Bottom's Up!!!

Travis:

Green bottles with our new green bottom. The paint is done. We still have to install the rudder and bond the sea cocks before launch, so we are saving the champagne for later. For now we are enjoying a slightly cold sixer of St. Pauli's Girl. The bottom job felt pretty easy after the ordeal with Lucy Maru, which I still have nightmares about. Looks like we could have easily sanded, taped, and painted in one day if the weather had held out. But Hurricane Mike had sent us a bit of foul weather as it made its way up the coast. Fortunately the rain came before we started painting. Another week-end warrior at the marina didn't fair as well. He had just completed a beautiful paint job on his cove stripe when it began to pour. Bummer!! I used the time to create a to-do list for the boat. It is still a bit daunting, but I am looking forward to seeing her all done, and of course, sailing!!! There will be many more week-ends of working on Me Voy dreaming of traveling to a tropical paradise while singing "Sail Away With Me Honey". Good times.

Big Bronze Cocks!!!

Travis:

We Are back to work on Me Voy hoping to finally get her launched. We replaced all of the old sea cocks with shiny new ones last week-end as the final task before bottom paint. It can be a bit intimidating handling such big heavy cocks, but after lubing them up with ball lube and smearing around the gooey white stuff they slid into their openings with ease. It took both me and Maggie to twist them home, but afterward we wiped up the white stuff and sat back fully spent. I managed to screw a few nipples on after my energy was renewed but the cocks were just too much for me in the end. The whole thing gave me a strange craving for a cigarette.

It happened (pt.3)

This was the sign that greeted us each morning

After our barnacle lunch, it was time to sand and caulk the bottom. Our friend Glenn helped with both these jobs, and after it was all done we took a poll and decided, that in all our short individual lives, this job was the worst any of us have ever done.

Glenn caulking the bottom

Me getting beaten by the bottom paint

T grinding prop shafts

I tried to shelter Chopper and Billy as much as possible from the horribleness going on down below. Chopper just didn't understand why he had to say on the boat, he's such a good dog!

Me and T caulking

A picture for my upcoming calender,"So You Want to Buy a Boat?"

It wasn't only the grueling positions or the dust and stickiness that surrounded us. The worst was the incoming tide, which we had to wade in waist deep at times while holding a sanders and caulk guns. I got zapped by the electrical cords a few times, and even though it is all over now, I hesitate a bit before plugging anything it.Anyhow, we managed to get the bottom and the waterline painted in four days. The local boatyard boys were amazed that we accomplished this so easily, and kept congratulating us on how great the boat looked. And it did look sharp!

Sitting in the railway admiring L.M.'S new bottom and waterline

After all that, this is what we have been waiting for ... our reward. To celebrate we invited some friends and took off to anchor out at the local hangout Heart Miller Island. Again the boat performed great, reaching its top speed of 17 knots, without a problem. This was our first time taking a boat that is ours out for a joy ride, and it was awesome! I can't say that enough, it was the best Monday ever, ever!

A jet ski jumping our wake, stupid jetskis

So after four grueling days of hard work, and countless days of preparation, we did it! We painted our first bottom, and came back to dock, all without a mishap, sort of... Billy did fall off the boat as we began to take off, but the little guy climbed up the side of the boat. Another life used up. By my calculations he has four left.