Seldom does a person come into your life that makes such a significant impact as Jack Huddle did to mine and the Jarrett Bay family. I have often told people that Jack has become a second father to me. He has given advice, instilled confidence and has provided opportunities for us that only a father would. I first met Mr. Huddle on Harkers Island where he fished his 29’ Phoenix “Jack’s Boat” from the same marina I ran charters out of. As I got to know him, it was easy to see he had a real love of the outdoors and was passionate about offshore fishing and hunting at the “camp” in the community of Stacy.

The day Jack agreed to purchase his first boat from us he walked into the tin shed in Williston where we started and asked about “getting one of these boats.” After a few minutes, he gave me the basic layout of the 43’ boat he envisioned and asked “how do we start”. I replied that I would build the boat for $12.00 per hour when we weren’t running charters and 10% markup on materials. Jack replied that was fine, shook my hand and we started construction of his first 43’ Jarrett Bay “Builders Choice”. From that day, I knew we would have a special relationship. Little did I know this would be the first “Yacht” we would build, and that day would change the course of our company’s history. So far, we have built three boats for Mr. Huddle and his family – Hulls 5, 20 and 40 – and have never had more than a handshake for our contract.

Most people might assume that I would recognize Jack Huddle because he built three boats with us, but in reality he has done much more. As we built the first “Builders Choice,” he would often visit and saw the challenges we faced working in a tin shed that was more than 40 years old. As our crew worked with holes in the roof, a dirt floor and poor lighting, he became convinced we needed to make a move. Mr. Huddle purchased a parcel of land in Marshallberg, built a new building to our specifications and allowed us to move in for the same rent “until we could get on our feet.” If this wasn’t enough, he later bought adjacent parcels, built a second building, a travel lift and found a way to sell it to us without so much as a down payment. As we have grown, Mr. Huddle’s Trader Construction has been our only contractor making all the improvements to the industrial park we now occupy, and doing it all with nothing but a handshake.

While I will always be indebted to Mr. Huddle, his wife Barbara, daughter Allison and my “brothers” Harris and Carl for what they have done for our company, the real gift Jack Huddle gave us was his confidence in our ability and the reminder that a man’s handshake is his bond. I can’t wait to start the next “Builder’s Choice!”

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I’ve had this idea to shoot a moving boat from the bow point of view for more than 10 years since seeing a graphite boom used to shoot similar angles in commercial car photography. If during that period of time I had tried to force the shot with less than perfect gear, crew and most of all boat it would have fallen flat. The last two years since we started Occhio I have found myself in the orbit of an incredible bunch of people that have allowed me access to opportunities to bring it all together. One of the biggest changes was moving to Eastern North Carolina and being surrounded by some of the most beautiful sport fishing yachts in the world, some built as close as a few miles from my gallery. Although a very long way from my birth place of South Africa, I’m proud to call Morehead City my adopted home.

I’m constantly inspired by the lines of the Carolina flare, one of the trademarks of the locally built Custom Carolina boats. This flare starts from the rounded tumblehome of the transom and grows organically forward into a pronounced duck’s bill designed to push down and part the rough seas of the the North Carolina coast and it’s inlets. From the charter boats that cruise past the office window at the gallery, to boats I get to see at some of the most prestigious fishing tournaments in the world, there is no mistaking the elegance of a Custom Carolina. A custom Carolina is not just about looks, being on board a 67′ boat in lumpy seas traveling at almost 40 knots is a uplifting feeling and testimony to it’s ability to handle sea. There are some great photo’s of the flare in action but I was looking for something different. I approached the Poole family, owners of a 67′ Jarrett Bay, as well as Randy Ramsey of Jarrett Bay. From the Poole’s I needed their boat for a few hours and from Randy I needed help with the fabrication of my idea.

Randy sent me to see Rick McInerny of Jarrett Bay’s fabrication department. To get the shot I wanted I needed to position a camera three feet from the bow of a sport fishing yacht. The idea was to shoot the boat underway with a slow shutter speed to blur the surroundings while keeping the boat itself tack sharp. To do this the camera and boat had to travel at exactly the same speed. What I was asking was no small feat. The mount had to hold the heavy, 20 pound underwater camera housing perfectly, and yet have an almost invisible profile to avoid taking up too much of the shot.

Rick put his brain behind it and knocked us off our feet when he arrived on the dock with this massive, intricately custom-fabricated mount. It met my needs perfectly, although it looked like it belonged more on the space shuttle than the bow of the Waste Knot. Early one morning, late in the fall, Captain Pizza Kannan and mate Pete Zook met me before sunrise at the Waste Knot’s berth on the backside of Atlantic Beach, North Carolina. Pizza bought her in bow first to mount the camera, a Canon 5D Mark II with a 15mm fisheye lens. From the camera I ran a 60-foot USB cable along the ridge of the mount and down through the forward hatch into one of the staterooms.

The USB cable connected into my Apple laptop. From down below I had a live video feed from the camera to shoot the images as they appeared. Captain Pizza put the incredible Waste Knot through her paces once we got outside the Beaufort Inlet. The winning shot came as he put her in a wide arching turn, running almost 36 knots with the sun rising over the Atlantic Ocean behind us. The light exploded through the smoky spray as the bow ate up the surface of the sea below. After shooting the Waste Knot a number of times over the last year, this was the first time I felt I was able to capture what that boat is all about: her elegance, grace, and raw power.

Well, it’s been awhile since I’ve been over to the shop to actually lay my hands on my new Jarrett Bay, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t seen it! With today’s technology, we’ve been able to make a lot of decisions from pictures and video. The time lapse camera has also helps us follow the progress as well.

The guys building the boat are real good about calling and giving me options on how to address each custom decision, and after looking at a couple of pictures in an email, I can get a better idea of what I’m actually deciding on!

Of course you need to be there for some things, but a lot of times you don’t. We did the whole flybridge area from pictures and we actually put a lot of time into the entire look and layout of the helm station. Even though we’re keeping things clean looking up there, you put just as much electronics on a 46 as you do a 65. I decided against the whole pop-up helm — even though it would have looked nice. I thought that in this case, simpler would be better.

A lot of the big decisions are past me now, so it’s mostly details like: how wide should we make the wood border on the granite counter tops, and stuff like that. But that’s what’s cool about a custom boat. I really enjoy the entire building process. I like to think, – and not always about racing. I like to build and design things, so this project gives me something to worry about that I don’t really have to worry about. And it’s not solving world hunger; if my dash panel is an inch higher than it needs to be when it’s all said and done, it’s not a big deal. So this build is actually a good diversion for me.

They’ve got a lot of the woodwork done in the staterooms, head and gallery, and just about all the cabinetry work has been completed. The helm is glassed in as well. They are trying to get as much done as they can before mating the salon to the hull. When you look at the hull itself on the camera, it looks like they haven’t done anything. But then when you look around and see all the parts ready to go in once they put it together, you realize that they’ve been pretty busy.

When I do get back there, I’m continually amazed at the level of craftsmanship that goes into building a custom boat. Everything on there is handmade.

This molding or that piece of railing looks and feels like it does because somebody hand their hands on it – it wasn’t spit out by a machine. My whole boat is a hand-built piece of furniture.

The boys at Jarrett Bay sweat over everything. Sometimes I want to ask them, “why are you calling me about this?” But then you realize that all the little stuff – small decisions actually – really impact the final result. They called me the other day about the way the painter locker hinges. I had no idea. So, I told them I wanted them as big as I could get and that I wanted the door to open when I pulled it open, and to stay shut when I closed it.

It’s starting to get real exciting, because I can see the results off all the efforts coming together. And I’m still psyched about the pod drives – I think they are going to take over the marine industry. More speed, less fuel, same money, quieter; what’s not to like?

Related Links for the Jeff Burton 46′ Jarrett Bay Project:

Tom O’ Connor: Welcome back to Jarrett Bay Boatworks. We’re here to get a progress update on Jeff Burton’s new boat.

Last time we were here, the interior was mocked up. Now, the actual construction materials are being put in. Bear in mind, we’re taking a project that usually takes three years to complete, and we’re squeezing it into a one year time frame.

Jeff, good to see you again man. It’s been a few months since we’ve met up, and… wow…

Jeff Burton: Yea, there’s a lot that’s happened really. To stand right there and take the picture of where we were last time, it doesn’t look like there’s anything different. But when you get in the boat, and you start looking at what’s been built to go in the boat, there’s a lot that’s been done, and of course the bridge is being completed, so there’s a tremendous amount of work that’s happened, and it’s a lot of exciting stuff. The concept of what we’re trying to build is really starting to come into play – and all the decisions that have to be made because of the concept we’re trying to build are coming into play too – so it’s a pretty busy time.

TO: Tell me about the lower driving station, I mean for me, that’s sticks out as a huge difference…

JB: Yea I think that’s obviously the biggest thing that’s different…

If you’re going out fishing and it’s raining, or you just want to get out of the elements, you can get down below. That enables me to be with my family too, you know, and be able to spend time together. That’s really what boating is all about, is being able to spend time together.

So we’re trying to take some of the aspects that you see in a down-east boat – you know, that cruise and don’t do a lot of fishing, and apply it to a boat that’s ready to go hard-core fishing – and in a size that’s something I can manage. So it’s a different project, but I think it’s a lot of fun, and it’s made a lot of people think about a lot of different stuff. All the electronic manufacturers, the tower manufacturer, Bausch, and just everybody, has really had to think a little differently and it’s been a lot of fun for them too.

We’re trying to build something that’s easy to maintain, but still looks really good. A lot of boats have a a lot of teak on them, and it looks really, really good. We’re gonna pull a little bit of teak off the boat, just from a maintenance standpoint. It’s not going to have a full-time captain, so we’re going to have teak decks and teak cap rails around the back…

Against my better judgement, we’re going to do a light blue. The only reason I say against my better judgement is – I’m a big Duke fan. So I know all my Carolina fan friends are going to say, “aww that’s Carolina blue!” It’s not Carolina blue, it’s some other blue… we’ll call it Bahama blue, what about that?

TO: How about Burton blue?

JB: Whatever, but It’s not Carolina blue…

It’s been a lot of fun. To me, the reason I’m building a custom boat is because I want to be involved in it. I don’t know anything about marine architecture, I don’t know anything about the practical decisions that need to be made, but want to be part of how it looks, how it feels, how it works. You know, how do you get to that part… I mean every single piece, they ask me about. It’s never, “well this is how we’re going to do it.” Gary calls me, Randy calls me, “what do you think about this?” You know, they give me ideas and give me options, and so I can say to them at any point, “look, I don’t want to deal with that, you all take that,” and they do. But they ask me every single time about every single thing, and I like that. That’s how it should be when you’re building a custom boat.

It’s a big project, but it’s been a real pleasurable experience for me. I’ve enjoyed every step of the way. We’re down to picking veneers and fabrics and stuff, and it’s fun. It’s cool cuz it takes awhile, and when you first think about it, you think, “well that’s not good cuz it’ll take too long,” but there’s an anticipation… everything builds on itself, and that’s exciting.

TO: Still bringing the boat to Miami [International Boat Show]?

JB: That’s the plan!

TO: Alright, well good luck, I’ll let you get back to work… Thanks for all your time, and building a boat in North Carolina, everybody really appreciates it.

JB: Thank you… Yea, man.

Related Links for the Jeff Burton 46′ Jarrett Bay Project:

I finally got a bit of a break in the season and snuck away to visit my boat under way at Jarrett Bay. Everything seems to be progressing nicely, and the guys have done a lot of work on the interior. All the walls down below are in place, so it’s really starting to look like something.

 During our time up at the yard, my wife and I finalized all the wood and veneers (we went with a nice walnut), how we wanted to lay out the flybridge and mezzanine, and picked the best place and orientation for the ladder. Since we have a nice wide beam on this boat, we opted for a sideways-facing ladder to keep folks from stepping on the mezzanine and for an added bit safety (I know the kids will be flying up and down it before too long). Jarrett Bay also installed these really neat bucket seats up on the bridge so the guests can hang out in comfort without bouncing and sliding around like you would on a bench seat.

I also met with the fellas at Bausch & IMS American while I was there to finalize my bridge and electronics details. I went with a resin-infused hard top half tower, with most everything recessed including these new LED low-voltage spreader lights that are brighter but more efficient and safer.

I decided to go with all Furuno gear for the navigation suite and flush-mounted everything here as well. I’m trying to keep everything simple and easy to use from both helm stations, but I still had to add a KVH high-def satellite dome, Fusion Stereo and a FLIR unit to check things while traveling at night. A guy likes his toys!

The engine room is all laid out, and the pod-drive system just gives you a ton of extra room up under the mezzanine — they really change the game with what you can put down below.

The only downside I can see is that you can’t put fish boxes under the cockpit deck. But since I’ve got a small fish box in the transom and a big space under the mezzanine, I can just rely on a nice bag if we really get into them. All in all, the boat looks really good. Jarrett Bay has masterfully combined that wonderful, traditional Carolina flare with more modern lines — just like they promised they would.

Related Links for the Jeff Burton 46′ Jarrett Bay Project:

For me the day was fantastic even with out a hook up. The Waste Knot is an incredible environment from which to fish. It’s not just the molded teak, fine finishes, and almost 4000 HP. Jarrett Bay has combined muscle and beauty into a single, organic fishing entity.

Marc Montocchio – Jarrett Bay Hull 54 – 67′ Waste Knot

During the past couple of weeks, the boys down at Jarrett Bay have been busy working hard on all the little, less-than-exciting things that go into making a custom sport-fisher. Things like where to put the fuel and water fills, how to position the fuel tanks and making sure everything is easy to maintain and work on. Since I plan on doing a lot of the service work myself, I want to make sure I can get to everything.

This stage of the game comes with a lot of compromises – if you put this thing here, then you have to make room over there, etc. To be quite honest, most of the ideas are coming from the Jarrett Bay crew, and I just say yes or no; I really have no idea what’s the best call on some of these things, but I trust the guys working on the boat. They give me the pros and cons, but I lean on them pretty heavily.

We just got some veneer samples in, and I’m leaning on some mahogany colors – I like darker-colored woods with a satin finish. I don’t like a glossy look, and I think the satin finish gives the wood an aged look, like it’s been around for some time.

Right now I’d say we are about 30 percent along on the build, and the crews are concentrating on the more mundane – although important – aspects like cabinetry. But it seems like it’s really going fast.

It’s a long process; it should take about a year, but I knew that going in. It’s all part of the process, and when you’re building a custom boat, you should enjoy the process as much as the delivery.

You can buy something right off the shelf or take the time that’s necessary to get exactly what you want, so I don’t mind the wait. I know the boys are working hard, installing air conditioning, water systems, heads, fuel polishers and whatnot. I just don’t know what the heck I’m looking at, but I’m coming up to speed!

I’m about a week or two from finalizing the electronics and am already thinking about what kind of gear I’m going to fill all of my rod holders with. Keep watching for more updates – they should be marrying the salon to the hull soon, so stay tuned for some more pictures!

In four days of tournament fishing in SC we have been 1st back to the docks 3 times and 2nd once! Get Tate to tell you about our “NASCAR” race last Saturday to almost run down Rookie IV who had an 8 mile head start and hold off Major Motion who had it to the pins and were cutting on the outside of red markers to try and get ahead! We had a blast for 9 miles toying with those guys from inside the jetties to the docks and they were dumping water and ice try and catch us! Bobby said he still had about 200 turns of sweet feed to feed the ponies when we were running 40.9 knots… it was the talk of the docks for the evening! We are turning some heads and getting a lot of foot traffic!

Stephen Davis, Bench Mark – 64′ Jarrett Bay Hull 55

We are comfy in the current Ravaganza. Getting to the dock from the back side of the Big Rock on Sunday in 65 minutes – from lines out to tied to the slip – will keep us happy for a while!

Keith Wall, Ravaganza – 70′ Jarrett Bay Hull 48

Jeff, we followed you around Jarrett Bay here today and got an opportunity to look at your new baby – thanks for taking the moment to talk to me.

Jeff Burton: Yeah, it’s fun, I like talking about boats.

TO: Well what do you think, how’s it coming along?

JB : It’s coming along well, and I was really excited to see it, you know, I’ve always come here and I’ve seen all the boats, but of course none of them were ever mine, so to actually see where it is now – which actually started with a clean sheet of paper, you know, and the thought of process of the boat drew the design of the boat – and to be here where it is right now is really cool. This is the first time I’ve seen it since we’ve started it – so it’s been really exciting to follow it on the internet and to talk about it every day – but to actually see and touch it and feel it is a whole ‘nother deal.

TO: How did you pick Jarrett Bay out of all the boat manufacturers in the world and all the places that you could have picked?

JB : Well, the first thing is that I wanted to build a Carolina Boat, because when you talk about sport fishing and when you talk about custom boats, it is Carolina. That was the first thing – the second thing is what builder – I knew the hull design was right, I knew what they were doing was right because all you have to do is talk to captains, and captains will you, “Hey, listen, not a lot of people know about it right now, but Jarrett Bay has got the best ride.” So when I started to see in the last 4 or 5 years the quality of the interiors and the motor yacht look and that quality that coupled with the ride, then that made it a no-brainer. There’s a pedigree here and I want to use that pedigree and what I want to do, the reason I’m building a custom boat is that I don’t want to drive the hull.

TO: Now it’s got a couple of distinctive features, what’s your favorite?

JB : The first thing we said is it has got to have a lower steering station, and that steering station has always got have good visibility, but there’s also forward facing seating for passengers. If you think about CAT, the finest yachts in the world have Caterpillar engines in them, so this gave us a chance to use their engines, which is a must, and couple it with the pod drives, and we’re also putting CAT’s genset in the boat, and the reason I’m doing that, it honestly isn’t because it is my sponsor it’s because you look at their dealer network and look at the servicability of their parts and look at the reliability of their diesels, that’s the right thing to do.

TO: What’s the first trip that you’re going to take with this boat?

JB : The first trip that I plan on taking, is a good friend of mine, he was actually captain of my boat for about 4 years, he lives in New England, and we’re going to go to Miami. We’ll take the boat to the Miami Boat Show so I think that’s about when the sailfish bite is on down there, so we’ll try to get us some shrimp, hang out, go fishing for a couple of days, get the boat cleaned up, and take it ot the boat show – then I got to Daytona and race – so that’s my first trip!

TO: That sounds like a pretty good time! Thanks for building your boat here, everyone in North Carolina appreciates your being here.

Related Links for the Jeff Burton 46′ Jarrett Bay Project: