It was all about fate when Ron Stevenson first spotted the gigantic red tailfins of the 1959 Bell Boy Banshee. Driving by a U-Haul lot, he couldn't help but notice the bright red fins poking out from the sea of orange trailers and trucks in the huge rental fleet. The boat had been left behind by a previous owner.

The new owner of the lot decided to clean house, and when Ron inquired about the boat, the lot owner said that he was having an auction in two weeks. Unfortunately for Ron, he would be out of town for the auction. The next day, he wrote a note addressed to any potential buyer stating his interest in purchasing this boat. Sealed in a plastic bag, the note was strategically placed where it was sure to be noticed.

When he returned from his trip, the boat was gone. Ron was disappointed, but hopeful that he might get some response to his note. With each passing day, however, the great-looking boat faded further from his mind.

A couple of years later, Ron got word from a friend about a peculiar-looking boat on his storage lot. His interest was piqued, so he traveled the 80 miles to the lot. Once there, Ron was surprised to see a faded pink Bell Boy, looking very much like the one he had looked at before.

Ron rummaged through the interior, moving the countless tires and muck to find his way to the bottom. While sorting through this mess, he found a small plastic bag. Inside the bag was the note that he had so carefully written two years before. It was the same boat!

After Ron's second chance encounter with the Banshee, he was convinced this boat was the one for him - and he was not letting it slip away. "This boat was just so cool," emphasizes Ron. "I knew that I needed to do something with it. Of course I bought it, it was just meant to be."

The Bell Boy Boat Division of Bellingham Shipyards Co. introduced the Banshee in 1958 and carried it into the 1959 model year. "One of our executives was really in love with the styling of the Chrysler cars," remembers Art Nordtvedt, general manager of Bell Boy at that time. "That's where the fins came from. The styling didn't last very long - it was more of a fad than anything."

Another especially unique feature of the Banshee is the fiberglass composition. "It was back in 1950 or '51 that we began to experiment with fiberglass," says Nordtvedt. "We could see that this material would have some real potential for boat-building."

Through his connections with the Pacific Northwest Chapter of the Antique & Classic Boat Society, Ron contacted Rob Dapron to do the restoration of his unique boat. "He hadn't done a fiberglass boat before, but he said that he was willing to give it a try," says Ron. "The outside storage had taken its toll. The gel coat was very badly faded, and the upholstery was all shriveled up. Someone had painted the hull below the waterline and the paint was peeling badly, coming off in big chips."

Thankfully, Rob was able to restore the Bell Boy Banshee to pristine condition. "Rob brought it back to life," says Ron. "He used Interlux Brightside polyurethane for the hull and deck. I was able to locate a new windshield from the company that supplied the windshield originally to Bell Boy. It took some serious work, but Rob did a great job."

Ron is evidently tuned in to the feel of the boat. "I'm running a 1961 50-hp Mercury Mark 500 on it," says Ron. "It pushes the boat really well. The hull shape is very flat; it doesn't like heavy water. It's better accustomed to smooth water or a light ripple."

It may not be the fastest or flashiest boat on the water, but that's not what Ron was seeking. "I bought this boat so my wife Diane and my daughter Laura would have a boat that they could use easily," says Ron. "Just go down to the dock, put the key in and fire it up. That's what this boat is really about, going for a boat ride. There's a certain joy in just being out on the water."