Who says form follows function?

[Times photso: James Borchuck]

Dr. Michael Mastry and his wife, Elisabeth, drive their Chris-Craft Corsair 28. They upgraded the motors on the $200,000 boat after finding it at a boat show.

	Chris-Craft, known for decades as a premier wood boat, has modernized with fiberglass hulls, but there are classic wood touches throughout, with accents that reflect the company’s famed history.
	Dr. Michael Mastry readies his boat for a ride out of Sarasota.
	The controls are refined but placed for running, with every function easily accessible.

SARASOTA - Dr. Michael Mastry says it was love at first sight.

"I took one look and just had to have it," the St. Petersburg obstetrician said of the chance meeting at the Miami Boat Show. "I had been in the market for a while, but that boat just stood out."

Mastry knew he might have to wait for his Corsair 28, but he didn't care.

"It had style, a classic look," he said. "You are not going to find that anywhere but a Chris-Craft."

Steve Heese, president of the Sarasota-based boat company that is celebrating its 130th anniversary this year, said Mastry's experience is not uncommon.

"We call that the "saw it, liked it, bought it' experience," Heese said. "There is a big "gee whiz' factor with all our boats. They are different from everything else at the show. It's our intention to deliver a "Wow!' from 100 feet away."

The demand to see Chris-Crafts on display at boat shows has been so great, company officials have been forced to have potential buyers make appointments.

"Without the signup sheet, the boats would be just choked with people," Heese said. "The people who are really serious about buying one would never get a chance to see it."

Christopher Columbus Smith, the company's founder, built his first boat in 1874 at age 13. By the turn of the century the man who started building boats for duck hunting had moved to breaking speed records.

He formed a partnership with a daredevil, John J. Ryan, to build a run-about that could hit a previously unimaginable speed of 33 mph. But gambling debts ruined Ryan, and Smith assumed control of the company, C.C. Smith Boat & Engine Company.

Starting in 1914, Smith boats won the American Power Boat Association Gold Cup eight years in a row. By 1930, Smith was working with his two sons and had made a name for himself. His boats, called "Chris Crafts" by friends and relatives, had gained an international reputation. The name stuck and a trademark was born.

During World War II, Smith stopped making pleasure boats to build landing craft, more than 10,000 of which of served in the Pacific and European theaters. On June 6, 1944, a Chris-Craft Landing Craft Personnel Light was the first vessel to hit a Normandy beachhead in the Allied invasion.

Company literature boasts that "Chris-Craft is the only recreational boat manufacturer to have had its product tested under fire."

By the 1950s the company had expanded to 10 plants and 5,000 employees. A Chris-Craft, with its smooth lines and exquisite wood work, became the boat of choice for the rich and famous. The Vanderbilts, Morgans and Fords all ran Chris-Crafts. Two presidents, Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy, as well as crooner Frank Sinatra, actor Katherine Hepburn and rock 'n' roller Elvis Presley owned Chris Crafts.

"Chris-Crafts have always been built to last a lifetime," Heese said. "I think that the greatest advertising the company has are all these classic boats that still run and are maintained by their owners."

Between 1922 and 1972, Chris-Craft sold more than 100,000 boats in the United States, France, Italy and Great Britain. The company began incorporating fiberglass into its production in 1962. Ten years later Chris-Craft built its last all-wood boat. But even today every Chris-Craft has design elements from the early days when the name was made.

Outboard Marine Corporation (OMC), manufacturer of Johnson and Evinrude engines, bought the company in 1990. Ten years later OMC went under, and Heese and his Harvard Business School colleague Stephen Julius bought the boat company and vowed to return it to former glory.

The main plant, which had relocated to Sarasota, shut down for nine months then reopened in 2002. The company, in private ownership for the first time since the Smith family relinquished control in 1955, released three Launches, open-bow models of 22, 25 and 28 feet, and two closed-deck models of 25 and 28 feet.

The closed-deck boats were renamed Corsairs to reflect the models heritage. They debuted at the 2002 Ft. Lauderdale Boat Show.

Mastry, whose family is well-known in Tampa Bay area fishing and boat-racing circles, saw the Corsair 28 a few months later at the Miami Boat Show. He fitted the boat with twin Yanmar performance diesel engines, which added significantly to what was already a $200,000 price tag, but Heese said the move showed Mastry had confidence in the boat.

"Diesel engines like that will last a lifetime," Heese said. "I think that shows (Mastry) thinks he will be running that boat for a long time."

Chris-Craft introduced its Roamer 36 at the 2003 Miami International Boat Show. A year later the company launched its first motor yacht, the Roamer 43. The boat was so popular the company didn't have models to show to the press.

"We have sold two already in the Tampa Bay area," Heese said. "I think it will do well for us."

Eventually Chris-Craft hopes to extend its line to 60 feet. It produces about 600 boats a year at its Sarasota plant, employing about 220 people, but plans to expand to 300 by this time next year.

Part of that is name value. Chris-Craft, like Bertram, Cigarette, Hatteras and Boston Whaler, is a widely recognized brand.

"Just like Coca-Cola and Harley Davidson, Chris-Craft is one of those heritage brands that says America," Heese said. "Our goal is to produce beautiful boats that, like Swiss watches, will last a lifetime."

Corsair 28

Overall length: 28 feet

Beam: 10 feet

Dry weight: 7,500

Fuel Capcity: 150 gallons

Deadrise: 20 degrees

Draft (twin engine):33.5 inches

Performance data

Engine Tested: Twin Volvo Penta 5.7 litere (280 HP)

Top Speed: 55-57 mph

Cruise Speed 27mph (2,500 RPM)

Range @ Cruise: 220 miles