The Boat Billy Joel Couldn't Buy
How Billy Joel, Doug Zurn, and Peter Needham built Nomad — and quietly bent American powerboats afterward
Read the letterWhen tidal waters feel like home…
A weekly collection of letters from Casco Bay — the freedom to drift and jet with no place to be and no timeline to follow…
The Lookout
Tell us what you’re looking for. We’ll keep watch.
Share a few details — make, budget, where to look. We’ll keep an eye on the market and let you know when something worth a look comes over the horizon.
Create My Lookout
Brokerage range
What is she worth?
A calm pre-owned range from year, hours, drive, and brokerage asks. Not a survey.
Estimate a hull02
Buying pre-owned
Brokerage boats in a real budget. Jets versus shafts, tired varnish, the survey that happens before you fall in love.
Read the letter
03
Keeping her
Teak, brightwork, winter storage, the checks you write every year in Casco Bay.
Read the letter04
The history
Lobster-boat roots, Downeast pleasure conversions, Hinckley’s picnic jet, and the yards that kept the sheer line honest.
Read the long-form guide