Sanding in the Rain

5 May 2019

The chance of rain today  was high. The weather report was calling for showers on and off all day, though the same was true for yesterday, and it turned out to be perfect weather to work in, so I took a chance, and headed out to get some more sanding done. 

 

When it starts raining on the drive to the boat yard, it's probably not a great sign. Knowing I had several jobs inside I could work on, I decided not to turn around. It's easy to let obstacles push you off course, but I'm determined push through and get WindBorne back in the water.

 

Arriving at the yard, it was slightly cool, with a breeze, but dry. With out wasting any time I suited up and set to the task of sanding. Having recently stopped raining, there were several wet areas I was able to work around, though most of the underside of the hull was dry. 

 

After about an hour, I noticed a torrent of water running down the side of the hull, and splashing on the ground under the keel only to turn around and see it was raining. Still, under the hull where I was sanding I was out of the rain and other than the water flowing from the scuppers it was dry, so I pressed on till I completed work on all of the remaining dry areas of the port side.

 

By this time, a pretty large puddle had formed under the aft end of the boat, preventing me from continuing further back. The starboard side still had good work areas, so I collected my tools and made a quick dash to the other side. I carefully repositioned the power cord to the dust extractor up over the rudder and jack stands , to ensure it was kept off the ground and there were drip loops at each end. 

 

After roughly another hour of sanding on the starboard side, water was puddling under the gravel, enough that my toes were getting wet. Determined to get a little more completed, I squished as much of my body on to the kneeler board to keep from creating puddles. Eventually even this was futile. The rain had been falling steadily for nearly two hours. 

 

I packed up my tools and took a lunch break, intending to get some interior work started after, but by the time I finished eating, I had decided to call it a day. While the weather may have won, at least I made some progress, and on large projects that seem to go on forever, seeing a little bit of progress is sometimes enough to keep you motivated.