Last year, I interviewed the owner of a boatyard for my magazine. He was a man who had been fascinated by boats as a child, and who had prepared himself from youth to build and sail boats. He studied engineering at Florida, then Marine Architecture at MIT. Afterwards he embarked on a long apprenticeship building boats and managing boatyards for some of the finest marine designers in the country, eventually going into business for himself. Today he is the owner and chief designer of a major manufacturer of luxury yachts, proud ocean- going machines that can go anywhere on the planet in comfort and safety. His yachts have a terrific reputation for performance and quality, and his shop is a multi-million dollar operation which has provided jobs and taxes for his community and a market for all his suppliers and contractors, not to mention pride and joy for his customers. He still prides himself on being able to do every job at his yard, from designing the hull shapes using the latest CAD software, to laying fiberglass cloth and resin, to installing wiring and plumbing to the day-to-day administration of about a hundred employees. The business has been growing steadily for a quarter-century, unheard of in the cutthroat sailboat building industry. He is probably the only marine architect in the world who owns the company which builds the boats he designs. And the boats, well, you can walk beside the finished hulls on a trailer ready for shipment and run your hands down the sleek gelcoat and feel the pride and the honesty pouring from the glass.

I sometimes wonder how successful, and happy, he would be if for whatever reason, he were forced to go into a different business altogether. I hope he never has to find out.