History
Steve
Rander established Schooner Creek Boat Works in 1977 on the south side
of North Portland Harbor. Schooner Creek specialized in boat construction
and repair and over the next 10 years, built over 15 William Garden
18 foot Eels.
In 1982, the 42' “Magic Carpet” was launched. She was designed for Schooner Creek Boat Works by Portland architect Robert Smith to test the strength, longevity, and viability of a new building concept. The hull consisted of a Klegecell core sandwiched between two skins of double-diagonal wood veneers, using WEST System resins. The 42’ “Magic Carpet” was built with a designed displacement of only 11,000 lbs at a time when the average 36-footer weighed in at 18,000 lbs. Carpet proved herself with many successes in offshore racing including 3 victories from San Francisco to Hawaii.
By 1993 and with some 100,000 miles logged on Magic Carpet, the building method had been given an exhaustive test and it was time to begin a new project. The 70-foot “Rage” was designed to set new records by San Francisco Bay area architect Tom Wylie and was built in 10 weeks. Every effort went into keeping the boat light and strong. Every component of “Rage” was bonded to the skin, stringers, or bulkheads to increase the torsional and longitudinal rigidity of the entire structure. With only a 13'6" beam the result was a light, unobstructed interior. The mast is an 85' carbon fiber tube and the boom is a triangular plywood box wrapped with carbon fiber at the stress points. The sailing weight is around 21,000 lbs. nearly 8,000 lbs lighter than comparable 70 footers.
