VERO BEACH — It was a blustery day, but despite a few ominous clouds, the perfectly polished vehicles and yachts on display at the third annual Wheels and Keels show hosted by The Moorings Yacht Club on Saturday weren’t blemished by a drop of rain.
The event was a fundraiser to benefit the Youth Sailing Foundation of Indian River County; an all-volunteer organization dedicated to teaching children how to sail.
Co-chaired by Moorings residents Gavin Ruotolo, George O’Malley, Angus Lunstrum and Vinnie Deturris, all four did a yeoman’s job coordinating the whole process.
For the “Wheels” portion, appreciative visitors peered into the windows of approximately 50 buffed and shiny cars – from lovingly restored antiques, the oldest a 1933 Packard Rumble Seat, to jazzy sports cars and exotics.
No kicking the tires of these beauties – even the whitewalls looked brand spanking new.
Boats in the water for the “Keels” portion included a Huckins sport-fisher wooden hull boat and a brand new Shannon sailboat, ready for the high seas.
The pièce de résistance was “PosH” a 1937 52-foot mahogany cruiser designed by John Hacker, and stunningly restored by owner Todd Warner of the Mahogany Bay Company.
“The unique thing about PosH is that there were only three built by John Hacker,” said O’Malley of the richly burnished beauty, considered one of the most famous commuter-style yachts ever built.
Of the trailered boats, O’Malley said, “Each one of these is a very special boat.”
They included a restored 1942 Century with mahogany exterior and leather interior, a hot-rod 1960 Glasspar, described as “the corvette of the fiberglass sport boats,” and a 1962 Boston Whaler with a claim to fame that it can never be sunk.
“You can cut it in half and the pieces won’t sink,” said O’Malley.
Car and boat entries were judged in several categories under the supervision of chief judge Richard Lentinello, executive editor of Hemmings Motor News, who also presided over the Red Carpet Review at the close of the show.
As she has done in prior years, Linda O’Malley photographed each of the entries for a commemorative coffee table book, with a portion of proceeds going to the Youth Sailing Foundation.
It’s not even a slight stretch to say that Ruotolo is a car buff, but he only brought a couple of his 24 cars – 19 of which are exotics or antiques – to the event.
“We both have the bug,” said Ruotolo of wife Marcia, who fortunately shares his passion.
Too precious for the road, his 1999 Shelby Series 1 roadster, one of 249 built, has about 470 miles on it, while the 1967 Shelby Cobra has a mere 180 miles.
Ruotolo conceptualized the event as a way to support the then fledgling Youth Sailing Foundation, and fellow Moorings Club members quickly got on board.
“We’re now building boat number 30; Gavin [Ruotolo] bought it and donated it,” said Charlie Pope, Youth Sailing Foundation board president of the one-person Optimist boats built from kits. Older, advanced kids sail on one of eight 420 boats.
The Moorings will again host the YSF summer camp beginning June 17; applications are still being accepted. Children from all over the country enroll while visiting grandparents over the summer and one little girl from Germany is returning to introduce the sport to her friend.
Benjamin Dessart, an 11-year old Beachland Elementary student participates in the Saturday programs and is excited to be returning to camp, saying, “I like sailing; it’s fun to get out on the water.”
“It’s a great program,” added his mother Lou Dessart. “There’s a lot of dedicated people; it’s wonderful.”