Rollin' on the River
Devon's cruiser floats boat for backers
Devon's cruiser floats boat for backers

By Steve Lackmeyer

Published: October 14, 2007

ALBANY, N.Y. — The dock master along the Hudson River saw but didn't hear the approaching Devon Discovery as the boat's passengers took a break from their six-hour maiden voyage.

"What is that running on — batteries?” the dock master asked.

He gave a typical New York shrug, letting his Oklahoma visitors know he was still skeptical as they insisted the boat was powered by John Deere diesel engines.

The Devon Discovery, the first of three Oklahoma River Cruisers built by Scarano Boats, was indeed a quiet ride as it traveled Wednesday from Albany to Troy and back again. Sitting in the enclosed cabin, above the engine room, passengers can easily converse from both sides and successfully use a cell phone without yelling.

The trip was part pleasure for those on board. Former Mayor Ron Norick, who chairs the Oklahoma City Riverfront Redevelopment Authority, took turns at the captain's wheel with Devon Energy Chief Executive Larry Nichols. But they also took serious notes as the boat was put through an elaborate series of tests. Those included sudden stops at 18 knots, or about 21 mph (effective, but quite jarring), repeated tight turnarounds (a Dramamine moment for those without sea legs), and a run through the river's locks.

The boats have been a years-long endeavor for the riverfront authority, which had the task of promoting the former North Canadian River, back when it was derided as an ugly ditch that had to be mowed three times a year. Even after the river was dammed as part of Oklahoma City's Metropolitan Area Projects, the same proponents faced plenty of skeptics doubting the waterway ever would feature a commuter boat operation.

But after a few years of delays, the Devon Discovery will arrive later this month, with two more to follow by next spring. They bear no resemblance to the popular water taxis that carry thousands on the adjoining Bricktown Canal.

The city first sought boat proposals in 2003, and Water Taxi of Oklahoma, which operates the canal boats, submitted the only bid. Water Taxi was chosen to build and operate the river boats, but after three years of negotiations, the service was put out for bid again when city officials determined by doing so they could qualify for additional federal funding.

Disagreements between Water Taxi owner Bob Bekoff and the riverfront authority led to that firm dropping from the project. Then Scarano Boats was chosen from three bidders. Though initially the cheapest bid was $1.4 million per boat, the price eventually was settled at $1 million per boat.

Devon Energy, meanwhile, paid $2 million for naming rights, allowing the city to order a third boat.

John Scarano, founder of Scarano Boats, grew up fascinated by shipping and started building boats about 30 years ago. He runs the company with his brother Bob and employs 32 people at a former fertilizer plant along the Hudson River. The company only does custom construction and to date has built 30 vessels, including a replica of the Santa Maria for the city of Columbus, Ohio.

That job is easier these days, he said, thanks to computer programs that show clients detailed renderings of a proposed boat's superstructure and its finished look.

"We had a couple of design issues with this that were critical,” Duffy said. "The Oklahoma River has a very low overhead with its bridges — only an 11½ window under which we could fit the boat through. So originally we had a radar that would collapse under the deck.”

Over time the design evolved.

"It's a smaller profile on the water, and the length allows us to keep the wake down,” Duffy said. "And as a result, this boat just feels great on the water.”

Scarano estimates the Devon Discovery was built in about 5,000 pieces, making construction no easy task.

"There is a lot of equipment, there are no straight lines, and there are a lot of odd compartments,” Scarano said. "It's a challenge to put the engine and equipment in and make sure it all fits right.”

As the Oklahoma delegation toured the plant Wednesday, they saw the second boat, which is still under construction. After viewing the construction and watching a demonstration of Duffy's design software, the delegation was led to the completed Devon Discovery.

The boat is designed to double as a party boat, with removable tables that can be converted into buffet stands. The cabin's 27-inch flat screen televisions will display live GPS images of the boat's location along the Oklahoma River, safety films and promotional videos. The cabin, accented with wood trim and ornate gold-colored light fixtures, includes a rest room and climate controls.

Nichols, whose company will occasionally charter night cruises, noted a scarcity of electrical outlets needed by caterers. He, Norick and engineer Don Douglas also took notes on the boat's color schemes and sturdiness of the cabin's tables.

Such concerns were outweighed by their praise for the boat, which they each took turns driving. Nichols swore that Norick, a NASCAR enthusiast, was the most reckless at the wheel.

Douglas, meanwhile, paid careful attention when the ship passed through locks halfway through the journey. His firm, Triad Design, designed all three dams along the Oklahoma River and fought to include locks when funding was tight for the project. He convinced the city to solicit bids for building the dams with and without locks, gambling that the locks could be included without busting the project budget.

"Once you build a dam without it, you'd never be able to do it,” Douglas said.

The Devon Discovery waited 15 minutes for the water level to drop enough that it could pass through the lock. Douglas estimates the wait time will be shorter for the smaller Oklahoma River locks.

On the final stretch, the Scarano crew put the Devon Discovery through its harshest maneuvers, including sudden stops from high speed and tight turns. At no point did the boat stall.

The Devon Discovery is set to arrive in Oklahoma later this month, with a debut appearance at a Centennial river parade in November.

"Most things, when you start with them ... it takes a little imagination, a little hope, a lot of hard work and a little luck to make it work,” Nichols said. "You have momentum, you have excitement where people are predisposed to thinking this might work because so many things have worked the last decade that we didn't think would.”

Comments