For years, visitors to Memorial Union Terrace could spot the black-and-white “cow boat” anchored on Lake Mendota. Soma was a Mull 34, a kind of racing yacht designed by Gary Mull — thus the name — for use on the Great Lakes. The name Soma is derived from a Hindu moon deity, and the boat derives from the family of the late Harry Hazebrook MS’51 of Detroit, who donated it to the Union’s Hoofers outdoor activity club in 1989. Soma spent decades teaching students to sail before being removed from the lake for repairs in 2015, and while club members initially hoped the boat would return to service, restoration costs continued to mount. By 2017, Hoofers members were already referring to the process as a “long good-bye,” and the boat was later listed for sale through the university’s SWAP surplus auction system, marking what appears to be the end of one of the lakefront’s most recognizable traditions.

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