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March 22 |
This March 22nd we had all come to the conclusion that this could be it. The last weekend of sailing. All of the elements had come into place for a great last weekend of iceboating. The fact that I checked to see if my house was still on the foundation this morning is a telltale sign that wind has not been lacking the past 24 hours. As I left my house with trailer full of iceboats in tow I had no idea that Bonnie had prearranged an Easter Egg hunt on the mainland side of the Deer Isle/Sedgewick bridge. Bonnie had substituted chrome lug nuts for Easter eggs but the rules of the game were the same. We were almost stumped but did find 1 out of possible 5 while dodging speeding cars on the only piece of smooth road within 25 miles. I can now see why the state trooper parked in this spot for the past week. Bonnie robbed Peter to pay Paul and off he went with four lugs per wheel. I can only assume Bonnie was thinking "you picked a fine time to leave me loose wheel" as he watched his wheel pass him and zing down the middle of the road until it finally hit a snow bank and went hurling into the woods. There were no trees down on the Herrick road so getting to the ice did not require cutting our way in as it has seasons past after heavy wind. Bonnie and I met up with Mark at the Walker Pond ramp. Mark had already rigged and gave us the lowdown on wind and ice conditions. We rigged our boats and had a brunch in the warming sun. As we chewed and chawed Mark pointed out an Eagle overhead and I pointed out this critter running around our boats.(critter is behind Marks boat in second photo) He was scurrying around the ice as if he were on a mission. He found some open water and dove into it before the Eagle got a bead on him and that was the last we saw of him. We bailed into our boats and headed out onto the pond. I usually never leave my house to sail in anything over 25 and todays forecast with gusts to 40 would normally be a non event for me. I had talked myself into rigging my boat, checking the ice and being ready for Sunday and that was about it. I always ask myself in disgust on days like this, whatever happened to the Evil Knievel worshipper that used to jump a 125 Suzuki over shaky old wooden ramps built on my parents front lawn with not even an inkling of fear. What has happened to me? And why is it that during these on ice self diagnostic talks that a Walker vortex hits you from the opposite direction as the prevailing wind and slams your rigging so hard it feels like it will exit the boat? I made a couple of passes in front of the ramp and asked myself two questions. Was I having fun and was I in control? I answered no to both of them and parked my boat. Today was a good example of how one mans poisen can be another mans pleasure. And out in the middle of the pond was our resident wind worshipper taking on the Winds of Walker and looking for more. Bonnie was glowing orange, just like his boat as he danced up and down the pond. Mark was putting up numbers he hadn't seen in years. I carried my chainsaw and camera to the plate they had settled on for a closer look. It was like being the only spectator at a Nascar event. The ice was quite hard for this time of year and Bonnies finely polished runners were losing thier bite at just about mid hike, causing him to slide sideways while hiking. This was a recipe for some breathtaking hikes and earthshattering landings. I was looking through the view finder of my camera during one of these episodes that slung him in my direction. I didn't get the picture but I did get out of the way. More than once I saw Bonnie clinging to the side of his boat to keep from being thrown out either during hike or during the sideways landing, but as soon as he landed it was both hands on the sheet and full power ahead. Every dog has his day and today Trick or Treat was on steroids. Was Bonnie having fun and in control? Damn sure having fun and he was doing the best job humanly possible to control a hike while skidding sideways in gusts of wind that were like sledgehammers coming down from the heavens. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of the wild action as my camera batteries went flat. The only pictures I got were with all his runners on the ice and going in the more common forward direction. Bonnie documented his top speed today. 46.4 mph may not seem like a big number to most folks but this is 46.4 in a boat with a cutdown Hobie 16 mast and sail, runners made from 3/16 mild steel, a 1/2" plywood fuselage with lots of framing, a very stout rear beam and every piece of hardware fabricated in his own shop. And as Mark pointed out that is 46.4 while skidding sideways. Bonnie was sure feeding this light wind sailer some crow pie today. I am hoping I can redeem myself tomorrow and send some of that pie back to ya Bonnie!! |