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Where Have I Been?

10/6/2025

A little blog/channel update…

In the coming days, I will be posting a video to my YouTube channel explaining my absence, where I’ve been, and what’s been happening with the ORCA Rebuild project. This has been a long time coming, and I can now finally talk openly about everything in its entirety. I'm not sure how long this video will be, my thoughts are written down on paper but I have yet to record it, it may be a bit long. I will cover everything that has happened in 2021, 2022, 2023 - 2025.

A Brief Rundown:

My life changed in 2021.
In 2022, I began editing videos and uploading again.
From October of 2023 until today, September 15, 2025, my hands were tied and limited as to what I could do or say publicly...this was due to a matter of disagreements with local small town government bureaucracy, false and changing "zoning laws", extortion, threats, catty behavior, covert and underhanded deceit, legal, and course of action.

All of this will be carefully and tactfully explained in full since I can now talk about all of this and explain everything in its entirety. I still cannot believe any of this happened in the first place. The past year itself has not been easy and honestly, at times, a bit scary, but as a John Wayne once said, "Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway."

Dispelling Rumors and Persistent Comments:

No, I have not abandoned the ORCA Rebuild Project. Never have, not once, never will.
“Its not the time it takes to take the takes the time, its the time it takes between the takes that takes the time to take the take.”

I’ve never wanted to set a hard date on anything, because whenever I have life has gotten in the way. So, with that said, please be as patient with me putting out videos as Richard Zanuck and David Brown were as patient with a young Steven Spielberg filming JAWS. It will all be worth it in the end.

And to everyone who has been with me on this journey from the beginning, and to those just joining, thank you for your continued support!

"Us cowpokes, we take it as it comes."

The Time It Takes to Take the Time

5/24/2022

One question I am asked, quite frequently, is: when will the boat be done? The answer to that question is somewhat complicated. Why? Because you can't set a completion date when it comes to boat building or boat restoration. There will always be snags, delays, and unforeseen mishaps. If I had to be pinned down for an exact answer, the Orca will probably be completed in late 2025 or ealy 2026. This project is a marathon, not a race. When you rush things, mistakes happen, and half-assed work is done. My goal is to have a safe and shipshape vessel, not an imitation that sinks in the harbor. Season 2 of my YouTube videos has finally launched after a year delay. I often think that as people watching a project come to fruition, whether it be a car restoration or building a boat, that we often forget that the creator of said project has a life of their own. My whole world does not revolve around Jaws or the Orca, although both are very much on my brain. The Orca Rebuild project is a passion project and a fan project. The Orca will be completed when it is completed, and it will be done RIGHT.

Putting a Face to a Name

3/18/2019

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After several weeks of searching, I’ve finally found a picture of the man who built the Betselma. Ralph E. Wooster built boats for the Camden Shipyard in Maine during the 1940s and presumably until he died. Not much is known about this man at all, there is little to no information about him. The Betselma herself was built at the Steamboat Landing in Camden in 1945, but she wasn’t register with the Coast Guard until 1962. That’s a 17 year gap that no one knows what Wooster did with the boat. It’s presumed that she sat in dry dock for a while or Wooster only captained her on the weekends. It’s very settling being able to put a face to the name of the man who built the Betselma. In the middle of June (1945) Camden Cruises started their excursions, with Captain Ralph Wooster at the helm of the Wildfire and Captain Gustave Gundersen in command of the Gallant. Credit goes to the the Stormy Bok Collection of the Walsh History Center at the Camden Public Library for the photograph. Mr. Wooster is the man in the middle.

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April 05th, 2018

4/5/2018

Where Have I Been?

The Time It Takes to Take the Time

Putting a Face to a Name

April 05th, 2018

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