From Beaton’s to Beach Haven: A Cat Ghost BH G

The present book focuses on a twenty-eight foot wooden

Catboot called Ghost. She belongs to a class of boats

unique to Bornegat Boy in New Jersey. The class

originated in 1922 and by 1924 was recognized as

a racing class under the name A Cat. The class was

seriously affected by the Great Depression, but it survived

and began a renaissance in 1980, when David Beoton

and Sons built Wasp, a new A Cat, following plans

dating to i923. Ghost was Beaton’s second A Cat and

was an immediate success. Not only did she win seven

consecutive Bay championships, 1994-2000 but also

exhibited extraordinary craftsmanship. We might say

that Ghost was and remains a paradigm of excellence

in the construction oi wooden boats. Happily the

building process was photographed in detail and is now

recorded in book form. Photos paired with explanation

take the reader from making patterns and preparing the

woodshop to a celebratory launch at Beaton’s rigging

dock. That is followed by an account of Ghost’s initial

disaster on the race course, a remarkable recovery and

then twenty-two years of continuous competition. What

made Ghost fast on the race course and what did not

work are recorded for the reader’s consideration. The

conclusion focuses on Ghost’s new home at the New

Jersey Maritime Museum.