CAPE HORN 31
By Heather Maxwell
Four years later I built a new home for my family just 50 miles or so north of what was once Isabel Inlet. I sacrificed my “decor” budget when it came time for insulation. My husband Billy and I had every square inch of exterior wall hosed down with closed cell, two–part, urethane foam. The technology behind closed cell foam would not only keep our house from “working,” but it was, and is the only insulation approved for use in a flood zone because it doesn’t absorb water.
Several months ago, all our theories were tested by the wind and flood of Hurricane Irene. We were blessed to come through without a crack in our drywall; Pogie was proud.
A few days ago I spent some time interviewing Tyler Cesar, Plant Manager at Cape Horn Boats. While we chatted, I finally got around to the question, “What makes your boats special?” And I readied my pen. You would be amazed that there is always something that sets a builder’s product apart and it is always a real thing not just some BS sales pitch. That day I was surprised to hear that it was closed cell, two-part, urethane foam. Cape Horn Boats hails from Milton, Florida right out there in the panhandle. They are family owned and born of necessity and happenstance, not unlike the Carolina builders I know so well. Chris Fabbro built himself the perfect boat for fishing the Gulf and a close friend thought it was perfect enough to ask for one, too. And so on. Build it, fish it and build a better one. And so on. On the day I interviewed Cesar there were three different Cape Horn models in the rigging shop visible from his desk. And Chris’ friends now have nine models total to choose from.
Cape Horn boasts 29 employees, all of whom survived the recent economic crisis. “We are only as good as our employees,” says Cesar and production hasn’t missed a beat. “We adapted and overcame. We built a better mouse trap.” I’d say they did, but they had an edge and experience with far reaching business challenges. Cape Horn hit their first and perhaps only “hiccup” during the hurricane seasons of 2004 and 2005. “Our dealer network was decimated,” explained Cesar. They branched out to northern states, North Carolina being one, and the small boat world got turned on to a big secret. Cape Horn was perhaps the biggest bang they had ever gotten for their buck.
That brings me back to my decor budget. Why did I give up glass tiles in my new bathroom? Because I knew a house that wouldn’t absorb flood waters or shimmy on its piling legs was worth the trade. At Cape Horn, the Fabbro family has given up some profit margin to stay competitive and infuse their hulls with closed cell, waterproof foam that acts essentially like glue and binds the entire hull together. Not too many years ago there wasn’t a family on the Outer Banks of North Carolina who could imagine a house that didn’t sway and shimmy when the washer machine hit the spin cycle. Can you imagine a 31-footer with 300’s kicking it in excess of 60 mph without a squeak?
Several months ago, all our theories were tested by the wind and flood of Hurricane Irene. We were blessed to come through without a crack in our drywall; Pogie was proud.
A few days ago I spent some time interviewing Tyler Cesar, Plant Manager at Cape Horn Boats. While we chatted, I finally got around to the question, “What makes your boats special?” And I readied my pen. You would be amazed that there is always something that sets a builder’s product apart and it is always a real thing not just some BS sales pitch. That day I was surprised to hear that it was closed cell, two-part, urethane foam. Cape Horn Boats hails from Milton, Florida right out there in the panhandle. They are family owned and born of necessity and happenstance, not unlike the Carolina builders I know so well. Chris Fabbro built himself the perfect boat for fishing the Gulf and a close friend thought it was perfect enough to ask for one, too. And so on. Build it, fish it and build a better one. And so on. On the day I interviewed Cesar there were three different Cape Horn models in the rigging shop visible from his desk. And Chris’ friends now have nine models total to choose from.
Cape Horn boasts 29 employees, all of whom survived the recent economic crisis. “We are only as good as our employees,” says Cesar and production hasn’t missed a beat. “We adapted and overcame. We built a better mouse trap.” I’d say they did, but they had an edge and experience with far reaching business challenges. Cape Horn hit their first and perhaps only “hiccup” during the hurricane seasons of 2004 and 2005. “Our dealer network was decimated,” explained Cesar. They branched out to northern states, North Carolina being one, and the small boat world got turned on to a big secret. Cape Horn was perhaps the biggest bang they had ever gotten for their buck.
That brings me back to my decor budget. Why did I give up glass tiles in my new bathroom? Because I knew a house that wouldn’t absorb flood waters or shimmy on its piling legs was worth the trade. At Cape Horn, the Fabbro family has given up some profit margin to stay competitive and infuse their hulls with closed cell, waterproof foam that acts essentially like glue and binds the entire hull together. Not too many years ago there wasn’t a family on the Outer Banks of North Carolina who could imagine a house that didn’t sway and shimmy when the washer machine hit the spin cycle. Can you imagine a 31-footer with 300’s kicking it in excess of 60 mph without a squeak?
