Ashley Byrne & Allan Terhune Jr. | Published on 12/21/2025
A Letter From Our Builders
Happy Holidays from Zenda! We hope you are having a festive season and are looking forward to getting back on the water with friends and family soon.
Cate and I are thrilled with our first three months in Zenda and are excited for the future. The E Scow is the cornerstone of Melges Boat Works. As a third-generation E Scow sailor who grew up sailing on Barnegat Bay, the importance of this class to me personally and the entire team cannot be overstated.
The team at Melges and the NCESA leadership have held several productive meetings regarding the future of E Scow production. Our shared goal is to establish a sustainable path forward that ensures success for both the sailors and our business.
Currently, we are navigating several production challenges, including cost-effectiveness, transfer of knowledge, streamlining schedules, and managing the impact of new tariffs, to name a few. We are committed to providing sailors with a boat that is affordable, competitive, and built to the high standards we all expect.
Our team is working diligently to finalize this path forward in conjunction with class leadership. We are taking the time necessary and doing all of the proper research to ensure long-term success and to keep this class we all love thriving for decades to come.
We are also committed to ensuring the class is provided with world class service, parts and sails to ensure the highest level of sailing, racing and camaraderie that is the bench mark of the class. The team at Melges will continue to be available for support both from the shop and at regattas. We just finished an amazing sail development session last week as seen in the photo.
As we approach the new year, we are excited about the upcoming season and tackling the challenges ahead. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Cate, Andy, Eddie, or me at any time. We value your feedback and look forward to hearing from the membership. 2026 is going to be an amazing year, and we look forward to sharing that with you.
Happy Holidays and we look forward to seeing you all very soon.
Warmest Regards,
Allan Terhune Jr.