Good Old Boat magazine was founded in 1998 by Great Lakes sailors Karen Larson and Jerry Powlas. The couple met because of sailing and enjoyed exploring Lake Superior aboard their C&C 30, “Mystic.” They were rank-and-file sailors, with a modest boat and modest plans. They maintained and upgraded “Mystic” themselves. They weren’t in the market for a new boat with a six-figure price tag. They were like all the sailors they knew, yet it didn’t seem like any of the sailing magazines on the shelves spoke to them.
The answer was obvious and ambitious: They would start their own sailing magazine.
They’d never run a magazine, but they tapped into a rich, unserved market and got lots of help from the A-list of boating writers of the time. The first issues featured the bylines of Nigel Calder, Don Casey, John Vigor, Ted Brewer, Dave Gerr, Lin and Larry Pardey, Reese Palley, and others. And the enthusiasm hasn’t waned.
An amusing illustration of some of the original magazine contributors, including Sailrite Owner Matt Grant (with the sail bag).
But time passed. Just months before publication of the 20th anniversary issue, Karen and Jerry wondered how the years had flown by. Running a magazine takes away from sailing and the couple decided they should retire and spend more time sailing. Rather than sell their magazine (their baby) to an outside publishing conglomerate, they found willing and eager staff to carry on the spirit and excellence of Good Old Boat.
Sailrite Takes the Helm
In 2024, the Good Old Boat owners could no longer sustain the rise in printing costs. The magazine was going out of business. Good Old Boat reached out to Sailrite to share the sad news, as Sailrite and Good Old Boat shared a longstanding relationship and partnership. Sailrite partnered with the magazine at inception and held the back cover ad space.
When Sailrite owners Matt and Hallie Grant found out the magazine was closing, they quickly proposed an alternative.
“We bought the IP [intellectual property] and Good Old Boat content,” says Matt. “Good Old Boat is an invaluable resource to the self-reliant sailor, and we didn’t want boat owners to lose all that content.”
In late 2024, Sailrite took over the Good Old Boat website. Sailrite is actively posting archived articles from Good Old Boat back issues. All resources available on the website will remain available at no cost to you.
In addition to issue archives, there are other free resources like the Sailrite Fabric Calculator, Meet Our Customers blog and more.
What’s on the Horizon?
Sail Data is coming soon. Stay tuned for updates on that project. Having the information on a sailboat model readily available, including specs and drawings, allows sailors to learn as much about their boat as possible. This is key information for aspiring amateur and experienced sailmakers. Again, this will be a free resource available at GoodOldBoat.com.
Thanks to the folks at Sailrite who’ve taken over website upkeep and content publication, Good Old Boat sails on.