Trip Report
I just got back from a trip to see my parents.
A year ago, my mother was diagnosed with stage III lung cancer. Since then, she has had a chemo-radiation therapy and is now undergoing immunotherapy using a new drug called Imfinzi.
I am happy to report that she is doing very well. Amazingly, she suffered no side effects (as in none) from chemo or radiation. Doctors no longer see the signs of the tumor on scans, and her tumor markers are completely normal.
So all seems well so far and we are cautiously optimistic. The only crisis we had was, well, my mom being herself. She is terribly unhappy about how she overspent on a wig that she didn’t need in the end.
It seemed like a small thing until I found out that my mother had spent $8000 on a wig.
To her credit though, what upsets her the most is that she could have donated that amount to help those who are less fortunate than her.
All I can say is, we all should count our blessings.
BlackJack Keel Cracks
Having returned from the trip, it was BlackJack’s turn to go on a trip to Koehler Kraft on Sunday afternoon. BlackJack was then hauled out first thing on Monday.
The top item on the list is the bottom. Before the prep work for bottom paint can begin, there were some cracks on the keel to tend to.
Cracks on keel can be a bad thing. Fin keel like the one on BlackJack is bolted on to a fiberglass stump which protrudes from the bottom of the hull. Over time, the hull and the stump can flex, or keel itself can work loose from the stump. This will show as cracks at the joint, or around the stump.
I went to take a look at the boat today and they have already done some digging into the cracks and voids. They didn’t see any structural issues both inside and outside the keel stump, so the cracks are just cosmetic. There were no cracks from keel movement, despite the heavy pounding that BlackJack and I took recently.
I knew these cracks were starting to show from the last haul out. I also thought the keel itself was fine. It’s good to have the pros confirm.
I also brought in the new rudder from CCI. I provided the mounting measurements to them, and I’m fairly sure the rudder will mount properly. Here you see the new rudder sitting on top of the old.
Unfortunately, it started raining today, and the forecast has more rain next week. The guys at the yard will have to work around the weather.
