EVERETT — Unless you’re into rowing, there’s a good chance that you’ve never heard of Pocock Racing Shells. But for many of the country’s athletes and amateurs, students and coaches, Pocock has been a well-recognized name for ages.
This venerable boat-building company, touted to be the world
‘s oldest of its kind, celebrates its 100th anniversary this year right here in Snohomish County.
“It’s a niche business. There are only three or four manufacturers on this continent,” said owner William “Bill” Tytus.
And Pocock has a niche within the niche. Because it hand-produces a sturdy, high quality shell that can stand up to rigorous daily use, Pocock is usually the boat of choice for schools and universities around the country.
In fact, universities have been involved with Pocock since almost the very beginning. Founder George Pocock and his brother, Dick, sons of the head boat builder for England’s Eton College, were operating a small boat business in British Columbia when the coach of the University of Washington asked them to come to Seattle. When they arrived, the order turned out to be for a single eight-man shell.
But the move had been made and after this false start, the brothers soon prospered. Dick Pocock went on to become boat-builder for Yale University. George Pocock stayed in Seattle and, after building float plane pontoons for Boeing, became the official boat builder for the University of Washington.
George’s son, Stan Pocock, apprenticed under his father as he earned his engineering degree and rowed and coached for the University of Washington. He also was coach of several Olympic gold medal-winning crews.
Stan Pocock was a field pioneer in fiberglass construction and brought innovative elements to the business. He eventually took over the business after the death of his father.
Pocock Racing Shells did not move to Everett until the mid-1960s. The University of Washington had decided it was no longer feasible to have a boat builder on campus. The Pococks were left looking for a new shop until the right building showed up, in Everett.
Although it wasn’t apparent at first, Tytus believes it was the best location choice they could have made.
“Everett is a town that understands industry. It has been very good for us,” he said. Everett is also home to the Everett Rowing Association.
Tytus hadn’t planned to get into the boat building business himself. It was pure serendipity, he explained. An avid sculler who rowed for both University of Washington and Harvard University, Tytus placed second in the Diamond Sculls event at Henley and was a member of the U.S. National Team from 1969-1971.
His interest in the sport and connection with UW frequently brought him in contact with the Pocock family and they became firm friends. In 1985, Stan Pocock began to think about retirement. Tytus was in the right place at the right time. He also valued the traditions that were a part of the firm.
“George (Pocock) set a tone and an expectation of excellence,” Tytus said. “A notion of customer service.”
That is what Tytus has worked to maintain during his tenure. Some things are new. Tytus experiments with all of the latest materials, even receiving a federal grant for the research and development of light composite structures. These boats are cutting edge.
But the essentials of tradition and craftsmanship are the same. The boats are built up slowly by hand, layer by layer. They are not formed by machines.
According to Tytus, it’s the product that they make that’s the bottom line, not the money. The Pocock craftsmen could possibly make more money in another trade, but they love what they do and have pride in producing a superior product.
Business is going very well for Pocock. Even amid the recession, school rowing programs have survived and interest in rowing continues to grow.
“I think the sport has just exploded,” Tytus said. “Years ago when I was rowing on Lake Washington, the only thing I had to worry about was hitting an errant log from a log boom. Now there are so many people on the water it is literally crowded.”
M.L. Dehm writes for the Snohomish County Business Journal.
On the Web
Learn more about rowing and racing shells from the Everett Rowing Association at www.everettrowing.com or from Pocock Racing Shells at www.pocock.com.
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