There's no water, bring on the wind!

On the sailing front, our season at Fern Ridge is definitely shot.  It's been raining here for a week and the lake has only picked up maybe an inch.  If that.  Guess the rain hasn't gotten that far south.  On the plus side, there was a public meeting a couple weeks ago and the County Parks folks confirmed that they'll hold our mooring fee over to next year.  Plus we get to keep our parking permits.  They didn't have to do that and I *really* appreciate that my money isn't wasted.

On a happier note, I've had the landsailer out twice now.  First time Heidi and the twins came along.  We were going to the coast but decided at the last minute to avoid the crowds and stay local.  There was nothing big going on at the fairgrounds so we drove over there instead.  The gravel lot was rough but it worked pretty well.  Heidi and the kids tried it out too.  DaVeda lifted a wheel!



The gravel was rough and the nuts on the wheels loosened up a bit, so we blew a bearing.  Pretty sure I heard it go.  So, I went online and ordered new bearings from a gokart place.  They seem to be a bit better than the ones I bought locally.  I found that even with the nut tightned down, there was some side-to-side movement; I added a spacer washer to each axle to ensure they get tight. .  I also added a block down low on the mast so we're pulling back instead of down. 

Despite a forecast of rain and light wind, the breeze came up yesterday afternoon, so I took the landsailer out to the fairgrounds again yesteerday.  This time the asphalt parking lot was empty enough that I decided to try it out.  Between the smooth surface and new bearings what a difference!  Plus the wind kept picking up so I was flying!

I even flew a wheel a few times in the puffs!