We talked a lot about the competition and Steve being the brash competitor rarely had good things to say about most of them. I spent a lot of time with Steve Stepp learning about offshore boats and racing in general.
Every weekend over the summer she was pregnant with me they used to be up on “the lake” (Lake Erie) fishing so the unique feeling of being in a 16’ boat on a lake as unpredictable as Erie was imprinted on me before I was even born.įast forward 40 years, in the late ‘90’s I was focussed on offshore performance boats. My mother used to say the reason I’ve always been drawn to the water and boats in general can be traced back to that boat. Bill used that boat to learn and gladly replaced it with a production version that my mom and dad used for years. The boat was a bit of a disaster as it had some significant structural issues (they were just learning now to build them). This was before he formally launched Checkmate and was running his dealership / marine repair business. My family comes from that part of Ohio and back in the 50’s my dad purchased one of the first all fiberglass boats Bill built. Put a 450 on it and it should be a low to mid 80s rig that will keep your attention and scare a few passengers. I was ready to buy it from him at the shootout this year and he decided that it wasn't time yet. Its the only toon besides Brad Roland's that carries itself like a cat and holds air. If you are serious about a tri-toon, let me know and I will connect you with Jim Dorris "Play Craft"-his son has a very special 26 with a single 400 running 76 mph with no hop. Sad day for Checkmate, but Hydrostream went away as well.
#CHECKMATE BOAT SERIES#
I have a 28 Skater and 1939 Chris Craft barrelback parked on my dock and am seriously considering a Tritoon - crazy how things have changed - my girlfriend thinks I’m too young for a tritoon ( sell the Skater ) but I’m not so sure - lolģ5 years ago, a Checkmate or Larson “Wildfire” w / a 115 Merc “Tower of Power” was the ultimate - now I’m eyeing up Bennington Q series Tritoon’s are everywhere as are wake boats. Hydrostreams, Allison’s, and STV’s are long gone, as are Baja’s, Fountains, and Formula’s. You took the words out of my mouth and my thoughts exactly - I’ve boated on the same ~ 12,000 acre chain of lakes ( the “Whitefish Chain” ) for the past twenty years ( I’m 46 ). Really sad to see this happen but in business today, you either change with the market demand or die. If I was forced to have one boat, it would be a tri-toon with the biggest power I could afford. Pete told me they are going to be building the boats with modern materials closed cell foam core with composite structure.I agree, its toons and or center consoles into today's world and I also completely understand it. Now that Caldwell Designs is involved, we can expect improved quality. On almost every lake in North America there is probably a Checkmate somewhere, and so many of us either had one, or know someone who does. One thing amazing about the brand is the number of people who got into performance boats because of them. I’m a fan of Checkmate, who has long filled the role of an affordable family friendly performance boat. Not only is Checkmate in good hands, this is a great fit for Caldwell Marine Designs all around. On top of that, Pete is really passionate about performance boats, although he has worked with brands like Contender and Ski Nautique as well, he also has a history with Donzi and Fountain.
With his company, Caldwell Marine Designs in North Carolina, Pete brings manufacturing capability, which put him in a unique position to acquire the brand as he has the facility and manpower in play already. This wasn’t a formal interview, I was genuinely curious and really wanted to see where Pete was at with the plans for Checkmate.
#CHECKMATE BOAT HOW TO#
The good news is the brand is in good hands, Pete knows how to build boats and he wants Checkmate to be a semi custom builder, opening the door to some positive changes to most of the models. He shared some thoughts and plans as well as some of his own background up until now. Now that some time has passed, I reached out to Pete to talk about his plans for the well known performance boat brand. On the first day of the Miami Boat Show I learned the good news that Checkmate Boats had been sold to Pete Caldwell of Caldwell Marine Designs.
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