It was a tremendous responsibility for an 8-year-old. Curt Scheberies had become the new, unofficial skipper of the family boat. Curt's uncle, Jerry Scheberies, bought the new Fiber-Flite Sportsman at Melrose Appliance in Oakland, Calif., in 1958. By 1965, Uncle Jerry's interests had changed, and Curt's family became the recipient of the Fiber-Flite, still in like-new condition, a result of the meticulous care given by Uncle Jerry.
With its black-and-white color scheme and tail fins, family and friends nicknamed the Fiber-Flite the Bat Boat. With the change in ownership, the Bat Boat moved to Curt's family's summer retreat in Tahoe City. It became Curt's duty to find ways to get the boat from the garage to the lake, which was seven blocks away. Through their newfound art of pestering, Curt and his brothers, Fred and Mark, convinced their mother to trailer the boat to the lake. Curt's responsibility was to remove the battery from the car and lug it to the boat, where he'd hook it up in eager anticipation of a day on the water.
The Sportsman was one of four Fiber-Flite models built by the Multi-Plastics Co.
of Fort Worth, Texas, in 1958. The Custom Deluxe, Sportsman and the Angler were built on a common
hull, measuring 14 feet 4 inches. The Cub 14 was a small, car-topper pram built for the outdoorsman
on the go. The Sportsman came equipped from the factory with chrome ski pull rings, a wraparound
windshield, urethane-foam upholstery, a steering wheel with pulley steering system, and full deck
hardware. It was available with a white hull and your choice of a red, black, white, yellow, blue,
green, tangerine or pink deck. The Sportsman weighed 360 pounds and could handle up to 70 hp.
In the late '70s, Curt and his high school friends learned to water ski behind the
Fiber-Flite. "We used the same Crest Glider skis that my uncle bought back in 1959," Curt recalls.
"It's funny how much fun kids can have skiing behind a 35-hp outboard. Six gallons of gas in the
"day cruiser" tank and a quart of oil was all that was required for an afternoon of fun."
Forty years after he acquired it, Curt's Sportsman is still powered by the original 35-hp Evinrude Lark that his uncle purchased with the boat. "The Lark has never let us down," says Curt. "The only maintenance has been checking the points every few years. At the end of each summer, we would take the boat back to the cabin, clean her up real nice and cover her with a canvas cover. Each spring, I would top off the tank, check the trailer tire pressure, and it'd be good to go."
Unfortunately for Curt, California banned the use of 2-stroke outboards in 1999. Originally, Curt was told that the Tahoe Ban would only apply to jet skis, but in the end, it also applied to his boat. In May 1999, the last day before the ban took effect, Curt circumnavigated the lake for a final, nostalgic cruise. "The water was just like glass, and I think that I was the only one on the lake," Curt says. "It was cold, but I had to take it out for one last ride, just for posterity. As usual, the Fiber-Flite performed flawlessly."
The family doesn't want to put the Fiber-Flite to rest just yet. "My three nieces have started asking me when it will be their turn to take out the Bat Boat," says Curt. "I've considered bringing it down to the Bay Area and using it on the bay. I keep the trailer license and boat registration current. My only reservation is the effect of the salt water on the boat, motor and trailer.
This boat has always been in the family," Curt adds, "but it's been more like a member of the
family."