Mahogany and Merlot

In 1993, members of the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum held their first ever “crew weekend”, a weekend where Museum boats were taken to Lake Chelan.  Volunteers who put in the required number of hours working on the boats were given complimentary rides in the thunderboats in appreciation for their efforts.  This went on for several years and became a tradition where local Chelan residents could see the boats of days gone by run on the old Apple Cup race course. 

In the mid 2000’s, the sport saw the growth of vintage inboard events across the US and in particular the Northwest.  A number of former racers “resurrected” old wood-constructed, open cockpit boats and began attending the local inboard events.  These exhibitions proved to be fan favorites, and both participant and spectator numbers grew.

Beginning in 2008, HARM’s Crew Weekend had officially grown into an organized event, featuring unlimited and vintage inboard exhibitions, all under the sanction of American Power Boat Association’s Vintage and Historic category sanction. 

Today, Mahogany and Merlot is the largest APBA Vintage event on the West Coast, drawing thousands of spectators.  Coordination with wine tasting at some of the Chelan area local vineyards and the addition of antique and classic boat shows and a classic car show has turned the event into one of the largest tourist events for the city of Chelan.  In 2018, eleven vintage unlimited and over 25 vintage inboards were part of the annual fall classic.