it necessary to learn how to replace rivets in aluminum boats. With any luck this year it will be ready for use. About six years ago we discovered the ACBS. Our AOMC club sets up a display at St. Michaels with several boats and a bunch of motors. I really enjoy talking with guests at the show who grew up with one or more of the motors on display. It’s gratifying to hear someone get all excited over a motor like a 1956 Sea King 5 that they used to use for fishing. My favorite motor line is Johnson, but I collect a little of everything. I’m not an auto body repair guy any more but that trade sure has helped me restore my boats and motors. Some day “the museum” will be much more of a museum with motors properly displayed with ads, accessories and sales brochures. I firmly believe that outboard boats were a big part of our recreational boat history. This was the average person’s boat. It’s great that the Chesapeake Chapter of the ACBS gives outboard boats and motors the attention they deserve. Perhaps one day I’ll own a mahogany inboard, but for now I’ll keep playing with my outboard motors and boats.
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