We launched the muthah-ship yesterday at 2pm at Oak Harbor Marina on Whidbey Island (Washington State). Everything went pretty well, much to my surprise. I had nightmares of having to call for a tow right out of the box but nothing like that happened. The only hitch in the entire sequence (other than docking) was a mixture problem above 2500 rpm. The engine loaded up and lost power, then surged, then lost power, then surged and finally - when I reduced throttle - backfired. I suspect this is an easy fix but it might require a carburator rebuild. The boat has not been used much for 6 years after all. The weather turned out to be fine with a lot of sun and a slight southerly breeze. We saw one kayaker headed back to the Oak Harbor community beach on our way out and two sailboats making their way into the harbor; both motoring for some reason. All the instrumentation both in the cabin and on the fly bridge worked and the used GPS/Depthsounder/Speed/Water Temp device worked fine except that the GPS part wasn't. No matter, I have an Acer notebook computer with GPS and charts and software to indicate speed, heading, position, etc. Chores remain on the boat including the installation of a dowel in the head compartment from whcih we can hang drysuits, fleece, etc. to dry - or at least be out of the way. I need to fabricate some sort of kayak rack. And we need a boarding platform. Other than than, most work will be on items like heater, insulation, trim, etc. Most of this will be done this winter in the shop - I need something to do after all. Docking was an adventure. The fairway for our slip is only slightly wider than our 25-foot boat is long so there was not a lot of room for maneuvering. I'm more used to boats with inboard engines and rudders which still steer even when the engine is not in gear as long as the boat is moving through the water. An engine with an outdrive doesn't perform that way and there is little - if any -discernible steering with the engine in neutral. This is a serious handicap as dead slow is the best way to approach a slip but keeping control is also important. Kruger would have been amused. :) We could have stayed on the boat but had spring chores to finish at the lake house so we tidied up as best we could and headed for home; me in the tow vehicle we had left there for 3 weeks and Sue in her Kia. We got home just after 11pm last night. I have a more detailed description of everything on my blog at www.nwkayaking.net but no photos as the SD card in Sue's camera has inexplicably disappeared. We both believe that the Carver 25 Santa Cruz will make an ideal mothership for kayaking as it has a combination of cabin comforts (vee-berth, dinette, sink, stove, fridge and enclosed head) along with a roomy cockpit plus the ability to be towed by a reasonably competent pickup truck. Craig Jungers Moses Lake, WA www.nwkayaking.net *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Photos are on www.nwkayaking.net now. Craig On Sun, Apr 26, 2009 at 1:24 PM, Craig Jungers <crjungers_at_gmail.com> wrote: > We launched the muthah-ship yesterday *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Craig, Nice to see it on the water, but I'm waiting for the picture of it anchored in some secluded cove with kayaks frolicking in the background! Mark -----Original Message----- On Behalf Of Craig Jungers Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Muthah-Ship Launched Photos are on www.nwkayaking.net now. Craig > We launched the muthah-ship yesterday *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Very cool Craig! I'm with you on the I/O handling. I grew up on an inboard Owens (with Corvett power too) and then bought myself a series of sailboats. I could put my 37 footer into or out of any kind of tight spot without flinching. Spin it in the fairway rather than back out. Now I've got my late father's 24 foot Wellcraft outboard and I get sweaty palms anytime I get near anything solid in much of a breeze. I don't run it a lot, but you'd think afte five years I'd get the hang of it. Maybe if I wasn't programmed for a keel and rudder I'd get it. I'm looking forward to following your adventures. Carey -----Original Message----- From: owner-paddlewise_at_paddlewise.net [mailto:owner-paddlewise_at_paddlewise.net]On Behalf Of Mark Sanders Sent: Monday, April 27, 2009 10:12 AM To: Craig Jungers; Paddlewise Paddlewise Subject: RE: [Paddlewise] Muthah-Ship Launched Craig, Nice to see it on the water, but I'm waiting for the picture of it anchored in some secluded cove with kayaks frolicking in the background! Mark -----Original Message----- On Behalf Of Craig Jungers Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Muthah-Ship Launched Photos are on www.nwkayaking.net now. Craig > We launched the muthah-ship yesterday *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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