By LEN BOSE
It’s been 11 years since I last interviewed Eberisto “Abe” Parra, owner of Larson’s Shipyard located at 2705 W. Coast Highway. Parra started working at Boatswains Locker in 1980. That same year, Al Larson called Boatswains Locker, asking if they had any extra help. Work was a little slow, so they sent Abe. “Al had trouble pronouncing my name so he started calling me ‘Abe’ and it stuck,” Parra said.
Parra started out sweeping and cleaning props. Later, Larson taught him all his trade secrets about running the shipyard, working with wood and metal. “Mr. Larson was a very, very good man to me.” You can hear the affection in Parra’s voice when he talks about the shipyard and Larson, who passed in 2000. Parra started working at the shipyard at the age of 17, some 43 years ago. I first meet him back in 1989, when I first started as a yacht broker working in an office above the shipyard. He has always been very kind to me, and we both have always gone out of our way to say hello to each other when we have crossed tacks around town.
Today, Parra runs a crew of four, rebuilding inboard and four-stroke outboard motors, electrical, bottom and topside painting. Haul-out fees are $80 per foot, and they can take boats up to 55 feet. With Parra learning from the master himself – Al Larson – he and his crew are the perfect choices for restoring wooden, fiberglass and gel coat repairs. You should also keep this yard in mind if you have an old boat on your mooring and have to demolish it.
The real reason I stopped by to say hello to Parra this week is I had heard a rumor that he was retiring and closing up shop. When I asked him about this, he laughed and said, “I have been here 43 years and plan on being around another 43 years.” This was good to hear, because the last thing we need is to lose another shipyard from our harbor.
While researching this story, I found some old interviews with Larson. “Back when I went in business, there were more boatyards here than restaurants,” Larson said. “Now everywhere it’s high-rises and restaurants. Today, the city has only seven boatyards, about half as many yards as it once did – even though the number of boats to be serviced in the harbor has tripled since the 1940s. Keeping Larson’s Shipyard operating as a shipyard was part of the deal worked out in 1979 between the city and the developer who bought Larson’s property,” the article noted. “At that time the City of Newport Beach took a stand to maintain all the shipyards it could as a service to the boating public.”
Today our harbor is down to a total of six shipyards, with only four of them able to haul out boats more than 50 feet.
I asked Parra what he likes to do with his time off and how he likes to boat. “I like to go fishing with my customers, and this last week the fishing has been really good.”
So, the next time you need to haul your boat for its annual maintenance, make sure to call the original Larson’s Shipyard at the same phone number it’s had since 1947 – 949.548.3641.
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Since we are nearing the final beat of the summer, I thought it might be a good time to review some information about our harbor we talked about earlier this year. For our offshore mooring permit holders, Marina Park has a “Ship-Shape” program where you can bring your boat in to clean it. You get three hours to complete your task, from Sunday through Thursday. Call in advance to confirm there is space. Now that the sun is out, remember you can pick up a mooring at no cost for day use. You have to be aboard, your pool toys deployed surrounding the boat, and have shrimp on the barbecue to peg the fun meter. One last reminder for mooring permit holders: The city has a state grant that will help you dispose of the boat that is ready to sink and has little to no value. Remember you don’t have to have a boat on your mooring to keep your permit. Here is one I have to just label as “Duh.” Keep your guests off the bow of your boat with their legs over the side.
Sea ya.
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Len Bose is a yachting enthusiast, yacht broker and harbor columnist for Stu News Newport.
