Popular radio DJ went from living on a boat to offering Jersey Shore boat rides
ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS - As a native of the Bayshore, Dan Schade always loved boats and sailing. And in 2004, he channeled that passion into his launch of Classic Boat Rides, an Atlantic Highlands-based boat tour agency with three different vessels that allow guests to experience the joys of touring the Jersey Shore’s most iconic waterways.
Growing up in the Leonardo section of Middletown and Union Beach, “my parents had a little speedboat and they’d take me for rides on it,” recalled Schade, 61, a Leonardo resident, who bought his first boat, an eight-foot dingy, with money he saved from his paper route.
“I always loved the water and ever since I was 10 years old, I’ve owned and bought boats. One of my favorite childhood memories was going for rides on that speedboat with my folks,” he said, “and maybe having boats has helped me keep that memory alive.”
After high school, Schade learned how to fix boats by completing a program in Marine Trades through Monmouth County Vo-Tech and soon bought and fixed up an old 18-foot wooden speedboat. But a different career path caught his interest.
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“Beginning in my mid-twenties, I was a disc jockey at Y107 in Long Branch, then worked at other radio stations in the area and ultimately became a production director at WRAT in Belmar for 12 years,” he said. All during that time, however, his passion for boats remained strong.
“Beginning in the late 1990s, I actually lived on a 1963 37-foot Egg Harbor cabin cruiser at the Navesink Marina in Sea Bright,” he said. “I met my wife Vicky 12 years ago while living on that boat, and through me, she’s come to love boats too.”
Little did he know that a chance excursion would soon inspire a new professional direction.
“About 20 years ago, I went on a Windjammer cruise on an old wooden boat in Maine and ended up speaking to the captain about how to insure something like that; I was intrigued and wanted to have a classic wooden boat that I could offer to people to charter,” Schade said.
“I found a 1958 18-foot Chris-Craft sea skiff abandoned in a marina in Belmar, put a new motor in, varnished and repainted it, and started Classic Boat Rides at the Navesink Marina in Sea Bright with that boat in 2004, naming the company after my love of classic wooden boats,” he shared. “I appreciate that they’re made from trees that come from the earth, not a factory, and are built by hand by a craftsperson. They have so much soul, character and charm.”
Because his original boat’s six-person capacity brought in only limited business, however, “I sold it in 2009 and bought a bigger boat — a 28-foot Olsen wooden boat built in Keyport in 1981,” he said. “The owner helped me fix it up and we got it Coast Guard-inspected to carry 12 people.”
Over time, he relocated the business to Atlantic Highlands and expanded his fleet to include the 54-foot 40-person wooden Mariner built in 1978, the circa-1960 Lady Jill, and, most recently, the circa-1986 Navesink Queen steel paddle boat, which carries 80 to 100 passengers.
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Music and serenity on the water
Today, Classic Boat Rides’ range of vessels enable passengers to choose from three distinctly different boating experiences.
Newly renovated and just brought into service this year, “the Lady Jill carries six passengers and offers an intimate boating experience close to the water where guests can sit back, listen to their own music, and enjoy the sights,” Schade said. “It’s a 90-minute boat ride that leaves from the Molly Pitcher Inn in Red Bank and tours the Navesink River.”
Priced at $300, he noted, “it’s a nice excursion for folks visiting from out of town or staycationers.”
Two bigger boats in his fleet, the Mariner and the Navesink Queen, accommodate larger-sized groups.
Ideal for everything from birthday parties and wedding-related gatherings to anniversaries, graduations, burials at sea and more, “the Mariner is a larger but still intimate charter opportunity that features wooden decks, a lot of teak and varnish, and a warm, inviting ambiance,” Schade said of rides that journey up the Navesink River or Sandy Hook/Raritan Bay to see the lighthouse (and sometimes dolphins) if conditions are calm enough.
“A three-hour charter ride on the Mariner for up to 35 people costs $1,552, which includes a tip for the crew,” he said.
“Finally, our Navesink Queen offers a combination of public trips for 80 passengers and private charters for up to 100,” he said. “Guests love the steel drummer we have on the boat on Sundays in the summer, and on Thursday nights during the summer we offer our Anchor Jam, where tickets are $35 per person and include live music.”
In a seasonal business that runs from Memorial Day through Labor Day at the Jersey shore (but can extend from April through November, weather permitting), Schade confirmed that weather issues can end up cancelling trips at the last minute. “We don’t want to take people out in the rain and wind,” he said of that challenge. “We watch the hourly forecasts, but happily we were lucky this summer and didn’t get too much rain.”
As a result, Schade said business has been strong. “The Mariner did 80 charters this season, the Navesink Queen did 100, and the Lady Jill just came into service six weeks ago but will end up doing a dozen trips this season,” he said. “We’re excited to welcome the Lady Jill to our fleet and hope that it will be a mutually beneficial experience between our company and the Molly Pitcher Inn, because that property and our boats all offer a quaint and historic experience.”
Among trends, Schade noted that his guests are increasingly reflecting the area’s diversity. “People of many different ethnicities charter our boats, so we get to hear their music, see their food and learn a bit about their culture,” he said.
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'People will find joy in being on the water'
Supported by a dozen full and part-time associates, “I do a lot of office work, maintenance and operations, while my wife helps with customer service, bartending and hostess duties,” Schade said. “Since I also recently worked for the Seastreak ferry company, I have a large network of contacts and a bunch of captains I can call upon for our different rides. But I serve as the captain and announcer on some rides and love to point out sites of interest along the way, which brings my deejay skills full circle.”
Looking ahead, “this October 29th, we’ll be celebrating Oktoberfest on the Navesink Queen, and on November 5th we’ll be running a Carton Beer Tasting Cruise,” Schade said. “We also hope to do a Santa cruise and maybe a fundraising cruise around Thanksgiving for the local food pantry; we encourage people to check our website. And if you’re planning a party next summer, the best dates are still available and you can charter our boats right online.”
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As for the experience guests will have, “people will find joy in being on the water, seeing the sights, enjoying the fresh air, and celebrating with friends and family,” Schade said. “I love to see people smiling, having fun on the water, and viewing a whole new side of the Jersey shore they don’t normally see.”
“It’s exciting to share my love of boats with others and see them find as much joy in it as I do, and it’s also great to have three different boats that we can offer customers,” Schade said of the best parts of his job. “It’s fun for me as well because I get to drive the boats, which takes me back to my great days on the water as a kid.”
Classic Boat Rides
Location: 8 Simon Lake Drive, Atlantic Highlands
Phone: 732-337-9292
Owners: Dan and Vicky Schade
Launched: 2004
Website: www.classicboatrides.com
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Classic Boat Rides: From radio DJ to Jersey Shore boat ride captain
