Rhodes Reliant and Offshore 40 Sailboat Home Page


Introduction Sistership resources Sistership
Photos		 Cousin Ships
Rhodes
Cheoy Lee		 Links Contact


Introduction to this Web Site

"No one yacht is perfect, but the Reliant comes very close to perfection in my opinion,"
Ted Brewer, Good Old Boat, May/June 2001, p. 49

This site is the web face for a network of owners of Rhodes Reliants, Offshore 40s, and Empire 40s, sail boats designed by Philip Rhodes and built by Cheoy Lee in 1963-76.  I am already in contact with about 100 owners and have identified about twenty additional sisterships.  If you have one of these boats and are not on my mailing list, please call 610-660-9966 or contact me by email.  We have an email network for sistership owners for exchanging ideas and experiences on maintenance and other issues.

By way of self introduction, I am Ben Stavis.  I have ASTARTE, which my father bought new in 1964.  I actually inspected her on the deck of the freighter bringing her from Hong Kong, before she was delivered and properly launched.  I have been sailing, maintaining, restoring, and upgrading  this wonderful boat from its first day until now --  47 years, my whole adult life.

From hours of conversations with other owners, I have collected a great deal of information and integrated it into a "Handbook of Maintenance and Upgrades," now totaling around 150 pages.  I have excerpted some portions and made web pages linked below.  The full document is lengthy, detailed, constantly growing, and useful for reference.  You can download it from a link below. 

In this era of rapid commercialization of the internet, let me underscore that this website is educational, not commercial.  My address is a "dot.edu," not "dot.com." For most of my life, I sailed with my dad, fixed boats with him, and chatted with him about boat stuff.  I was the foredeck man as a kid in 1955, 1965, and beyond.  When my father died in 1992, among other things, I lost this special boating partner.  The communication provided by this site, to a surprising extent, partly fills the gap left by my father's death.  I think most sailors will agree that "messing around in boats"  has a special position in our psyche and in our personal relations.

Here's me  at the wheel, Oct. 2005 and enjoying a spinnaker run, July 2008.
 
 

Sisterships Resources 

 Back to top
 

Sisterships Photos

Back to top

Cheoy Lee and Rhodes "cousin" ships:

The Cheoy Lee side of the family:

  • Cheoy Lee in Hong Kong (some parts are still available)
  • Cheoy Lee (Unofficial, owners) Web Page
  • Cheoy Lee North America, Marina Tower 2nd Fl, 801 Seabreeze Blvd, Ft. Lauderdale FL 33313, tel: 954-527-0999,  may be useful in brokerage, helping sell or buy used Cheoy Lees. 
  • Lion Yachts (David Toombs) originated the idea of the Reliant and has been importing and brokering Cheoy Lee yachts for over 40 years.  David brings vast experience with Cheoy Lee boats to people buying and selling these boats. email: lionyachts@att.net.  Cove Marina, Berach Rd., East Norwalk CT 06855 (203-866-5566)
    The Philip Rhodes side of the family:  Back to top
 
 

Sailing Links
 

  •  Weather
 Back to top
 

Contact:
Website managed by Ben Stavis  email: benstavis@verizon.net
 Please email me with questions, comments, or other useful feedback.
Last Update, Aug.  13, 2007

Back to top