Original Damage
So the first two weeks of my training regimen have mostly consisted of learning how to do fiberglass repairs to my boat. Nope, not exactly what I had planned for this time. Wax on… wax off…
You know those annoying little chores that keep getting put off just because they’re not big enough to stay on your radar? Stop and do them the next time they come up. Really. For want of trimming a strap, I’ve spent the past two weeks repairing some pretty nasty wounds in my fiberglass kayak. To be fair, if I had any clue as to what I was doing, the repairs would probably only take two days. But I don’t. At every next stage I find myself sitting on a stool staring at the boat and her crippling wounds trying to muster the courage to attempt the next step. I had hours of stool time before picking up the dremel and actually making the holes larger. As it turns out, I probably should have been more courageous and cut even more of the damaged area away than I did. Live and learn.
The repairs aren’t quite complete. I need to take the boat down to the fiberglass supply place and have them take a look at what I’ve done to this point and get their opinion on what more needs to be tackled. Structurally, she’s sound but there is definitely a bit more to be done on cosmetics. I’m really not sure how to tackle the trim line (the yellow stripe where the hull and deck meet) or if I should put one more layer of fabric inside.
On a happy note, the test paddle I got in the other night was possibly the most beautiful time I have ever spent on the water. See my post about it here.