....And thus begins the Season Three

I AM ZINEA, PTERODACTYLUS, has officially splashed for its third season.

Sail onwards, friends, for there is not a minute to be lost!  Stay tuned, intrepid reader.

In Poland we cartop Goat Island Skiff and don't care

I really have nothing to add to this wonderful example of gumption.  Go Goat, Go!

Full thread here.

The season is nigh, folks!

FrankenBoom!

I built my boom originally as a temporary boom to get me on the water ASAP.  How does that old saying go?  "There is nothing so permanent as a temporary fix" or something like that.

Anyway, that temporary boom has been quite permanent on my Goat Island Skiff for the next two sailing seasons.  It has always been a little wobbly, especially since I use my sail loose-footed.  The tension along the foot slightly distorts the boom and I do lose some power.

I decided this winter to finally fix this boom.  Originally I was going to build a fancy shmancy box boom like many of my Goat Island Skiff compatriots.  I went over to Goose Bay Lumber and purchased a bunch of cedar for $63 and cut it into a bunch of strips only to realize it would be way wobbly. So then I got some Doug Fir for $15 and cut it up and put together another box boom, but I still wasn't happy with it.

So screw it!  I decided to take my old boom and slap on one of those DF strips to the top of my boom, to compliment the lower horizontal piece.  I am proud of my laziness.  BEHOLD FRANKENBOOM!

All mocked up!

All glued up!

All sanded up!

So, this boom is definitely stiffer than the old temporary boom.  It is also heavier, but not by much.  I am happy with the results and will test it out this year on my Adventures-- of which there will be more than last year because there is a modicum amount of income flowing into my coffers.

That being said I have some very nice strips of western red cedar, no knots, 12' long, for sale.

On a side, the inrepid reader may also be interested in following my slow-poke restoration of my Beverly Dinghy.

Every picture in this blog

Stoke

Since we are in the depths of winter, some of you may be building your own Goat Island Skiff and dreaming big dreams of open water and fair winds.  Of salt on your lips, sun in your eyes, trailing a wake of phosphorescence through the seas of summer.  Fear not intrepid reader and intrepid builder-- our rock hurtles forward to the coming warm season.  Your sawdust on the floor will tomorrow be the dust of yesterday and you too will be sailing!

In the meantime, I have just realized I have quite a library of pictures that document the building of the Goat Island Skiff and my own subsequent adventures.  If you would like to peruse my photobank please see my Goat Island Skiff Amateur Style Gallery hosted on Picasa.

I hope it helps you, intrepid reader, to stave off the dark and the cold, and offers guidance for those first time boatbuilders.

Onwards!

End of the 2011 Season?

Boooooooo.  I think my sailing for 2011 will be over in my Goat Island Skiff.  I definitely did not do many things I wanted to do this year, such as another camping trip in Casco Bay and a little more sailing.  Like last year, I did sail significantly more than I blogged about-- I'm not going to write about every outing, but there was less total epicness as last year.  Lack of work kept me more homebound.  I was just trying to save my $$$ the most possible and had a tough time justifying the gasoline expense.

However, I had a great time up at the Small Reach Regatta and my bro and I had a great trip on his Aquarius 23, as described in the two posts below.  It was decidedly a non Goat Island Skiff trip, and hence an aberration to this blog, but hopefully something you enjoyed.

Stay tuned, I'm really hoping to actually build a permanent boom for her this winter.  Really.  Honest.  

Fair winds, intrepid readers!