Vice Commodore nominee Shantz enjoys being involved

• Lifeline: I understand that you retired from a long career at General Motors. What were your roles? 

Craig Shantz: I retired from GM in the summer of 2018, working at GM for a few days shy of 41 years. During my career, I had 15 different assignments which required relocating our family nine times. Jeanne, my wife, is a saint, but it was still sometimes difficult on the family, especially our four children. 

During the last 15 years of my career, I was the Engineering Group and Performance Marketing Manager of Performance Vehicles and Motorsports, overseeing the development and builds of Performance-Based Show Vehicles, Proof of Concepts, and all of the Chevrolet pace cars. We then displayed and marketed these vehicles, along with production vehicles, at shows and events across the country.

A few other assignments included Project Manager of the Buick Centieme concept vehicle build (which became the Buick Enclave), Zone Manager in Los Angeles and working with the entertainment industry, Manager of Future Product Development where I was directly involved with every detail of the vehicle development, content, naming, and pricing of the Buick Rendezvous from just an idea to the start of production. 

• You were part of many teams at GM.

I had an extremely unusual career in areas as diverse as product development, marketing, field sales/service, service engineering, technical training and vehicle distribution. In each assignment, I was either joining an existing team, or building one, and it was imperative that the team came together quickly to achieve our common goal. 

Every member of any team is valuable, regardless of the position they play, and through their individual contributions, they gain your trust, and respect. I was fortunate to work with so many talented and dedicated men and women across a variety of organizations, and I have fond memories of what we accomplished working together. Through it all, I never had an assignment that I didn’t enjoy and find rewarding!

• Any interesting stories?

Oh yeah, I have lots of stories, certainly too many for this interview. Everything from flying out to the USS (ITAL) Nimitz aircraft carrier and our tailhook didn’t catch, to our night at the Emmys, to driving one of the pace cars at the start of the Indianapolis 500.

I’ve had the opportunity to meet many race car drivers and celebrities during my tenure at GM. As an example, one day I received a phone call from Mario Andretti in the morning and Jay Leno in the afternoon. Jay even offered to give a tour of his garages to my family members flying to California for our daughter’s wedding, and he was as warm, gracious and funny as ever.

I’ve had several celebrity interactions, and some celebrities like Morgan Freeman, Jim Caviezel, Patrick Dempsey, Taya Kyle, and Josh Duhamel were so friendly and down to earth.

• How did you get into boating? Is the family into sailing?

My parents always had powerboats. They had a picture of me when I was 2, or 3 in one of them. I’ve always loved boating, and I built a raft when I was about 10 years old which I used on my grandparent’s interconnected ponds. 

I built a flat bottom boat in woodshop in the 9th grade, and looking back, I probably could have bought a new aluminum boat for less than I paid for the marine lumber, epoxy, paint, materials, brass screws and stainless hardware. I rented a Sunfish sailboat while in college and was hooked.

Around 1985, I suggested to Jeanne that we go to Annapolis and take sailing lessons so that we could bareboat charter in the Virgin Islands, but that didn’t go any further than a suggestion. 

When we were transferred from Cincinnati to Southern California in 1994, that was my opportunity to turn a dream into reality. We joined the Santa Barbara Sailing Center and I took ASA sailing courses (101 thru 105). 

As members of the sailing center, after the first four-day ASA101 course, I could charter a J24, after ASA103, I could charter a Catalina 30, and after ASA104 a Catalina 36. They wanted you to gain more experience on your own between each course, which was great.

We were transferred back to Michigan in July of 1997 and I crewed on a boat racing on Lake St. Clair through 1998. There wasn’t anything comparable to the ability we had to charter in California, so in the spring of 1999 we purchased a Hunter sailboat and cruised with it in Michigan and Canadian waters, and then also off the coast of California when we were transferred back there for a second time. 

While in California we enjoyed year-round sailing of the Channel Islands, including many trips to Santa Cruz, Anacapa, and Santa Catalina. In 2003, I took ASA106 at the Bluewater Sailing School in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. I sat for the USCG exams in 2006 and currently hold a USCG Master to 100 GRT. We purchased our current boat, an Island Packet 380, in 2017 on Lake Erie, and sailed it to our home port of Suttons Bay, Mich.

We have four children, all of whom enjoy sailing, and two have taken some ASA courses. Jeanne and I have had some wonderful and memorable times sailing and cruising with our children and grandchildren. Jeanne even came face-to-face with a black bear in the North Channel! They were both picking berries.  

• What aspect of boating do you find most interesting?

Jeanne and I really enjoy cruising and exploring new waters, anchorages, harbors and coastline towns. Boating is something that we enjoy and can continue doing even though we’re not as young as we used to be. 

I love that there is always something more to learn in boating, whether it’s enhancing navigation skills, weather skills, equipment improvements, boat maintenance, sail trim, etc., etc. I thoroughly enjoy the continuous learning aspect of boating, and just being on the water.

• You are involved with the US Power Squadron. What is the focus of that organization and what roles have you been involved in?

Similar to the GLCC, we joined America’s Boating Club - Grand Traverse Bay, to be around like-minded people. I love talking with fellow boaters about all aspects of boating.

I am currently the Squadron Education Officer and we have many awesome Instructors teaching a variety of topics. Our instructors are a real asset to the surrounding area and provide an incredibly recognized and valuable service.

I am also a Vessel Safety Examiner providing Vessel Safety Checks (VSC’s), which is a joint program with the USCG Auxiliary overseen by the USCG. 

VSC’s provide a public service by offering complimentary and confidential safety checks. It’s rewarding to help other people with ensuring their boats are safe and meet state and federal legal requirements. 

During these VSC’s, we generally have some great discussion with the vessel owner and it’s not uncommon to learn something new myself, whether is about a new product on the market, or a different way of doing something.

• What attracted you to join GLCC? What has been your involvement?

We joined GLCC in February of 2021 because we wanted to expand our cruising of the Great Lakes and meet more like-minded people, and learn from their experiences. What we found has exceeded our expectations. 

We have met so many wonderful people, made friendships, had access to Harbor Reports, Webinars, and many of the great GLCC events. We have found that, like many things, the more involved you get, the more fun you have and the more rewarding your experience. It’s a pretty simple formula. 

Jeanne and I have attended the annual Rendezvous for the past three years, along with a couple Annual General Membership Meetings, a Holiday Gala, and an April Launch weekend. We became Port Captains in Northport, Mich., in October of 2022. 

Co-chairing the 2022 Rendezvous at the Mackinaw City Straits State Harbor was a great experience. Coordinating with US Coast Guard for the rescue swimmer recovery demonstration, the marina staff, the shuttle service, caterers, guest speakers, Shepler’s Ferry, fort tours, and the fire department for the live demonstration was challenging and required a lot of follow up. It was similar in many ways to the team building, planning and coordination required while I was still working. 

I met so many great people and became acquainted with many of the GLCC committees and officers as part of the Rendezvous planning. That experience was very enjoyable, a learning experience for me with how GLCC operates, and introduced me to many of the members in the GLCC organization.

• What has been the top benefit of your GLCC membership?

Definitely meeting other members and the comradery of the club is important to us. Jeanne and I also believe in the contributions the Great Lakes Cruising Club makes to the boating community through the training that it provides, and the generosity of the Great Lakes Foundation.

• What has been your best GLCC experience?

The 2022 Rendezvous that Dee McClure and I co-chaired was by far the best and most rewarding experience. When you are responsible for the planning, development, and execution of an event. It becomes your baby. You want to ensure every detail goes smoothly in front of the curtain, even if you have some problems behind the curtain, and we did have a few.

It’s about making sure that all of our members have a wonderful time and memorable experience, because after all, it’s for them. The Rendezvous seemed to be well received overall, and it was rewarding to be a part of providing such an event to our members.

• What is your typical summer cruising area and timeframe?

It varies year by year, but primarily Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. We are hoping to eventually cruise on all five of the Great Lakes, and we dream of someday cruising Lake Superior and spending time on Isle Royale. Our daughter wants to go to Isle Royale with us, which would be very special, so hopefully we’ll make that trip a reality someday!