Boat Names

Cruise through a marina or walk along a boat dock and the names on the backs of the boats are bound to get your attention.

You see one like "Drift Away" and you know this was someone looking for escape. Nothing too fancy there.

But they can be sooo clever.

Aquaholic, My Wake, Three Sheets to the Wind -- now those took some thought.

Lots of people use the word "Miss" in front of a woman's name -- usually a woman in their life. Thus we get, Miss Monica, Miss Mary, Miss Belle.

But take it one step further into the gray matter and you get, Miss Behaven. I like that.

All of this was so intriguing to Linda Sturgill that she bought a camera and started taking pictures of boat names, and interviewing the owners who coined them. Spending half the year at Smith Mountain Lake and the other half in Florida, she has ample opportunity. (Or should i say a Boatload?)

She took 4,000 pictures and put 2,000 into the book, with as many of the stories as she could gather.

The book is called: Boats, Their names & Why.

There is a long list of stores that sell the book -- many around Roanoke and Smith Mountain Like.

You can contact Linda directly at boatbook@comcast.net

We had a great time shooting this story thanks to George Blosser and the members of the Smith Mountain Lake Antique and Classic Boat Society. They showed up in four gorgeous boats and took us around to get some b-roll and to talk about boats.

The best story I heard from the group is in the TV report. It's the story behind Bill Goold's boat, Firewood. Though it's gorgeous now, it was a heap when he brought it home -- complete with dry rot and holes in the side. His buddy told him it was nothing but firewood. The name stuck.

At any rate, thanks to everyone who took us for rides and shared the stories about the names on the back of their boats.

If nothing else I now have a yearning for an wooden boat so I can name one. But it's Ashore Bet that it won't happen anytime soon.

The Ponies of Mount Rogers

We had quite a hike up the side of Mount Rogers in order to get to the wild ponies. I'll write more later about the trek and my thoughts about the dangers they face in the winter. But as promised here are the links to some more info about the ponies. If you want additional information or photos there are plenty to be had. Simply Google "Feral Ponies Virginia" and you'll get a screen full of quality hits.
Click here to watch the story.


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Running Wild

Feral Ponies of Virginia

Hoofsmarts



Here are a few observations about the ponies and their plight. I'm actually torn as to what is the best way to handle the situation. There's something significant about letting the ponies be "wild." Letting them live and forage as their ancestors did before they became domesticated. We are used to the notion of deer being wild. Same for bears, rabbits and everything else in the woods.

Ponies are different. Here we have an animal that's been domesticated and returned to the wild. Low and behold -- it worked! They reverted to their instincts. they paw through the snow in the winter, they bed down in swamps and naturally seek shelter from the storms. Last winter, the snow was just so deep they couldn't move. What's amazing is that any of them survived.

The Wilburne Ridge Pony Association is supposed to give them some help when things get tough. I asked them repeatedly to meet me at Mount Rogers for this story, but my phone calls went unreturned. I was told by several people that the association is made of of about 12-15 people who are getting on in years and may not be able to really handle the adverse conditions that winter at 5,000 feet can dole out. Again -- I don't know for sure -- because I only had a brief conversation with one member who said he wasn't comfortable talking to the media.

What's clear is this. Wild or not -- the ponies are comfortable with people. Deer don't spend the night in your camping area, like the ponies did with one of the hikers I interviewed.

There is an enormous number of people who come to see these ponies, care about the ponies and want what's best for them.

Should they be rounded up and kept safe in a barn somewhere during the winter, or does that defeat the spirit of the "wild" herd.

Is there a better way to care for them in the winter? Could a more concerted effort be made? (I didn't say "should" because by many accounts it may not be possible despite the best of intentions.)

I don't have the answers. But I hope that by shining a light on these creatures in this story on FOX 21/27, that we all continue to talk about it.

Stand Up Paddleboarding "Luke Waterwalker"

The whole time I was on the river with Luke Hopkins, it never occurred to me to refer to him as "Luke Waterwalker."

We talked about walking on water, which is cool, and let's face it not far from what he does. But it's also a parallel for his rare abilities.

Not only is he an accomplished paddleboarder and water sports enthusiast in general, i.e. kayaker, canoeist, rafter etc., he is a born inventor. And marketer.

He told me a story about how he was displeased with his life jacket, when he was in college, so he called the company to make suggestions. Within a few minutes he was on the phone with the CEO of the company. Within a few days, he was sitting in the company's R & D facility, making changes to the product. He taught himself to sew, so he could both design and build. And now 7 years later the company is still using those designs.

It's the same way he approaches his business. He's designed and built -- using proprietary techniques a surfboard that can be carried in the trunk of a car or on an airplane. But most importantly it can withstand the rigors of river use.

Not satisfied, he then designed the paddles. One of the new ones has a blade that's faced with bamboo. "It's light and it's cool," he said.

Add to that his absolute zeal for using his own products. "I've been up and down this river as many as a dozen times on a given Saturday," he said of the McCoy Falls section of the New River near Blacksburg. I take both of my dogs on the board with me, one of them won't fall off even when I do," he boasts.

I say "boast" but I don't mean brag. This is a guy who is really good at what he does. He really loves it, and lives it -- assembling the products with a handful of employees in his Blacksburg shop.

Also of note is his mantra, "Erase the Trace." Like other things he does, it takes a concept to another level. Outdoors people are familiar with the notion to "leave no trace." That means not to litter, or leave open fire pits or anything that would ruin the experience for the next person. Luke's concept with "erase the trace" is that we should clean up after others.

"If we all just pick up some trash while we are on the riverbank, or even in the water and take it home for disposal, the river's wold be even better," he said.

It's a good thought. Luke Hopkins doesn't actually walk on water -- but like I said in the story -- it's about as close as humans will get. I wish him well.

What is John Carlin's Virginia?

Welcome to John Carlin’s Virginia

I’ve done all kinds of stories for television. Some of them have won awards. At least a few kept government honest. And later in my career I was crime reporter.

But the stories viewers always asked about were the occasional ones that profiled everyday people, showed pictures of the fish they caught, or captured some part of Virginia’s outdoor or historic panache.

To this day, my father still remarks about the pumpkin patch segment I did in Clarksburg, West Virginia in 1983. (Really Dad?)

None of this surprises me. My heart has always been in what I call “hard” features, or true human-interest stories. To be clear, a “hard” feature story is one that takes a little time to develop, write and shoot. I’m not talking about shots of puppies and kindergartners, subjects that captivate viewers just by being.

Give me a man who logs with horses, a guy who built a race car in his garage over 10 years, or the top female muskie angler in Virginia any day. I’ve seen enough of the inside of courtrooms and city council chambers.

I’ve done a few of these stories over the years, but never as many as I wanted. So often I wanted to go find a story on how watermen catch crabs on the Chesapeake Bay, but the assignment desk needed me to go to a news conference. Or, I wanted to interview a family riding across the nation on a bicycle built for 5 – but had to say on the anchor desk while some other reporter covered it. Now, that I’ve been out of TV news for almost two years, the situation is different.

The most significant change is that viewers, and therefore stations – at least FOX 21/27 -- want this type of story to add to the daily mix. Viewers want a dose of Virginia mountain heritage to compliment the latest on the Gulf Oil Spill or the President’s troubles. I’m happy to oblige.

Notice I didn’t say anything about REPLACING the regular news. We still need it and I have the same respect I always did for my colleagues who keep the world honest by shining a light on government, business or even the weather – anything that might put the common good in harm’s way.

But it will be nice, twice a month, to go shine a light in some corner of Virginia where no one else is looking. So, if you have something important to talk about, call the assignment desk. But if it’s merely interesting – Well I’ve got two shots a month.

I’ll see you out there, on the trail, on the water, in the woods. Maybe even the pumpkin patch.