‘What’s in a Name?’ revisited: Tell us about the moniker on your stern

Seven years ago, we asked you to answer this question about your boat: “What’s in a Name?” We quickly found out that when it comes to the perfect moniker for your vessel, the answer is: plenty. So we’re asking again. What went into deciding the name you put on your transom?

The last time around, we received more than 100 stories, and our favorite was from Covert and Beth Murphy, who named their 1964 Chris-Craft Murhpy’s Law. Here’s their story:

“Many years ago my husband’s brother, Dix Murphy, bought a used 1964 Chris-Craft named Darbo and renamed the boat Murphy’s Law, but why he tempted fate, no one knows. Combine the notorious “Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong” law with a bit of nautical lore that says it isn’t wise to change the name of a boat, and you have a recipe for trouble. Sure enough, one summer the renamed boat sank in Donner Lake (Calif.).

Fortunately, Murphy’s Law was saved and still wends its way around Lake Tahoe.

Dix died in 1994 and my husband inherited the boat. In spring 2000, he did a lot of work on it and decided that it was time to redo the lettering of Murphy’s Law on the stern. By then, the infamous name had become beloved by the family. The two of us selected bright white classic lettering and had it professionally done at a local sign shop. When the proofs were ready, we approved the letters and together we applied them, making sure they were perfect. So pleased with the effect, we admired how wonderful the boat looked, all spiffed up, and we took several pictures.

In June, we launched the boat on Lake Tahoe and enjoyed cruising around. Two months later, in August, my husband’s mother, Midge, died. On the day of her funeral, I showed some recent photos to our son, who had come home to be with the family. As we looked at pictures of the boat, I noticed that the name on the stern was misspelled as Murhpy’s Law! How we missed it all that time is a mystery, and it’s such a good cosmic joke that we have left it that way. Quite frankly, I think that once Midge got to Heaven, she and Dix plotted the whole thing!”

So “What’s in a Name”? Tell us your story and we may feature it in an upcoming edition of the Hagerty Current.