Cabo Rico Yachts is a small semi-custom manufacturer of fiberglass sailboats located in Costa Rica and designed by W.I.B. Crealock and Chuck Paine.[1] Sizes range from 34 to 56 feet. In 1965, the company started building boats in the corner of a British Leyland assembly plant in the San José area.[1]
History
In the 1960s, John Schofield started building power boats in the corner of the British Leyland assembly plant in Costa Rica.[1] In the early 1970s, their first sail boat was a 36-foot ketch designed by W.I.B. Crealock, the Tiburon 36. There was 36 Tiburons built and 10 Tiburon 38s built which became the Cabo Rico 38, under contract for the Ryley brothers. In 1977, the 36-foot design became the now legendary Cabo Rico 38.[2] Some company literature erroneously credited Dennis M. Garrett, general manager of the company Fibro Tecnica S.A., as the designer of the 38. In 1983 a separate company, Cabo Rico USA, Inc., opened in Fort Lauderdale, FL to offer sales of new Cabo Rico boats.[2] 1986 saw the introduction of the Chase 38 sport fishing boat designed by C. Raymond Hunt and Associates of Boston. In 1987, two Canadians, Fraser and Edi Smith, purchased the factory in Costa Rica. They also arranged for a corporation in Ontario, Canada to purchase the sales company in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.[3] First, the new owners introduced the XL version of the 38 and then a smaller 34-foot Crealock designed sistership to the 38 the following year.[4]
Models
Cabo Rico produces 34/36, 40/42, 42 Pilot, 45/47, 47 Pilot, and 54/56-foot cruising designs along with Cambria 40, 44, 46, 48 cruiser/racers, Northeast 400 and 450 motorsailers, and Chase 38 Sport fishing yacht.
Miami Vice
In the 1980s TV show Miami Vice, a 38-foot Cabo Rico was used in the pilot episode. The boat was called the St. Vitus' Dance and it was the home of the main character, Sonny Crockett (Don Johnson), and his pet alligator Elvis. The Cabo Rico was only seen in the pilot episode as Elvis was portrayed by a live alligator and the show did not want the cosmetic repair cost. Endeavour sailboats were used for the rest of the show (an Endeavour 40 in season 1 and an Endeavour 42 for seasons 2 to 5), without the live alligator on them.[6]
See also
External links
- Cabo Rico Yachts - information from the manufacturer
References
- Cabo Rico Custom Yachts Cabo Rico, retrieved 2010-04-10^
- Earl Hinz. Cabo Rico 38 May 1981^
- John Kretschmer. The Best Used Boat Notebook^