Bertram at 50: The Legacy of a Hard-Core Fishing Machine

Celebrating Bertram Yacht’s 50th anniversary, company president Alton Herndon describes today’s Bertrams as “hard-core, kick-ass fishing machines.” That blunt summation echoes how many enthusiasts remember the boats Richard Bertram built: rugged, seakindly, maneuverable vessels designed to take the worst the sea could throw at them and bring anglers home safely.

The Birth of a Legend: Moppie and the Deep-Vee Hull

The Bertram legend began in April 1960 during the 172-mile Miami–Nassau race, when Bertram’s 31-foot wooden boat Moppie cut through 8-foot seas and 30-knot winds to finish two-and-a-half hours ahead of its nearest rival. Moppie, named for Bertram’s wife, averaged just over 20 mph in those conditions thanks to a deep-vee hull by C. Raymond Hunt. Hunt’s design departed from the flat aft sections common at the time and introduced a constant 24-degree deadrise, allowing the hull to slice through steep seas rather than pound over them.

Hunt also incorporated horizontal strakes to lift the boat onto plane and deflect spray, and a rounded, bell-shaped bow to soften impacts with waves. Yachting journalist and racer Carlton Mitchell later noted that Moppie “could be driven hard into steep head seas, rolled very little in the trough and could track straight before following crests,” adding that every successful ocean-racing powerboat since owes something to this basic form.

“We didn’t get caught out in bad weather; we went out in it deliberately… Moppie became airborne at the end of the Miami breakwater to land somewhere short of Cat Cay with a crash that not only collapsed my chair but drove my spine into my skull, and I emerged from the eight-hour ordeal — in which we set a record — feeling like a survivor of the Battle of the Atlantic.” — Carlton Mitchell, Sports Illustrated (excerpt)

“Bertram Weather” and a Reputation for Toughness

The Miami–Nassau race gave rise to the phrase “Bertram weather” — conditions only a Bertram would willingly face. David Napier, Bertram’s chief designer for 22 years, recalls keeping a Bertram 28 Flybridge at his dock and deliberately taking it into seas the Coast Guard warned were too rough for small craft. His experience was typical: these boats handled big seas with confidence when driven by someone who knew how to run them.

Bertram’s advertising of the era reinforced that image with stories from remote places — Baja, Tahiti, the Dominican Republic — under the theme of asking “the guys in the boondocks” which boats held together. The company’s reputation endured. Years later, while visiting Homer, Alaska, Napier spotted three Bertrams in the marina among commercial fishing boats and learned from a fisherman that he’d been out in rough seas simply because “We’re running a Bertram here.” The mystique of invincibility had stuck.

From Raceboat Prototype to Sportfishing Icon

Dick Bertram came to powerboating from a strong background in sailing and yacht racing. After seeing a Hunt-designed deep-vee tender slicing through chop off Block Island Sound, he commissioned Hunt to build the wooden Moppie. Following Moppie’s victory in the 1960 Miami–Nassau race, that hull became the plug for the fiberglass Bertram 31, a model that went on to sell more than 1,800 units before regular production ended in 1983.

Early Bertrams were versatile — suitable for racing, fishing and cruising — but the company eventually focused on sportfishing. Lee Dana, Bertram’s chief engineer from 1960 to 1989, recalls that the builder aimed squarely at anglers and outfitted boats for big-game fishing with practical, often Spartan interiors. An early 1980s owner’s letter captured that ethos: a woman who had once scorned the “dull” interior of a Bertram 28 wrote about surviving 10-foot seas and how the boat’s seaworthiness changed her mind, concluding that “Our Bertram is worth every penny we paid for it.”

Bigger Boats, Better Interiors

As anglers pushed farther offshore, Bertram built larger boats. The 46 and 54 models became particularly successful, combining reliable seakeeping with useful cockpit space and increasingly refined interiors. The 46, introduced in 1970, moved away from the original Hunt deep-vee by adopting a reduced deadrise in the aft section to plane more quickly with less power. The 54, which appeared in 1981, became an icon of the modern Bertram: a capable sportfisherman that also offered a more comfortable interior for families.

During the 1970s and 1980s, in-house interior design work helped Bertram compete with other builders on creature comforts. When the boats were not being used for tournament fishing, many owners enjoyed them as motoryachts — a change that broadened Bertram’s appeal without abandoning its fishing-first roots.

Trials, Ownership Changes and a Modern Revival

Bertram prospered under Whittaker Corporation from 1967 to 1985, but the late 1980s and early 1990s brought economic headwinds and a temporary luxury tax that hit the industry hard. The company passed through several owners and filed for Chapter 11 before an established European builder acquired the brand in 1998 with the goal of restoring Bertram’s reputation.

Today’s Bertram models are more luxurious and sleeker in profile, yet still clearly recognizable as Bertrams. Yachts grew larger, culminating in an 80-foot flagship introduced in 2010: a substantial vessel built for speed and comfort, capable of both luxurious cruising and serious sportfishing. Alton Herndon, Bertram’s president since 2010, has emphasized that even as styling and amenities evolve, the company remains committed to its sportfishing heritage.

Herndon highlights the redesigned 54 as an example of that commitment — a tournament-ready battlewagon equipped with a pressurized live well, multiple freezers and ample storage for rods and gear. It offers both speed and a comfortable ride, and it can be outfitted for family cruising as well, but Bertram’s priority, he says, remains clear: build hard-core fishing machines that live up to the brand’s legacy.

Enduring Heritage

For five decades, Bertram has balanced innovation in hull design with a practical focus on anglers’ needs. From Moppie’s deep-vee breakthrough to modern tournament-ready sportfishermen, the marque’s reputation for seaworthiness and durability has influenced powerboat design and earned a loyal following. Even as yachts become sleeker and more luxurious, Bertram’s identity remains rooted in building boats that can be trusted where it matters most — out on the open ocean.

See related article: Bertram owners

This article originally appeared in the November 2011 issue.