Solo?

A pilot's first solo is a memorable event.  Mine was in Piper Cub a few weeks after my 16th birthday. Many hours of dual instruction went by before I first took to the sky on my own.  Memories of some fragments of that flight still float around in my brain, though it happened some 44 years ago.

I logged some dual hours on the Sailrite machine today. It would be nice to qualify as a pilot in command on that thing, but that is many hours of practice in the future. Filling up a bobbin, threading the machine, and actually stitching a seam is a pretty much the limit of my ability. Half the time I have no clue as to why I am doing what I am doing. Deb is in charge of design and fabrication. I am drone labor, laying down about 3 stitches per second. When Deb is in the Sailrite's pilot seat she just stomps down on the “go” peddle and fabric bits stick together like magic.

Which is to say that the Bimini project is moving along, but at a drastically reduced pace. I do have my moments. A small storm rolled through the marina this afternoon. I kept stitching right along even as the boat swayed, heeled, and bounced off her dock lines. I be hard core...arggggh.

After the storm we dried out the cockpit and did the first test fit of the raw cover. Patterned, cut, with the finished hems on the port and starboard edges, and the three main panels stitched together into one whole unit, there was enough done to see if it was anywhere near close to fitting. It looked pretty good, so tomorrow we drive on without having to back up much, yet.

One nice thing about canvas work is that the progress is out there to see. Where there was once just a roll of fabric there is now a thing that looks clearly like a Bimini top. Where there was once just an engine cover hiding the Beast, there is still just an engine cover hiding the Beast. Three days of hard work went on behind that cover and there is nothing to show for it. Three days of hard work have gone into the Bimini and there is a Bimini to show for it.

Something similar can be said about cruising in general. Back in my old life, even though I traveled thousands of miles a month, usually I was in the same spots doing the same things. Out here we anchor, moor, take a dock, and are rarely in the same place long. Summer work-fests are the exception and, even then, it is engine work one day, canvas work the next. There is wood working, electrical wiring, and Wednesday night sailing. Different people come and go off the end of the pier, anchored out to visit with Deb and I. We try new things, learn knew things, and see new things all the time.

It is a balance of course, all life is. In St. Louis and Indy the kids, and especially the grand kids, are trying new things, learning new things and seeing new things all the time also. Things we don't get to share with them. The first crawl, the first steps, the first words, the first missing tooth; we hear the stories after the fact. Someday though, maybe they will share some of our stories up close and first hand. Who will be the first grand kid to take the helm for a solo watch? Who will be the first to set the anchor or help me put in a reef?

Before that can happen Kintala has to find her way back to the ocean. Watching the Bimini take shape helps remind me that the day is getting nearer.   It may be only a few weeks away. Certainly it will happen long before I solo the Sailrite machine.

Foreplay

It's supposed to rain the next two days, so it seemed like a good idea to get the patterning done for the bimini re-skin project so we'd have something to do while we couldn't work outside. After finishing a very good cup of coffee (some things simply must come first),  I dug out the Dura-Skrim patterning plastic that's been occupying the aft berth for the last year, and rounded up the Sharpie, double-faced tape, scissors, measuring tape and hand tools. It was a bit hot to be working out in the sun all day, but we needed a windless day to work so the plastic would stay put. And sorry, I somehow forgot to take any pictures today so you'll just have to wait for the finished project.

The simple frame before the solar panel mounts

Making a bimini is very little about the sewing and very much about the preparation. You can't take enough time with this step. You place some strapping tape along the edges of your bimini bows where the finished fabric will lay. You place double-faced tape on the strapping tape. You lay out your plastic on the double-faced tape and stretch and pull and rearrange until you have a good, wrinkle-free facsimile of the finished bimini. Then you grab your Sharpie and begin to make copious notes about placements of zippers, zipper pockets, facings, tails, and backstay access. After you think you're all done, you walk away. You go pick up your favorite book or video game and think of something completely different for awhile so that when you come back an hour later, the thing you missed will slap you in the face. Or, if you're lucky like me, you have a really terrific work partner.

The solar panel mounts we have to work around with the fabric. We want the skin to be easily removable.

Tim and I have known each other for over 43 years now and we've worked on more projects together than I could possibly count. We had jobs in the same company for 5 years where we worked together all day. He taught me how to fly. We did a major landscaping project in the back yard of our condo. We rock climbed together, each of us on the other's belay. Sure we've had our terse moments, though they are rare. Most of the time it's an intricately choreographed dance, a complex interplay and fascinating to watch, even though I am a participant.

While our thinking processes in regards to work projects are quite similar (think orderly and OCD and you'll get it), we each bring something different to the table. When we start a project we take little steps toward our goal and there's a lot of, "What if we.." and "Could I make a suggestion?", and "Do you think we should try to..." being bandied about. We sit and talk about the possibilities a great bit before the first tool is picked up.

In light of the complexity of the bimini project (due to the solar panel frames), we weren't exactly sure what the final design of the skin would be. We agreed on a starting point and, as we proceeded, the methods and procedures adapted to better solutions. We got to where we thought it was pretty right, drank a beer, talked to some neighbors, read awhile, sat under the plastic bimini, and then discovered some better ways to handle the attach points. After some changes the pattern came down, the tape was removed, and we're ready to start the cutting.

Tomorrow it's off to the Sailrite machine, but the real work was done today.