86-year-old spent 40 years building a boat in his front yard. Then 3 strangers showed up at his home
It's a 63-foot steel boat with six fuel tanks and a thumping hull built to sail against currents
A few hours away from the ocean, in Mineral Wells, Texas, a giant metal boat sits in a house’s backyard, telling an inspiring story of dreams. Dale spent 40 years welding and building this 63-foot boat, dreaming of sailing it in Alaska one day. But at 86, he thought the journey was over until three English strangers knocked on his door and breathed new life into the sails of his lifelong dream, according to Laurence Benson.
40 years in the making
The three English visitors were Laurence Benson, Benjie, and Will, who sell home security. The story began with Kiah, a colleague they worked with. He was the one who found Dale and his boat and told the others he wanted to make a video about it. He said he wanted to help the man make his dream come to reality. “It's a funny deal in Mineral Wells. " The guy's been building it for, like, at least 35 to 40 years, that I know,” Anthony, a Texas resident, told the three guys. “It's been up, and he just slowly builds on it and builds on it and builds on it; it's a giant metal boat. We all wonder how the hell he is ever going to get off that heel and get it somewhere.”
So one day, Benjie knocked on Dale’s door and spoke to his wife and said that they were there to help him. They were fascinated to have a tour of the giant boat, which consists of four staterooms and six 3,000-gallon fuel tanks. The hull is designed at an angle so when the waves hit it, the boat pushes forward and lifts it instead of sinking it. Dale explained to them that the boat is currently 75% complete. “The second he started talking about the boat, you could see it. He’s as passionate now as he was 40 years ago. His dream is to see her on the water,” said Benson. Dale even climbed a ladder to show them the deck, something he hadn’t done in years.
Boat as giant as a tennis court
At this age, however, Dale can no longer continue building the boat. Another hurdle is that a steep hill stands between the boat and the road, which means heavy machinery will be required to move it from the yard to the ocean. The boat was so giant that they first needed to get it off the hill before they could set it in the water. While Dale once dreamed of sailing it in Alaskan waters and catching different fish, these obstacles are now coming in the way of his dream, which is why the three men are sharing the story to seek help from people.
Where there is a will, there is a way
Benson, a content creator with millions of followers, launched a GoFundMe campaign with his colleagues to cover the cost of equipment required to get the boat down the hill and transport it to a launch site. The campaign has already raised $43,667 of its $45,000 goal from more than 1,500 donors.
Dale isn’t alone in holding onto a travel dream later in life. According to a 2023 AARP survey, 63% of American travelers aged 50 and older have a bucket-list trip they hope to take. Another AARP survey found 69% of baby boomers were optimistic they would visit the next destination on their travel bucket list, while 37% said continuing to add and complete bucket-list trips gave them something to look forward to.
His dreams will come true
Dozens of people jumped in from different social media platforms to applaud these men and support Dale’s dream. @camerontk9c remarked, “Let’s make Dale’s dream come true!” @MADuranDude777 exclaimed, “I want to see the boat finished!” @brandym007 commented, “Need to make a reality show out of this. You'd have tons of viewers.”
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