Longhorn at Sea: Alum Shows UT Pride on Homebuilt Sailboat

By Katy McDowall in Fan Mail, Special, TXEX on June 28, 2012 at 4:19 pm | No Comments

We see lots of ways UT alumni show their pride, but this marine iteration took a full six years of dedication. Walt Moreno, BS ’70, JD ’73, has taken his Longhorn pride to sea on a cust0m-made 52-foot catamaran. Moored in Sausalito, Calif., the boat features Longhorn logos adorning its decks, and local Texas Exes have even taken it for a spin.

Moreno says the boat was inspired by an afternoon catamaran cruise during a California Trial Lawyer’s Association seminar. To avoid the cost of buying a completed craft, he built his own in his backyard starting in 1997.

Named “Fee Lex” with a Felix the Cat logo on its side (“lex” is Latin for “law”), the boat launched in 2003. After learning to sail, Moreno has since taken the cat to Mexico twice and up and down the California coast many times. He recently earned his U.S. Coast Guard’s 100 Ton Master’s License and now regularly takes groups for day sails in San Francisco Bay.

Moreno calls the boat his “home away from home” and says it has a large flat screen TV, refrigerator, and watermaker—all solar-powered. There are also four separate staterooms, each with its own queen-sized bed and large seating area, as well as two bathrooms, a large kitchen, and a salon with a wraparound couch and 6’6” of headroom.

Still bleeding burnt orange, Moreno says he usually flies a Longhorn flag from the mast, and there’s a large Longhorn flag draped on a wall inside, as well as Longhorn decals on the boat’s life rings.

In May, Moreno donated a sail to the Texas Exes San Francisco Chapter (pictured above), who enjoyed a day aboard Fee Lex decked out in their Longhorn gear. Horns up!

Photo courtesy Walt Moreno 

Tags: fan mail, Longhorn Sailboat, Walt Moreno