If my last post was titled "It's been awhile", I'm not even sure what to call this one. Anyways, since the last post quite a bit has happened... actually over a year of activity.
For starters, the end of the season ended really well for us all. The Air and Water show was fun to see albeit briefly from the water. For added adventure I got too close to Navy Pier which was apparently closed to marine traffic and had the Coast Guard escort me away at gunpoint, that was a first. A few sails later and it was time to put On the Brink away for the winter.
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| Fall 2013 River Trip - Lakeshore Drive Bridge |
In late September we took what we have discovered to be a bit of a rite of passage (literally and figuratively) for Chicago sailors; a river trip. The city has the most movable bridges of any city in the world and we got to putter past 24 of them, most nearing or over a century old. Due to the impact upon traffic the bridges are only opened for a few days each fall and spring for this annual ritual. Lots of fun with Eric, Scott and Laura as we and half a dozen other boats dodged water taxis and tourists on the way down river to Canal Street Marina at 18th street.
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| New Hatches built at the park district shop |
The winter was an exciting time for the most part, repairing and replacing everything that I broke. Most notably was the replacement of the A4 with an Electric motor of my own design. I eluded to this in a previous post and will probably make a detailed one soon. I also replaced the old lazarette and forward hatches. The Chicago Park District has a woodshop up in lincoln park cultural center that is for public use. The great staff there helped me transform a box of teak flooring into some pretty impressive hatches. Not to be outdone, Laura earned her nickname "Hatches-O-Hoolihandy" by installing them on the boat and making the necessary tweaks to make them work perfectly.
Spring brought another river trip, this time with Matt, Scott and Laura. It was MUCH colder than fall but still lots of fun. As an added bonus I found a photographer that was taking photos of the boats on our march (told you it was a rite of passage.) The photos are spectacular and we even paid to have one blown up that is now hanging above our mantle. It was a great "sea-trial" for the new electric motor with great results.
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| Professional Photo of the Sprin 2014 River Trip at Lake Street - photo credit Milosh Kosanovich |
Unfortunately summer was rather mild and combined with a heavy work load and buying a home we
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| Concerts at Northerly Island from the dock with friends |
didn't get out as much as the year before. A major advantage we had in 2014 was our location; the electric motor requires a plug-in so we had a slip. Our slip EJ12 is on the east side of Burnham Harbor right next to the music pavilion. Lots of evenings were spent with friends at the dock listening to concerts for free. We did have some memorable sails however including 4th of July fireworks, Air and Water show, and the Pinnacle regatta. The most memorable of the summer however is when Grandpa Dave came down for a day sail. As you know, grandpa is the one who taught me to sail and instilled my passion for the sea. I had a blast showing off and learning from him all day, I think he was equally as pleased knowing that he was my inspiration.
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| Pinnacle Regatta fun |
Fall brought another trip up the river this time with Scott and Tina. This trip was much more laid back for us "veterans" and we cruised into Canal Street with ease on the last weekend of September. With fall comes the annual repairs and improvements list of which there are plenty. First up is replacement of the original teak rubrails that were battered and splintered after 40 years. Also, dropping the mast to install new wiring and lights for safety.
