The Sarnia/Port Huron International Powerboat Festival

A nice, hot, sunny day and we lucked out. Wendy, our friend George and I got to the waterfront at 11:30 am since the races start at noon and we wanted to get a good seat.

Most of the spectators had to stand in the hot sun along the seawall.

 For a $5 ea. admission charge, we were able to get front row seats on the Duc D’Orleans II again this year. The tour boat docks right at the hairpin curve in the race course and was unable to depart due to the race.

We had a great spot at a table on the top deck of the Duc D'Orleans II tour boat.

 Other than the fact you can’t hear the race announcer, the view was superb. We were only a stone’s throw from the most dangerous curve. With the price of admission and a shady seat on the upper deck, comes access to the fairly economical on-board bar for beer and rum and of course the washrooms. What else could you want?

A party atmosphere on a hot summer day as the race is interrupted briefly by a freighter.

 This year the races started right on time and except for a short 30 minute interruption of a freighter on the course at around half-time, everything went perfectly.

Seemed like a long time before the divers could free the crew as the boat floated upside down.

This race was action packed to say the least. Unlike other years we’ve attended, this year there were two exciting upsets resulting in the affected boats sinking.

"Synergy" flips early in the race. The crew was finally rescued by the diver after what seemed like a very long time upside down.

Boat #609, “Synergy” was the first to flip. Divers and a helicopter as well as numerous US and Canadian rescue boats were on the scene.

There was also one near miss when #489, “Viking” nearly flipped and did a 180, but managed to recover and get back in the race.

I caught the "flat spin" in the picture above.

Later #517  “Rufstr”  flipped at the corner, again only a few hundred yards from our vantage point. 

I managed a shot of the boat as it flipped over.

In this incident the crew flew right out of the boat when it flipped.

Fortunately, we don’t think anyone was seriously injured although the crews were plucked from the water and taken away as their boats were towed to Port Huron. What a day!
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Fix A Zipper...

This could save the day and it's so easy...


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A Statue Social at Ed's Concrete Works

"Stoned in Stratford" Click pic to enlarge my "artsy" effort for today.

When Wendy and I drove up to Stratford a few weeks ago, to get the round, 300 pound concrete disk on which we set our new fire pit, I just had to snap a picture of this apparent party of cement statues. I "artsified" the shot. Maybe I'll remove the factory from the background although it brings the view back to reality. Anyway, it looks like they're having a good time even though they gave us the cold shoulder or a bum's rush. What do you think? Ed's Concrete.
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Hungry Little Devils

The Alphadrich eats rubber and you might remember I outlined the problem I encountered with them in Bonaire back in 2012 in my "April Fools" joke. CLICK HERE to see that post.

When I was a teenager on summer vacation I would sometimes travel with an old friend of my Dad's, Al Lutes. He was a dyed-in-the-wool tire and rubber salesman my Dad knew from our days in London, Ontario. Occasionally he would visit us in Toronto and since I was looking for something to do, I remember one summer day in the mid 1960's, he took me for a ride on his sales calls. As we drove along, Al explained how the Alphadrich caused havock through Mennonite country by eating the rubber off the buggy wheels. These little devils had a voracious appetite for all kinds of rubber but especially the softer gum rubber of the buggy wheel tire. He told a convincing story and I believed it for some time, until I related it to my father and he explained Al was having me on.

I just wish Al and my Dad were still alive to see this picture. Our neighbour at the condo, Garry had just launched his brand new dinghy a few days before this picture was taken. I'm sure I could have breathed new credibility into the Alphadrich tale. You can see that whatever it was (likely a muskrat) even ate the nylon rope drawstring around the bottom edge. I just hope the Alphadrich doesn't develop a taste for the vinyl sponsons on our inflatable boats.

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The 36th Annual Lexington Art Fair

We drove up to Lexington Michigan bright and early. It was a fine, bright day and a perfect day for an art fair. We always enjoy visiting this little town about 20 miles north of the Canada/USA Blue Water Bridge.

This year we were pleasantly surprised to see that the marina was quite full of boats. In the past few years, whether it was the weather or the high price of fuel, there were not many yachts, This year it looked like the old days when we used to come up here in the Phoenix.

We walked around town, stopping of course at Wendy's favorite old house.

We arrived a little too early. The art fair didn't start until 10 am so we had a good preview before the crowds.

There were lots of interesting booths with artists displaying their work.

The local antique store displayed some we'll enjoyed metal chairs. I thought they might make a good subject for an "artsy" picture.

Here's my version of the vintage metal. Click the picture to enlarge it.

When I saw this basket of house numbers in front of the antique store, I couldn't resist arranging a few into the "593" number of our house back in London.

Then of course, I had to fiddle around with it. Click on it to enlarge it.
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Upcoming Events

Coming up around the condo in the next few weeks:

Lexington Fine Arts Street Fair Aug 1-2

Thousands are expected to attend the well-known street fair in Lexington during the first weekend of August. Organizer Crystal Partaka said a wide range of artistic media and music draws people from Florida, California and Arizona.
"There's live entertainment, new restaurants, boutiques, everything's right downtown. A lot of boaters come in just for the art fair," Partaka said. "The weather was beautiful last year and our streets were packed."

International Powerboat  Festival

Consider joining us at the condo August 7th to the 9th, 2015 for a weekend of powerboat racing, live music and shows, great food and fun.

13th Annual Yard Sale Trail August 14 - 16, 2015

This is a HUGE garage sale. 150+ miles of antiques, yard sales, and much more to explore!

From Algonac in the south to Port Austin in the north, M-25 / M-29 follows the majestic banks of the St. Clair River, then continues along the shoreline of beautiful Lake Huron.

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The Treasure Hunter

I've always wanted a metal detector so when I saw one on sale in June at Harbor Freight, I just had to have one.

Wendy and I went to the beach at Canatara Park and I finally got to try it out.
 

My bounteous treasure is shown below. I did prove the machine works and look, beside the pull-tab is even an old coin. One cent US, all corroded and green. Wow!

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Forty-three Years and Counting

Where were you in '72?

Since Monday afternoon we have been in London, primarily because of Wendy's doctor appointment, but also because the weather deteriorated. Because the outboard motor quit working last Friday and since the part I need was at my mailbox in Port Huron, I hurried back to the condo this morning . I had diagnosed the problem as an open stator coil which, when I get it installed under the flywheel, will (I hope) have us back on the water just as the hot weather returns. Wendy followed in her car later this afternoon, having attended a luncheon with her "Circle of Friends" at the Buccaneer Restaurant in Port Stanley.

So here we are. Together at the condo, quietly contemplating our 43rd wedding anniversary. In some ways it seems like a long time and yet in other ways it seems it has flown by in the blink of an eye. I was so lucky to have found Wendy all those years ago. A song came on the internet Jango radio tonight that I just had to place on this blog because of how the lyrics grabbed me: Lucky.


JASON MRAZ AND COLBIE CAILLAT
"Lucky"

Do you hear me, I'm talking to you
Across the water across the deep blue ocean
Under the open sky, oh my, baby I'm trying
Boy, I hear you in my dreams
I feel your whisper across the sea
I keep you with me in my heart
You make it easier when life gets hard

Lucky I'm in love with my best friend
Lucky to have been where I have been
Lucky to be coming home again
Ooohh ooooh oooh oooh ooh ooh ooh ooh

They don't know how long it takes
Waiting for a love like this
Every time we say goodbye
I wish we had one more kiss
I'll wait for you, I promise you, I will

Lucky I'm in love with my best friend
Lucky to have been where I have been
Lucky to be coming home again
Lucky we're in love in every way
Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed
Lucky to be coming home someday

And so I'm sailing through the sea
To an island where we'll meet
You'll hear the music fill the air
I'll put a flower in your hair
Though the breezes through the trees
Move so pretty you're all I see
As the world keeps spinning round
You hold me right here right now

Lucky I'm in love with my best friend
Lucky to have been where I have been
Lucky to be coming home again
I'm lucky we're in love in every way
Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed
Lucky to be coming home someday

Ooohh ooooh oooh oooh ooh ooh ooh ooh
Ooooh ooooh oooh oooh ooh ooh ooh ooh

UPDATE: Here's a saved version of the song May 22, 2024 in case YouTube takes it down.

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Peel a Kiwi... or an Avocado... or a Mango.

If you tried the suggestion for peeling hard-boiled eggs that I posted in April, you'll love this video on how to peel fruit.



We haven't tried the fruit routine but we now peel our eggs as shown in this video.
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Motor Trouble

To me there isn't anything much more frustrating than an outboard motor that won't start. Especially a motor without an electric starter, that requires me to yank and yank on the cord. Back in July, returning to the condo in eager anticipation of going for a boat ride, my enthusiasm was quickly stolen away by my dead Mercury outboard motor.

I tried everything to no avail. Finally I took off the cover and removed the spark plugs. This allowed me to spin the flywheel quite easily since there was no longer any compression in the cylinders. I checked the ignition leads for a spark and there was none. This meant a failure somewhere in the ignition circuit. Through a little help from the internet and my voltmeter, I was able to diagnose the problem as the stator; the red coil under the flywheel that creates the electricity that causes the ignition coils to fire the spark plug.

The red stator coil was the culprit. Easily accessible withe the flywheel off.

I called around and being the weekend was disappointed to find nobody working. It didn't matter because on Monday I found that nobody locally stocks these parts anyway. I could order one and get it in a few days for $217 + 28 tax or I could get it on eBay for $117 USD ($147 CDN) I saved $100 and had the coil at my box in USA by Thursday.

New aftermarket stator is supposed to run cooler than the OEM coil.

I find when parts wear out gradually, you just get used to the situation. Thinking back, I was yanking the pull-starter more and more before the engine quit running altogether. What a difference with the new stator coil! I'm just glad it didn't let us down under the Blue Water bridge or out on the lake or river. Now the engine starts, usually on the first pull, just like when it was brand new.

A Sunset Cruise

It's been awhile since Wendy and I have been out on Lake Huron in a boat any bigger than our dinghy so when our neighbour Lee asked us to come for a sunset cruise I did not hesitate to accept.

Neighbours George (left), Kevin and Lee on the bridge. There was eight of us all together but I was a little remiss. I didn't get everybody in the pictures.

Lee at the helm as we head out under the Blue Water Bridge to the lake.

I cropped out Lee's lovely wife Annette by request since she "does not take pictures".  Judy and Wendy shown here.

Click any picture to enlarge it.

 Lee called the sunset right, as the calm water reflected the setting sun. I didn't adjust the colour in the picture. It was one of those rare, special, summer evenings when everything was perfect.

Returning by the Winter Harbour the workmen on two docked freighters were still hard at it. It was a great night for a cruise with no wind, no bugs and a nice, warm temperature

A grinder throws sparks as the workers continue into the night in order to get the job finished so the ship can get back to sea and making money. Now nearly 10 pm, we head back to the dock at Lee and Annette's condo.

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Our New Outdoor Fire Place.

Wendy bought this wonderful fire pit at Costco a few weeks ago and we've enjoyed it a few times. I was worried about the heat on the deck (fire hazard) so today we drove up to Stratford to Ed's Concrete Products and bought a 40" round slab to put it on. I positioned the 300 pound concrete circle on some hockey pucks to make an air space under it and keep it from rotting the deck. I added a 4 foot smoke stack to create some updraft and get the smoke up higher. I may spray paint the stack in "flat black". We'll see. What do you think?
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The Old Swing Benches Are BETTER Than New.

I just thought you might like to see the old swing benches after they were re-built.

BEFORE

AFTER

Tricia's Greg sourced out the solid oak slats and arms. What a difference! The refinished frames and the varnished oak, stained in "Puritan Pine".

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My Third Ronco Rotisserie

Where would I be if my Ronco (Ron Popeil) Showtime 6000 Rotisserie quit working or the glass front was to break?  I do have the smaller model 5000 at the condo but I couldn't live in London without my 6000. I happened upon an ad in Kijiji for a spare unit that even included the stand (which I don't have). I have been watching eBay for over a year and the largest machines, the 6000s go for anywhere from about $200 to $500 and more. You can imagine my surprise when I saw one on Kijiji, right here in London advertised for $120. I called and went over immediately. The lady came down to $100 and I was home with my almost new (used twice) treasure. Now if I can only find some Ronco-Spray-on-Hair!

You can read about my first Ronco (Ron Popeil) Showtime 6000 Rotisserie and watch the hokey old video. CLICK HERE.
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