What is it about C-Dories?

B

Bearh

New member
Jane has 30+ years in as a teacher from elementary school to college age kids, in biology. She's the education coordinator for the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center on the Rhode River of the Chesapeake Bay, now. I just recently "sort of" retired from about 30 years of therapy and social work with kids, adults, couples, and families in schools, social agencies, and psychiatric settings. So, then, why are so many folks like us interested in, drawn to, infatuated with, and obsessed by these boats? Hmmm?
Aww, heck, I goofed. I meant to add this to the "Teachers" thread--not start a whole new story. Oh, well--they're a magnificent obsession, so what the hey.
 
I sure can't say, but from the first time I saw one (Active Cove, Patos Island, Washington, September 2002), it was the ONLY boat I was even remotely interested in, and I knew one way or another, I had to have one. Now, what is this obsession stuff you be talkin' 'bout??


Bearh":g3j56x6q said:
So, then, why are so many folks like us interested in, drawn to, infatuated with, and obsessed by these boats? Hmmm?
Click to expand...
 
Bearh --
With your therapy background, and married to a teacher, YOU do the explaining to us ignorant folk -- how come so many teachers on C-Dorys? How come C-Dory folks are such GREAT people? What is there about this boat that attracts such interesting, generous, friendly, .... courteous, kind, brave ... boy (girl) scout types??
 
One parent's brat is another parent's angel. Go figure. And that last is the sum and distillate of a number of years of listening...really listening...to other folks' points of view about the world: go figure.
Oh, yeah, and a couple of other things--life isn't too bad if you can hold a cup of coffee in your hand while it's happening, and it's usually a good idea to say "So far, so good" when you can.
That last actually comes from a joke--a man falls off the top of the Empire State Building. People look up aghast, as he falls. Finally someone rushes to the window as he falls past and yells out "Oh my gosh! This is horrible! How are you doing?" The man yells back: "So far, so gooooooooood!"
All is relative. Go fishing. Float belly up. Eat cheese. Amen?
 
This is quite interesting.

(Bill/El, and others...) I do think there is something to the teacher/C-Dory-thing. There may be some consistent dynamic going-on here (Bearh can address it...)

Fascinating how certain folks sometime share a variety of similar characteristics. (Does it make sense to use variety/similarity in the same sentence? I've got to be careful - there are English teachers out there!!) If the C-Dory Family were to be given a personality/occupational inventory, I suspect there would be a high degree of consistency in a number of areas.

Might make an interesting MBA /marketing study (ie customer profile) for some up-and-coming business-type. (Not Casey! Although I flunked retirement once; I'm going to get it Right this time!!)

Casey
C-Dory Naknek
 
Working in our favor is the fact that people need people. Oh, no! Here comes that awful song by Barbara Striesand, and now it's stuck up there.

But where else can we find such a high percentage of quality, respectful people? Certainly not at work. Not on the highway, either.
 
Hi folks,
Obsessed seems a good word. Since Bill and El 's article in the boating magazine this summer I have been so obsessed with the C-Dory line I have joined this site and have been looking through the old posts for wisdom and information and have found plenty of both. I am many years from getting my first Dory but I already have plans for modifying and customizing. I currently have Triumph 215 CC that works for the family's fishing and diving and it too seems to attract a certain collection of personalities and mind sets as well on the discussion board. Though I am not a teacher I am a physicians assistant / boy scouting / backpacking ( have the poison ivy scars from the lake view trail down from clingmans dome) / outdoors/ can I help kind of guy.
I just have to figure out how to convince the wife what a great boat it is , and that we'll need something to do when the last child leaves the house in 7 years.
And thank you all for the information you have posted.
I continue to learn and plan.
Trent
 
Trent, take her to the CDory gathering (CBGT) over at Wefings in Apalachicola next weekend. That will sell her and convince you all over again. Wish I could go but a conflict came up recently, it had been in my plans to fly down.

Chalrie
 
What is it about C Dorys you ask?
Well, for me it's like this......Have you ever met a person and immediately known that this person is a genuine, no b.s. real person of integridy? That is the feeling I got the first time I laid eyes on a C Dory back in the 1980's at the Vancouver Boat Show. I just knew that this boat was different and I liked it.........don't know why.....and I am still obsessed. There is no other boat.

Cheers,
Tom
 
Yes please do come if you can, and if nothing else it will establish quickly whether you love that C dory thing, are ambivalent about it,need more amenities, or can take a pass.
We'd love to have Bill and El with us , and I bet we will some day . They are adventurers and communicators extraordinaire, and represent the exciting yet still modest lifestyle many of us have to look forward to. We are always ready for some interested folks . And we really like teachers . And C Dorys. And C Brats .
Marc
 
Well, I have a question: since C-Dory is a proper noun, is the plural C-Dorys or C-Dories? :wink: I wasn't a teacher, but I did play one on... um, I gave seminars for professional organizations.

I have a theory about why many of us are drawn towards these boats. Seems to me that most C-Dory owners march to the beat of a different drummer. We don't like different just because it is different, but we see the practical side of different. I've often heard the 22 described as "A VW camper on the water." Practical. Fuctional. Many of us strapped a bag to a motorcycle and traveled in our youth (well, Joel still does that... DaNag, too).

Owning a C-Dory is not a casual thing. Compared to most boats their size, the price of admission is higher (even though you will likely get a bigger portion of it back when/if you sell - practical). Most of us have the shared experience of saying, "How much???" when we first heard what they cost. :shock: That drives off the casual looker, leaving those of us who are obsessed still in the hunt. Smaller subset.

Then, there are those of us who are drawn to computers. Computers and C-Dorys... and here we are. I think we've all met C-Dory owners along the way who don't participate here and think, "Wow, they're missing out on part of the ownership experience." And they're likely thinking, "I have a boat, why do I need to mess around with a computer?" :roll: Different subset.

So, as we narrow down those subsets, those of us who have several things in common wind up here. And we discover other shared experiences. Like: teachers (some were the teachers, some were the brats). Or fishing. Or love of travel. Or VW campers. Or motorcycles. Or...

I'm glad Bill and Mike make this place available. Just like C-Dory owners, it is different from most places on the internet. I like that. :D :thup

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
JamesTXSD":ubje00gs said:
Well, I have a question: since C-Dory is a proper noun, is the plural C-Dorys or C-Dories? :wink: I wasn't a teacher, but I did play one on... um, I gave seminars for professional organizations.

I have a theory about why many of us are drawn towards these boats. Seems to me that most C-Dory owners march to the beat of a different drummer. We don't like different just because it is different, but we see the practical side of different. I've often heard the 22 described as "A VW camper on the water." Practical. Fuctional. Many of us strapped a bag to a motorcycle and traveled in our youth (well, Joel still does that... DaNag, too).

Owning a C-Dory is not a casual thing. Compared to most boats their size, the price of admission is higher (even though you will likely get a bigger portion of it back when/if you sell - practical). Most of us have the shared experience of saying, "How much???" when we first heard what they cost. :shock: That drives off the casual looker, leaving those of us who are obsessed still in the hunt. Smaller subset.

Then, there are those of us who are drawn to computers. Computers and C-Dorys... and here we are. I think we've all met C-Dory owners along the way who don't participate here and think, "Wow, they're missing out on part of the ownership experience." And they're likely thinking, "I have a boat, why do I need to mess around with a computer?" :roll: Different subset.

So, as we narrow down those subsets, those of us who have several things in common wind up here. And we discover other shared experiences. Like: teachers (some were the teachers, some were the brats). Or fishing. Or love of travel. Or VW campers. Or motorcycles. Or...

I'm glad Bill and Mike make this place available. Just like C-Dory owners, it is different from most places on the internet. I like that. :D :thup

Best wishes,
Jim B.
Click to expand...

Well said Jim...............H :wink:
 
***

After sailing many years including big blue water......

I believe a C-Dory is:

SIMPLICITY-

QUALITY- in a well equipped

SAFE- package

S-Q-S




To us it is so easy to unhitch and GO

How about a group of C-Dory's doing

The Great Loop

starting in the spring of 2013.

***
 
My C-Dory is so many things to me. They say every boat is a compromise of our wants and needs. When I compare my C-Dory to any other boat, it turns out that any other boat would be more of a compromise. Ie. reversible co-pilot seat, easy towability, easy launch, fuel efficiency, simplicity of components, etc. etc. That alone is of great value.

To top it all off it is the best looking boat available. It is like nostalgia in a way. Harkening back to a time (memories of my youth) where we had the time to just sit back and enjoy the Now. Get out of the rat race for a while, connect with family, leave the humdrum of everyday life behind as we enjoy our C-Dory adventure.


To me good design includes both form and function. My C-Dory is a shining example. As for cost, oh well, as my Dad would say "it costs what it costs". I see the value.

Stefan
 
This has been one very intresting topic so far. Now I have one question for you all. How many C-dory owners in Brat land have a teaching backround? Not me personaly but Kathy is a teacher. and it was her that got me intrested in these boats. I was content with the boat we had. But am very glad I listened to her when we upgraded. Maybe I can get a grant to study this.
 
Like Paul Simon says, "Still crazy after all these years" (oh no, now THAT is going to play in your head all day)...and how does a 2005 thread get resurrected in 2011?

Jim, it most definitely is "C-Dorys," NOT "C-Dories." As you note, as a brand, it is a proper noun.
 
I'm a retired English and history teacher. I put in my thirty years mostly on the high school level, but also taught part time at the University of Akron and Kent State.

Pat, your are correct on C-Dorys. Also, this thread was begun the year we bought Valkyrie and joined C-Bratdom.

Nick
"Valkyrie"
 
So that's why I love my c-dory so much. I'm a teacher and I own VW van. I knew it had to be something. For me it's about simplicity and a place to be away from the pressures of life. Sometimes I'll just head down to Hilton harbor with a book and spend some time reading on the tomcat sitting on it's trailer. Occasionally I'll take a nap or just find something to tinker with. Afterwards I feel much more relaxed. Getting the urge to go down to the boat now.....
 
A few comments - Marc - we have spent many days in Appalachicola (including a Christmas, when a friend on another boat [a retired Episcopal minister] donned a robe and assisted at the Christmas service at your local friendly church). We have really enjoyed your town in days gone by and know we would enjoy it even more now knowing you are there.

Great comments on this thread - SQS, among others. What we read here, and elsewhere, on this unique website (thanks again, guys, for managing it so well) reinforces our faith in others - what a great gang of Brats in this pub!
 
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