South Bay : 24 Years Later, His Ship Has Gone Out

With a belch of smoke from his boat’s surplus Navy engine, 80-year-old Dale Hines of Torrance set sail Wednesday on the 50-foot, 32-ton craft that he started building in his back yard 24 years ago.

With his wife, Marie, at his side, Hines christened the craft with a bottle of champagne, then watched as crews lowered the concrete and wood sailboat into the waters of King Harbor Marina in Redondo Beach.

“I didn’t ask for all this attention,” said the soft-spoken retired aerospace inspector, as a half-dozen television cameras recorded his first step onto the floating “Kay Marie,” named after his daughter.

Ken Hyder, a friend who worked on the boat over the past year, helped Hines maneuver the craft away from the dock and into the marina to cheers from 50 people who came to watch the event.

“I never thought I’d see the day,” Marie Hines said as her husband sailed away. “I guess this will finally make him happy.”

Neighbors of Hines had dubbed the boat “The Ark” and called Hines “Noah” during the two decades-plus of construction. But Hines said he always kept his eyes on his goal--his own sailboat that he could sail to Hawaii. The craft will go through its sea trials during the next two weeks and, assuming all goes well, Hines and his wife will set sail soon after.

“But I may fly to Hawaii,” Marie Hines said. “I’ll meet him when he gets there. . . .”