Evanston: out
Evanston: out
Our weather has changed. Temperatures are lower. A few days have been crisp. We’ve had some rain and wind. But as you can see in the above photo of GANNET’s last moments on Lake Michigan, yesterday was lovely.
I rode the 7:00 a.m. train north, had a pleasant walk through the nature reserve, moved paint supplies and tools from the dock box to the boat, and Torqeedoed around to Skipper Bud’s at 9:00.
Some of you will recall that before I bought GANNET I hadn’t owned an outboard for more than forty years. I don’t like handling boats under power, particularly in reverse. THE HAWKE OF TUONELA was excellent in this respect and backed straight. RESURGAM, who was the better boat in most ways, was impossible to back straight, pulling a boat length to starboard for every boat length astern.
With GANNET I seldom use reverse except sometimes for a few seconds when leaving the slip. I always coast into the slip with the Torqeedo in neutral. However, I knew that she had to go stern first to Skipper Bud’s fork lift. When this was done last year only a few days after my detached retina eye surgery, I had one of Skipper Bud’s men do this for me.
In very light wind, there was no problem yesterday. Being used to boats where the propeller and shaft are fixed, I am only now learning to turn the outboard as well as the tiller. Something many of you have known for years is for me a revelation.
Here she is after the pressure wash.
Because I need to use my sander to prepare the topsides, I asked them to put her near an electrical outlet.
By the time she is towed away in three weeks, she will have more company.
I removed the name and registration number decals, filled and sanded some nicks and scratches--none placed there by me, took the bow sprit off and stored it below, before catching the 3:00 p.m. train home.
I still have a day’s prep work to do, which may happen Sunday or Monday.
If the current forecast holds, Tuesday and Wednesday should be good for painting.
My plan to have Skipper Bud prop up GANNET with stands and then move her to her trailer after I had painted changed when I learned that they will charge me as much for moving her from stands to trailer as from water to stands.
After studying photos of her on her trailer and seeing that all the supports were below her waterline, I decided I could paint her there. I neglected to note the small rubber pad at her very bow. Alas.
Friday, September 21, 2012