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rebeccmeisterToday I just decided to go ahead and play hooky from work. Yesterday I led a review session and got my materials together for the final exam. The final itself is tomorrow from 4-6. So today, instead I went rowing with a friend and colleague, upriver in Petrichor.
Obligatory bald eagle photo:
Can you really even call it a boating expedition without at least one bald eagle sighting? Shortly after I took this photo, this eagle's partner flew over to join it. We also heard the peregrine falcons under the bridge, and later saw one of the osprey that has a nest upriver.
We had such a nice time, we went all the way up past the Menands bridge! Apparently by that point my phone's camera got fogged over.
Then I spent a bunch of quality time in the boatyard. For one thing, I finally got all of Petrichor's boat cover straps situated and shortened to more appropriate lengths. Then I worked on a half-dozen small boat repair tasks for the rowing club. Small boat repair tasks are neverending.
Here's one of our club's quads, manufactured by Swift Racing.
When the boat was obtained, it came with footstretcher plates that only work with Swift-brand shoes. It turns out that Swift-brand shoes deteriorate impressively fast. But it also turns out that it's now possible to get new plates that should be compatible with other rowing shoes. So pretty soon I'll get those ordered and hopefully we'll be able to move on from this terrible situation of shoes that disintegrate on a yearly basis.
Swift riggers are attached to the sides of the boat via a set of bolts that pass through interior ribs. There are specialized washers designed to fit between the bolt head and the rib, so the compressive force doesn't cause the bolt head to smash the rib.
At some point, it looks like one of the washers (top one) got replaced by a similar washer that's slightly smaller, and where the edges of the washer aren't properly bent to fit snugly around the rib. This is in a prime location where a person's hips travel back and forth while rowing. One of my teammates alerted me to this issue because she has torn more than one pair of leggings from sitting in this seat. I temporarily covered the washer with some duct tape, but will try and order a new, larger one when I order the footplates.
Another boat was having some seat wheel issues.
When I took the left wheel off, all of its tiny bearings fell out, because the bearing retainers were good and smashed. Apparently this seat blew off of our travel trailer when it was traveling along the interstate, and perhaps this wheel took the brunt of the impact.
When I went to put the fixed seat back into the (upside-down) boat, I noticed that I could see pinpricks of light through the side of the boat.
I'm impressed that the carbon fiber on this black boat is so thin that I can see daylight through the boat. I'm not entirely sure that's a good thing. By the way, the orange in this image is reflections from the orange boat underneath this black one.
The head-scratcher for right now, is what to do about the scrapes and paint chips on this last painted orange carbon fiber boat:
These sorts of things are inevitable for our boats, because of how many logs we have to try and dodge out on this river. This morning, we only just barely dodged a door!
I have an inquiry over to someone who knows a lot more about fixing these sorts of things than I do. This is a fussy repair and I'm not sure we have all the right supplies right now. (or if we do, they're buried deep in a shipping container).
--
Meanwhile, I'm starting to feel the economic forces hit. My institution has just fallen short of its enrollment goals, which is disappointing but not especially surprising given what we know about college-going population demographics in this country and state. But that does mean the institution's aggressively clamping down on spending wherever it can, which is always tricky. Our landlord is also once again raising rent for next year, triggering questions about whether we should stay or try and move, with everything that entails.
In the meantime, I finally got a quote for long-overdue repair and maintenance work on Frodo, which basically involves almost full drivetrain replacement, a new front wheel, new tires and tubes, and new brake arms. It's still cheaper than car repair, but not by all that much this time around!
On the other hand, my federal tax refund finally decided to show up, so after putting that into savings I now only owe myself around $950 from all of last year's adventures and car expenses.
Time to continue prioritizing low-budget hobbies and dining habits, I guess.
Obligatory bald eagle photo:
Can you really even call it a boating expedition without at least one bald eagle sighting? Shortly after I took this photo, this eagle's partner flew over to join it. We also heard the peregrine falcons under the bridge, and later saw one of the osprey that has a nest upriver.
We had such a nice time, we went all the way up past the Menands bridge! Apparently by that point my phone's camera got fogged over.
Then I spent a bunch of quality time in the boatyard. For one thing, I finally got all of Petrichor's boat cover straps situated and shortened to more appropriate lengths. Then I worked on a half-dozen small boat repair tasks for the rowing club. Small boat repair tasks are neverending.
Here's one of our club's quads, manufactured by Swift Racing.
When the boat was obtained, it came with footstretcher plates that only work with Swift-brand shoes. It turns out that Swift-brand shoes deteriorate impressively fast. But it also turns out that it's now possible to get new plates that should be compatible with other rowing shoes. So pretty soon I'll get those ordered and hopefully we'll be able to move on from this terrible situation of shoes that disintegrate on a yearly basis.
Swift riggers are attached to the sides of the boat via a set of bolts that pass through interior ribs. There are specialized washers designed to fit between the bolt head and the rib, so the compressive force doesn't cause the bolt head to smash the rib.
At some point, it looks like one of the washers (top one) got replaced by a similar washer that's slightly smaller, and where the edges of the washer aren't properly bent to fit snugly around the rib. This is in a prime location where a person's hips travel back and forth while rowing. One of my teammates alerted me to this issue because she has torn more than one pair of leggings from sitting in this seat. I temporarily covered the washer with some duct tape, but will try and order a new, larger one when I order the footplates.
Another boat was having some seat wheel issues.
When I took the left wheel off, all of its tiny bearings fell out, because the bearing retainers were good and smashed. Apparently this seat blew off of our travel trailer when it was traveling along the interstate, and perhaps this wheel took the brunt of the impact.
When I went to put the fixed seat back into the (upside-down) boat, I noticed that I could see pinpricks of light through the side of the boat.
I'm impressed that the carbon fiber on this black boat is so thin that I can see daylight through the boat. I'm not entirely sure that's a good thing. By the way, the orange in this image is reflections from the orange boat underneath this black one.
The head-scratcher for right now, is what to do about the scrapes and paint chips on this last painted orange carbon fiber boat:
These sorts of things are inevitable for our boats, because of how many logs we have to try and dodge out on this river. This morning, we only just barely dodged a door!
I have an inquiry over to someone who knows a lot more about fixing these sorts of things than I do. This is a fussy repair and I'm not sure we have all the right supplies right now. (or if we do, they're buried deep in a shipping container).
--
Meanwhile, I'm starting to feel the economic forces hit. My institution has just fallen short of its enrollment goals, which is disappointing but not especially surprising given what we know about college-going population demographics in this country and state. But that does mean the institution's aggressively clamping down on spending wherever it can, which is always tricky. Our landlord is also once again raising rent for next year, triggering questions about whether we should stay or try and move, with everything that entails.
In the meantime, I finally got a quote for long-overdue repair and maintenance work on Frodo, which basically involves almost full drivetrain replacement, a new front wheel, new tires and tubes, and new brake arms. It's still cheaper than car repair, but not by all that much this time around!
On the other hand, my federal tax refund finally decided to show up, so after putting that into savings I now only owe myself around $950 from all of last year's adventures and car expenses.
Time to continue prioritizing low-budget hobbies and dining habits, I guess.
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Date: 2025-05-08 02:32 am (UTC)(no subject)
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