OnBoard Magazine - Issue XIII - 2021 Season

R ock, Paper, Scissors is a game of chance. But everyone who has ever played the game, also called Rochambeau, knows that there are some elements of strategy involved. It’s not often a one-shot decision, but involves elements of knowing your partner, watching the signs and good old-fashioned luck. This is a story of how a boat that may never have been was brought to life, and brought together a family through the elements of strategic chance, imagination and ingenuity. Nick and Rusty Shriver are brothers. Some call them polar opposites, two years apart, they grew up together and stuck together, raising their families on the Potomac in Solomons Island where they run a successful restaurant business. Nick is the front-of-house guy, the charming front man, and Rusty is the heart of the operation, investing long hot hours in the kitchen behind the scenes. They still played together, too, vacationing in Ocean City where they own a getaway spot on the shore. The game of Rock, Paper, Scissors— or Roshambeau—as their dad referred to it was how the boys made most of their big, life-changing decisions. Ocean City is synonymous with offshore fishing, billed as the White Marlin Capital of the World. The brothers also had friends with whom they ventured into the deep, so those seeds were planted, fertilized by annual offshore sportfishing forays. But Rusty’s passion for fishing started closer to home; he set his roots and lines in the world that is bass fishing with long, solitary ventures into the intimate world of mapping every foot of the Potomac River, finding and outwitting his prey. He was invested in a world that challenged him, but demanded hours away from his work and family. As kids grew and priorities shifted, new opportunities arose. When circumstances brought Captain Willie Zimmerman and the Shriver brothers into a conversation about setting up a charter boat operation, Captain Willie turned to his long time friend and Bluewater Sales Professional Jeremy Blunt. Given an idea and a budget, Jeremy began sending Nick Shriver some used boat listings, mostly older but solid custom builds. Nick’s response, “No, we want to start with a new boat” and Jeremy’s job This is a story about a boat that may never have been, but for the story of two brothers taking a chance together, a broker with a “dream” boat, a captain in the right place at the right time and a boat yard that could see the “impossible” dream in a scrappy hull. by Deirdre Bell Loftin Chance Game of 46 BLUEWATER