April Fools!!!

or at least the past two weeks seemed like a hoax. Mostly warm and windy but tolerable, Spring 2021 preparations have begun a few weeks ahead of schedule. Of course that is just a reminder that we don’t have a schedule we control. At best, we get to take advantage of what Mother Nature offers. Hopefully, she doesn’t make us pay for the early season access. That possibility was top of mind as we stripped the shrink-wrap off of Aisling last weekend… Snow on the decks would not be the first time and the memory of ‘shoveling’ with a dust pan last year is not in the fond category…..

With the shinkwrap off and the bimini on, you can see what a lovely day it would be to be boating, if there were any boats…. The Tiara in the foreground had just been splashed and delivered to its slip. I’m guessing they have an interested buyer asking for a sea trial.

The early work while ‘on the hard’ focuses on the bottom, anodes, through hulls and props/shafts. Cleaning, sanding, prepping for paint and the annual research into how best to coat the props and shafts to protect from barnacles. Despite the many solutions available, and the religious fervor individuals have to their preferred method, I have yet to find an answer that requires any less elbow grease, a good sander and some barnacle cleaner at the end of the season.

That combination gets you where you want to be sooner or later….

I have become convinced that advanced degrees in both Metallurgy and Chemical Engineering (with a focus on foams and polymers) are requirements for successful maintenance of a boat. Hopefully there will be time for that once we finish the Loop and sell the boat…;-)