Aged to Perfection: ACBS-Toronto 39th Vintage Boat Show – July 6, 2019
June 27, 2019
By Mike Gridley
Credit: All Images by Patrice Anderson – blueheronink.ca
Summer is here and for many Canadians it means hockey is over and boating begins. A highlight of every summer is the Annual Vintage Boat Show hosted by ACBS-Toronto July 6th, at Muskoka Wharf. Once again admission to the show if free. This also include free entrance the Muskoka Discover Centre’s Boat House to view the boats. Free parking and shuttle bus transportation to and from Muskoka Wharf is also provided.
While the show is free, ACBS-Toronto will be accepting donations at the show to further the work of this non-profit organization. Each year they donate funds to organization in line with their mission “to protect, preserve and promote our Canadian Heritage of vintage watercraft.” Past recipients include The Muskoka Discovery Centre, Kids & Classics, I.E. Weldon High School boat restoration program and the Canadian Canoe Museum.
This year the show theme “Aged to Perfection” salutes the boats at the show that are now 100 years old. Not only will the Antique and Classic Boat Society – Toronto be recognizing these wonderful craft at the show, but they will also officially launch the ACBS-Toronto Centenarian Boat Registry. This year at the show we will celebrate the boats built in 1919 and earlier and going forward we will honour and add boats to the registry at they celebrate there 100th Birthday.
Based on this you can count on a good number of 100-year-old boats representing builders like Duke, Minett, Gidley, Gilbert, Brown, Peterborough, Ditchburn, Peterborough, Disappearing Propeller Boats and others being at the show docks July 6th.
Beyond the featured 100-year-old boats, the show will showcase a full range of vintage and classics from mahogany launches to classic fibreglass. The docks will be filled with boats as diverse as a 1950s Peterborough, a 1960s Larson or a 1920s Minett-Shields.
While attending the show and enjoying over 100 vintage boats at the docks there is always more to see and do on shore. With the ever-increasing popularity of the show, there will have quite a few of the registered boats set up on land, reaching from the Lions Pavilion west along the boardwalk. You will be able to view everything from a 100-year-old Gidley launch to finned Classic Glass boats of the 50s.
To keep things moving and to show off their restored boats, owners will be taking them for a spin around the bay to the delight of the crowds.
Some highlights on land this year include an impressive display and sale of antique and vintage outboard motors organized by the Maple Leaf Antique Outboard Club. There will also be a Nautical Flea Market to browse through in search of unique and hard to find items.
Looking to get on the water? Join us for a free ride in a vintage boat at the end of ‘C’ Dock. If you are in the market for a collectable boat check out the land and water display of Boats-4-Sale. Vendors Alley will be active with a full array wares for sale.
Vintage cars too
In addition to vintage boats, the classic car show is returning in 2019 a terrific display on the Steamship Wharf. There will be a collection of vintage vehicles going back to a Canadian made 1911 EMF Roadster, a 1912 REO, right up to a 1951 Hudson Hornet. There will also be five Citroens celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Marque, a selection of British Sports cars and classic trucks used by companies for advertising and marketing promotion. On the fun side will be the Amphicars on display in and out of the water.
And Sea Fleas
To keep the family entertained, Kids and Classics will be introducing kids to racing Sea Fleas and engaging them in carving wood paddles and how the Sea Fleas are built. There will be RC boats to try out and model boats to make as well in the Kids Zone, which is made possible through local support from Classic Rope Fenders, Hutching Marine Products and Chamberlain Timber Mart. Need a break from the sun? Then drop into the Lion’s Pavilion after lunch, relax, have a refreshment and enjoy the fashion show.
If you’ve had a great time at this year’s 39th Annual Vintage Boat Show, look around you for the red ACBS shirts and hats and members sporting WAVE name badges. These are the hundreds of volunteers who make the show possible. The dedicate their time sitting on committees, setting up the show, helping dock the boats and assisting the public. These people are the heart and soul of ACBS-Toronto.
The final ingredient that make the show and all its activities possible are our sponsors and partners. Without their generous contributions there would not be a show, especially one that is free for the public to enjoy. We ask that you support their businesses as your way of saying thank-you for keeping Classic and Vintage boats a part of every Muskoka Summer.
