Paul,

I appreciate your skepticism.

I did a little searching and found this out about the fellow who wrote the piece... and there seem to be multiple places where it really is listed as by him...

"By Jim Betts:
This is new, but in a sense quite old. I first published the magazine and founded IABBS (The International Amateur Boat Building Society) in 1967. I ran this as a hobby for about five years, but the pressure of business (I launched Early American Life magazine), racing sailboats, building a new boat to my own design, and co-founding the Yacht Design Institute, got to be too much! I sold IABBS and YDI. They both later went out of business.

In “real-life”, I am a journalist and publisher. Well, I was. Today, I am retired. In the past, I have built five of the 11 boats I’ve owned, two to my own design. Published four books including being co-author (with Ted Brewer) of the original book Understanding Boat Design. Sailboat racer for some 40 years. Now I’m bringing back IABBS and the new magazine."

We have in the piece listed above, a very funny set of stories that likely span 40 years of boat building. I do not doubt that there is a little poetic license in there to make it sound even better, becauses Jim is in the process of getting interest in his magazine again. I believe he would be open to your questions if you choose to ask them directly, but I think this story is not urban legend stuff - rather the well written synopsis of everything that can go wrong in a long career of building and sailing.

So, the next time I get some epoxy on my pants... well Jim may have saved me from humiliation. I guess I will just be real careful not to get it on the pants.

Rick