The 1982 Able Whistler 32 was the first Esmeralde. She was Bruce’s third boat, which he purchased before he met Dorsey. She was rather beat-up, and during the course of his ownership he put her through a total re-fit, starting with replacing her cat-ketch rig with a sloop rig, all new wiring, plumbing, electronics, at least three heads, all new interior varnish, two sets of interior cushions, a new teak floor, and, the biggest project, new AwlGrip of both the hull and deck, all of which he did himself, with the exception of the final spray.
She looked like a new boat, and in fact, when cruising in Maine one year and visiting Brooklyn Boat Yard, Joel White came out to look at her and asked us if she was a new boat. She turned heads wherever we went, and was a real pride and joy to own.
We eventually sold her in 2005 when we decided we wanted a boat that would take us faster and farther to places we wanted to go, and we purchased the second Esmeralde, the Sabre 386.
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