More First Boats

Memories of the Cape Dory 10

My First Boat…
by Mark Gallo

I was too young to remember our first boat—a wooden Town class “townie” built in the ‘50s—although there are photos of my three-year-old self sitting in the cockpit. 

The first family boat I have vivid memories of is our Cape Dory 10. My mother kept us in the dark about “a family surprise” in our future until the day we drove down to the dealership on the South Shore of Massachusetts to pick up the dinghy. Somehow my parents managed to lift it onto the roof rack, but we got a trailer shortly thereafter. That boat was the vehicle for all kinds of summer exploration and adventure around the green head (fly) infested tidal marshes of Ipswich Massachusetts for me, my older brother, younger sister, and dad. Like several other readers, my mother was not keen on going to sea in small boats. In a concession to my mom’s Greek heritage Dad named her Yiasou - bottoms up! 

The CD 10 was a lovely design and well built. It rowed well and sailed ok I guess (I had no basis for comparison). The only disconcerting aspect of the design was the far-forward placement of the mast—up in the very eyes of the bow. I suspect this was done to avoid the extra costs of a reinforced mast step and cross member, but it looked really odd. When we took our boat to the Cape Dory regatta in Cotuit on Cape Cod we got our first taste of racing. Of course I fell for the bigger, faster, and better looking CD 14 design. That pattern continues to this day! •SCA•