NRV R i de s
The Virginian
A Classic Wooden Speedboat from The Golden Age
Text by Emily Kathleen Alberts | Photos by Kristie Lea Photography Virginia native Jim Williamson is no stranger to the water. Born in Radford, his mother took him to Claytor Lake often. “I’ve been water skiing since I was 7,” he says. “Just about every month we’d come to the lake, even in the dead of winter.” The water craft of choice on cold days was the jet ski, since it was the quickest vessel to winterize. “Just add a little anti-freeze and you’re good to go,” he recalls. “It’s great to 26
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slalom behind a jet ski because it doesn’t produce a huge wake.” Williamson is a self-proclaimed boating fanatic. He owns six boats: a Mastercraft professional ski boat, a Mobjack sail boat, a Polaris jet ski, a Carolina Skiff fishing boat, an older boat he bought to use the motor and trailer for the wooden boat he is building, and his beloved 1956 Chris Craft Sportsman, aptly named “The
Virginian.” This flame red beauty was originally called the “Woo Baby,” and she turns heads wherever she goes. One of a couple thousand ever made, she was sold to a marina in New York not long after rolling out of the Chris Craft factory doors in Cadillac, Mich., 61 years ago. He doesn’t know how she made it to Lexington, N.C., but that’s where he purchased his dream
Jul y/Aug 2017