Last weekend at LOTO I had the pleasure to visit with James Beard, his lovely wife and mother, and his associate, Gabe. What I anticipated as being a cordial business lunch turned into 3 days of absolute fun, laughter and friendship. From the Beards, I learned the true meaning of "Southern Hospitality". My body was so sore from 3 days of laughter that it took nearly a week to recover.
Ironically, while James, Bruce(my right-hand man) and I were strolling towards lunch discussing blower motors and various rigging issues, another hotel guest, Lynn Wegemann, overheard our conversation and noticed our T-shirts. To my total shock and surprise, Lynn also is an Awesome Owner, and, like James, is a former offshore racer. In addition, Lynn is President and CEO of the legendary Hacker Craft/Hacker Boat Company. Check out his website at
www.HackerBoats.com. Needless to say, Lynn joined us for those 3 great days and helped to make the weekend so memorable.