WoodenBoat School
Queene Hooper Foster has used her Concordia yawl, MISTY, to teach sailing and cruising classes at WoodenBoat School for 15 years.
Waldo Howland broke records when, between 1950 and 1966, he imported and sold almost 100 brand-new, German-built yachts designed for the Concordia Company in Massachusetts. These Concordia yawls, as they were called, were bargain-priced and of superior construction, and they not only won races but also proved to be perfect for family cruising. The majority are still dearly loved and sailed by owners who value simplicity and aesthetics over shine, systems, and technology. Yet as they approach their seventh or eighth decade, major work lies ahead for those Concordias not already upgraded. Repairing and maintaining such perfectly put-together boats is costly—and passion, not economics, drives that bus.