News and Videos
Videos:
December 5, 2009
We just got the wonderful news that with the help of his Portland Pudgy, Captain Donald Quackenbush saved a fellow sailor's life. "He had been in the water for almost 30 minutes and was suffering from extreme hypoxia. I reached him just as he let go of the ladder [of his own boat] and became a dead weight on the back of my dinghy. I had no choice but to try and haul him in over the stern and hoped that the dinghy wouldn't swamp with our combined weight of almost 400 pounds in the back of the boat. The Pudgy performed perfectly, I got a hold of his belt and pulled him aboard without taking on any water at all." Read more...
November 24, 2009
I'm sure you've noticed that we've made some big changes to the website. Have a look at the new pages on the Portland Pudgy lifeboat, the Pudgy sailboat, and the Pudgy sportsman's model.
November 11, 2009
Wow! It's been awhile since we've
written. A lot has happened in the past few months. We have been really busy
in our great new space at 200 Anderson Street, right in Portland. We are
starting to look for new local dealers in the US and abroad. We've made some
important changes to the sailing rig. One of our dealers in Rhode
Island,
Rob Lawnsby at Sail Time, got Peter Nielsen, the editor-in-chief of
Sail Magazine to
come and test the Pudgy under sail. Peter will write up his results in the
March issue!
Amazing! Another major accomplishment by a
Pudgy-owning family:
they
traversed North America in a wooden sailboat, via the Northwest passage!
(Last year a Pudgy
owner solo-circumnavigated the globe "over the top" -- that is
North/South!)
May 4, 2009
Check out the updated Links page. We're adding links to Portland Pudgy owners' blogs and websites. If you have one you'd like us to list, contact us at info@portlandpudgy.com.
May 1, 2009
Spring is finally here, and boating season has begun, even here in Maine. We're molding new boats and getting ready for a great season. Deb (the website person) thinks that with all the crises we keep hearing about, we need to cheer ourselves up , so she's adding "Life is Good" links. If you have any to recommend, let her know (info@portlandpudgy.com)!
March 23, 2009
The Maine Boatbuilders Show was great fun, as usual. We met a lot of interesting folks, and saw some beautiful boats. It's always a great show. Best of all, a lot of Pudgy owners showed up at our booth--some we'd met in person, and some we've only talked with on the phone. We're convinced the Portland Pudgy attracts smart, interesting people.
March 16, 2009
Click here to open a pdf of an article in Zeilen (Sailing), a Dutch magazine that arranged a test of the Pudgy doing its job as a lifeboat. Unless you speak Dutch, reading it will be a challenge, but there are some very exciting photos.
February 2, 2009
In
browsing the Internet, we came across a website--
C-Brats.com--where there's this
gallery of Pudgy photos. Pudgy owner, whoever you are, thanks for
posting these great photos!!! (Note that some of the pix show the Pudgy
being carried on Weaver davits.)
September 3, 2008
The latest issue of Zeilen, a sailing magazine in the Netherlands, has a big, exciting spread on the Pudgy...in fact, the Pudgy is on the cover!
August 15, 2008
We're going to be forced to raise prices around the end of the year to keep up with rising fuel costs, etc. (Our vendors have raised prices for many of the materials that go into a Pudgy.) If you're interested in getting a Portland Pudgy, order it soon to avoid the price increase. Contact us for a current price list.
July 17, 2008
Here are two pictures of the North Sea test. It will be written up in the August/September issue of the Dutch magazine, "Zeilen."
June 18, 2008
Watch the Portland Pudgy drop test. It was filled with about a thousand pounds of rock and then dropped from eight feet.
June 15, 2008
There 's a nice article about the Pudgy in today's Maine Sunday Telegram: "When it comes to choosing a dinghy, try one made in Maine."
June 10, 2008
A crew sponsored by a Dutch magazine, "Zeilen" (Sailing) just had a 2-day adventure with the Pudgy as a lifeboat on the North Sea.
"2 June in the afternoon we 'threw' two men...with the lifeboat Pudgy overboard 20 miles miles from the Dutch coast on the North Sea. The canopy blew up well and they organised themselves a few hours behind the Fiorentino anchor, which held the bow very good on the waves.
After that they put down the canopy and started sailing until next morning. We followed them on a big yacht... Next morning they landed...on the beach. They were enthusiastic about this adventure and were surprised how stable and handsome the Pudgy is!...In August they will present a film of this adventure on their website www.zeilen.nl and in August /Sept they will come with a big article about this adventure."
May 21, 2008
Adrian Flanagan made it!!! (See below.)
May 20, 2008
Adrian Flanagan is completing the first one-man "over the top" (north-south) circumnavigation of the earth (with a Portland Pudgy on board)! Adrian is expected to arrive at the Royal Southern Yacht Club at 11 AM tomorrow! See pictures or read more at Adrian's or the Royal Southern Yacht Club website.
May, 2008
The green Pudgies are in. Take a look.
January 1, 2008
David Hulbert becomes a polar bear!
David, along with other civic-minded Portlanders, jumped into the icy Casco Bay, to raise money for the first annual "Diaper Dip," which provides needy tots with diapers. David was in and out of the water faster than it was possible for an ordinary camera to capture on film. The above photos show the water immediately before and after his plunge.
December, 2007
We're featured in Soundings, "Little Boats, Big Jobs," January 2008 issue.
November, 2007
Adrian Flanagan, attempting the
first solo North/South circumnavigation,
with a Portland Pudgy on board as a lifeboat, has
successfully passed through
the northern icecap and is on his way south to Britain. We're honored that
he chose the Pudgy. Learn more.
04/24/07
Bill Kinney, one of the first Pudgy customers, wrote a wonderful article about the Pudgy that's in the May/June issue of Good Old Boat.
04/01/07
Check out the "Tenders and Toys" section of Showboats International magazine (April/May 2007). There's a nice little article about the Pudgy.
02/02/07
We're featured as ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOATS OF THE YEAR in the Boats of the Year issue of Maine Boats, Homes, and Harbors Magazine (March 2007). Here's how it concludes: "Given a choice on an offshore passage between the Pudgy and an inflatable liferaft or the average dinghy, there's no doubt which I'd choose."
David Hulbert, founder and president
Portland Pudgy, Inc.
200 Anderson Street
Portland, Maine 04101
(207) 761-2428
skype: portlandpudgy