PocketShip.net

Two friends accompanied me to the lake yesterday for the "pre-launch" trial run of my Pocketship "Titania". Sadly the lake levels were really low and the dock was high-and-dry, and the ramp ended before the boat was floating. It was only afterwards I remembered I could tilt the trailer - darn. Anyway, we drove to two other ramps and finally got lucky on the third try. Dunked the boat just enough to float it off the trailer and I clambered aboard. My mates weren't adventurous enough to get their feet wet to climb aboard, so after all that all we could do was pack up and head home.

As far as a trial-run, though, the trip was very successful. I learned how to drive a trailer forwards and backwards, and have a ton of little adjustments to make on the boat configuration (besides finishing the paint job and other details). Also taught my friend how to tie a reef knot, though sadly not before she had already tied a few "knots" that we forgot to retie. As a result, I've gifted Neptune an early Christmas present: a sail track car.

And the most terrifying moment of the trip: driving back up the ramp. I am towing with a puny Civic and was a little scarred about pulling this beast of a boat. Plus, I've read that the most challenging part of towing a boat is driving up the ramp. So, ever mindful of rolling backwards into the lake, I put one foot on the brake, one foot on the gas, and slowly eased one off while gunning the other. ROOOAAAARRRRRR screamed the engine and WE DIDN'T MOVE AT ALL!!!! Oh no, not good, I'm stuck here, oh disaster, oh man, what do I do. OK, calm down, try again.

It worked better the second time with the car shifted into Drive.

Any good ideas for boarding without a dock? I need a rope ladder to hang over the side or something.

I'll post more pictures when I actually finish it. Here, I only put on enough hardware to raise the sail, and took it all off afterwards.

Hi Craig:

Wow! Many congratulations; she's beautiful - and you look like the happiest guy in the world in the picture - which we all fully understand....

Good luck,
Jimmy V

Congrats Craig and I say that this is farthest enough for many people never been.

Exciting news!

Very nice! Beautiful Job. Was not aware you were this far along. Feels good does it not?

Herb

Looks like one more beautiful boat to try and live up to.

What about one of those two or three-step aluminum ladders that hooks to either the gunwale or the transom? They have fold-out standoffs and I think the PS is definitely stable enough for one, especially at the transom. I have also been thinking about one that mounts permanently to the transom.

You might also take a look at the fold-out boarding step in one of Pete McCrary's posts, "A Reboarding Step . .".

Thanks for the congrats guys! It sure does feel great.

Titania Launched! It's now officially to cold to do anything useful boatbuilding-wise in Tennessee, so Titania has been put away for the rest of the winter. I need to finish building my flush-hatches, another coat of paint in the cockpit, and varnish in cabin and rubrails, so just a few hours to go. So forgive the painter's tape in the picture, but I simply HAD to get it on the water. Construction started 3/16/14, so 10 months total (who knows how many hours). I was pleasantly surprised by how effective the homemade sails were, though since I was single-handing I couldn't find enough hands to properly fix the outhaul/throat/peak lines to get it set properly.

Very nice! 10 months- that is fast. Hope to join you in a few months in the "complete club".