APRIL’S POEM OF THE MONTH
Me thinks he watched too much Popeye as a child… I could imagine Olive sitting next to him on the beach!
–Daryl Clark
Great poem.
–Joe Taylor, New Orleans, Louisiana
NAME THE BIG-PHARMA BOAT
Last month, having received a few independent queries (and surprised by them) from Good Old Boat readers about the boat in the pharmaceutical ad (Pfizer, click here to watch), and then being unable to sleuth a response, I put it to the readers. Having zoomed in on screen shots and hunted for clues, I was surprisingly keen myself to learn what this thing was…
Bert Vermeer seems to have put the most time and effort into this query and may be on to something, so he gets the first word…–Eds.
I’m going to bet that you received multiple copies of the attached New Zealand Trailer Yacht Ratings table. Note it lists “Farr 740 Sport Modified (T1105).” That boat is the right shape and size, although I could not find any specific photo of the identifier “T1105” on the cockpit coaming. The cockpit and deck are very similar in shape to the Farr 740, though the Farr 740 has a dark plexiglass window (?) around the front of the small cabin. Lifelines, winches, rudder, and cockpit hatch are all identical. I suspect it was probably a very limited modification to this line of trailerable boats.
To find this, I searched “T1105 sailboat” and received mostly Tartan results, but I dug further and found this ratings table, then searched for “Farr 740.” Hope this helps somewhat.
–Bert Vermeer, s/v Natasha, Sidney, British Columbia
Hi Bert, it helps indeed, nice work. And no, you’re the only one who sent us this ratings table. We agree that the Farr 740 is nearly identical to the boat in the commercial. And that tinted window may actually be just paint, as seen on some MacGregors? But we looked at the Farr 740 more closely and learned that it’s a late-1970s design by Bruce Farr, of course, first built in 1980 by Sea Nymph Boats of New Zealand. According to Farr’s website, that company eventually became McDell Marine. Both companies are long gone.
The boat in the commercial appears new. Our theory is that this Farr-designed mold was sold to or recovered by another manufacturer (European?) and is produced today as what we see in the big-pharma commercial. Maybe Farr Design is unaware and is owed royalties?
We still don’t get the “T1105” designation that we see in the Kiwi ratings list you sent and on the coaming of the boat in the commercial. What is that?
–Eds.
The obvious solution would be to contact the advertising department of the Pharm Company who will probably direct you to the producers of the ad. If I had some uncommitted time right now, I would try that myself.
–Mike Montesinos, s/v Gypsy Spirit
Thanks, Mike. If you come by some uncommitted time, go for it, and let us know how it goes. We know we sound like a cynical grump, but there are two reasons we didn’t go down that path. First, of course, it’s more fun to open the discussion here. Second, yikes! It’s impossible to imagine a successful outcome from that approach. We imagine the identity of that boat is buried under so many layers of who-knows-what that we’d be pulling our hair out after half a day on the phone. And we think it’s a safe bet that the producer, should we ever reach her (at 0-dark-thirty because she’s probably in Europe), has no clue what kind of boat was provided by the company they hired to provide the boat. “No problem, can you tell us the name of that company?”
“I’m sorry, we can’t give out that information.”
–Eds.
I too have tried to identify the “Eliquis” boat. I do not believe the boat to be a Tartan. I have owned several Tartans and am quite familiar with their boats since inception. I believe the boat to be European in design. I really like the lines and have been interested in the boat’s identification. Perhaps if all else fails, contact the maker of Eliquis, they may be so kind to identify the vessel…
–Dale, Tartan 3400
DREW SETS A SAILOR STRAIGHT
I have been doing it all wrong.
–Skip Jacobs, White Plains, New York
