KeelEazy Application

A while back I read on-line about this stuff called KeelEazy and it sure sounded interesting to me.  I got on their site and read most of what they had there and now my curiosity was way up!  This stuff sounded like a real sure fire way to treat at least one of my boats at a lower cost in materials and huge savings in time compared to doing the resin and cloth system.

I took them up on the offer for a free sample and sure enough in a few days it showed up on my doorstep.  It was a 2 x 12 sample and I decided to use it on the Eclipse as there was some wear marks from use.

Small wear marks that needed some attention

I looked over the website for directions quickly and went to the workshop and got the patch ready.

These were all the tools I needed

 I cut it in half as that would be enough for both ends and then started to peel it apart.  Man I thought, this stuff is a bitch to get off!!

Peeling it apart

I tugged and pulled and finally got it separated and put the black part aside thinking I could use it for something.  I laid it on the hull with the blue side up and took my hairdryer to it and smoothed it out.  Now that was slick, every wrinkle come out, all the puckers smoothed out nicely and it was sticking like they said it would!  Look Ma, no runs of resin, no taping, no cutting of cloth with lots of strands sticking out!  And best of all NO GLOVES!  I could fall in love was what I was thinking!

Smoothing it out

I then peeled off the blue protective covering to see a whiteish patch and man was it sticky to the touch!  Little bells started ringing in my gray matter and I knew something was wrong.

I made a quick beeline to the computer and did a search on KeelEazy and found a YouTube tutorial on how to apply it.

Oh!
Really?
That's how it's done??
No Shit!
DUH!

I hurried back down and took those nice black thick pieces I had set aside and quickly laid them on top of the adhesive and dropped them on and took the hairdryer to them.  Yup, I had peeled off the wrong pieces and done it all ass backwards!  What a dumbass I am sometimes, please don't take the time to refine this point to me next time you meet up with me!

I spent a few extra minutes heating and smoothing it out and hoped for the best.   According to the website I could peel it off easily enough if I needed to.  In the morning I went out and checked both patches.  I'll be damned but both rock solid!  I tried to get my fingernail under the edge and it was tough to do so.  I need to take it out and run it into the sand a few times to make a full determination of how it preforms but it feels like the Dynel patches I put on the Courier and am anguished to see how it does.

Two views on the next day

More to Come

A November Run Down the Saco

November and we're still paddling.  Woke up mighty early, 330 or so and instead of fighting the urge to go back to sleep I got up and meandered out to the canoeshed.  I needed to figure out what the hell was wrong with my front rack.  The ratchet on one side wasn't working very well and was stuck.  I got out my trusty can of WD40 and sprayed the hell out of the whole mechanism and waited for a bit before I started working it back and forth.  I mounted it on the car and it finally worked the way it was supposed to but I have lost faith and need to start looking for a new set.  I curse the day the car manufacturers got rid of rain gutters.  Life with racks was much simpler when they were around.

So the plan is to find a put in somewhere on the Old Course not far from Charles Pond and make our way the Hemlock Covered Bridge for the first night.  There's a nice lean-to just downstream of that to hole up for the night.

A 6:30 meet at Aaron's house and we were quickly on our way.  The drive up is beautiful, through towns like Moltenboro, Tamworth and others that sit on more rivers and lakes then you can count.  At a pit stop we decided to forget the plan to start on the Old Course and head for Swan's Falls and make our way down.  No sweat as the weather was spitting rain and we knew the way.  The problem with the Old Course is that it seems to flow into the Saco from Kezar Pond but also can flow upstream when the water is high into Kezar Pond and we didn't know which way it was flowing.

We got to Swan's Falls to find it gated off.  WTF is what we all said so it was off to Canal St putin and sure enough it was gated as well!  More swearing but it was a much shorter carry so we did it and then ran car shuttle.  Yup, it started raining of course, just like last year, and we took off for the Old Course.

Loading up for the shuttle run

Scott is just happy to be here!

Into the rain we go

History repeated itself and as we got near the Old Course the sun came out.  The current was slow and flowing into the Saco and it wasn't long before we made it to the lean to.  It really is a nice site.

Boats pulled up in case the river comes up

Home for the night, nice place!

We made ourselves at home and I ended up taking a nice long nap, something I don't make a habit of but damn it sure was nice to be able to do!  I guess I was out like a light for around three hours.   Later a fire was started and as usual with Scott along it was a biggin!  He isn't shy when it comes to making a fire!  I heated up my stew for dinner with a fresh loaf of bread on the side and the remainder of the night was spent telling tales and swilling beverages!  

Scott's fire!  Pic courtesy of Scott Bolser

Saturday morning was a relaxed sort of affair.  Breakfast, slow packing up and finally on the river.  Of course there was a headwind when the weather had called for a tailwind but it really didn't matter all that much.  Now this really was the true maiden voyage for my Eclipse, sure I had had it out a few times already but without a load and I really wanted this for one of my tripping boats so it was interesting to see how it handled.  I had perhaps 80 pounds worth of gear, most of that in the cooler, and I found her to handle very well.  Built along the lines of the Malecite I did have to plan my turns a bit more then my Disco or Courier but she did well.  I didn't feel any problems with tipping it to it's side and actually once the chine cut in some I did even better controlling it.  I deemed this boat a keeper!  

Taking off with a full load. Picture by Scott Bolser

It was fairly early in the day when we made camp in just about the same place as last year.  We turned it into tarp city to block the wind and got ourselves comfortable.  Some of us took naps, others meandered around and collected wood.  I opted for a short walk to try to get to the edge of Pleasant Pond but it just got too wet.

Aaron opted for a lean to setup for the night

I still like a tent

Scott likes his bivey

Looking downstream from our site

The pond is just out of reach

Later we got another big ass fire going and just hung out enjoying being out on this river.  It's why we end up doing this, just to relaxing in the end. 

Scott the fire tender

Sunday saw us off the river fairly early as we all seemed to have something waiting for us at home.  So, another trip, short in mileages but long in good times.  Good fires, good food, good friends! 

Scott and Aaron

Aaron

Doug

Nashua River in November

November 6, 2011

A plan is a plan and one of us got it all together for a meet on the Nashua River.  Now this is a river I have run before but it's too many years to count from then and now.  I picked up Scott at his house and we were soon on the road.  Now, if there is one thing that I am consistent about it is getting lost driving!  I was thankful to have Scott along to be the co-pilot and guide me.  As we neared our exit we both got a little preoccupied and as I looked up I said something like is that our exit?  Both our heads turned as we looked at the sign as we passed the exit.  Yup, stated my co-pilot!  Shit!

So off the next exit we turn and follow the road back to the highway only to pass the road we needed to take to get to the meeting place!  Shit again!  Back on the highway and another exit where we somehow got onto a different route then what we were on!  Christ, I honestly don't know how we found the damn place but we got there just as the others were pulling in.

It wasn't long before we were off loaded and setting up shuttle.  I believe it was Jeff B. who was going to shuttle us back with his van which of course wouldn't start once we were all ready to get in.  The real beauty of that was we were parked at the Automotive Section of Sears so if push came to shove ... although Jeff did mention something about how his wife wouldn't be too happy.  After a bit of Car Talk chat it was jumped and off we went and the shuttle was finally done.

The put in was pretty over grown but hell a put in is a put in and we all made the best of it.

Down through the saplings we go!

There was only room to launch one boat at a time.

We soon had our flottila on the water and were heading out.  So here is a list of the crew and boats.

Scottb in his Mariner, myself in my MR Courier aka the Colander,  Canoedad in his 17' MR Explorer, TommyT in his Blue Hole, Jeff B and Erik E. in an OT Applacia, Jim C in his Prospector, and Bill aka Wet Willie in his Octa.

We came to our first blowdown river wide but there was a sneak route on the left.  Several of us made it through but somehow Tommy got hung up.  With all the trees in the way I didn't have a good view but it took a bit for him to get free and I did see a rope thrown from someone to help pull his hull back upstream.

No damage done and no one hurt and we were soon on our way again with a lot of laughing going on.

A fine looking bunch of misfits!

The next river obstacle was a broken dam and according to Old Bill from Pnet it was probably Ice House Dam.  I think I forgot to mention the river was up as I recall the last time I ran this I broke a paddle on some rubble.  Not this time.  It was gushing good and Tommy made the first run. I was hell bent on portaging it but after a few seconds of careful consideration and no look see I went next.  I got to far over to the right and got sucked into the wall, bounced off that and right into the standing wave at the bottom of the drop!

I watched as my bow dug in like a bomb had gone off on the bottom of it and left a big stinking hole and in a second I was almost gunwale deep in water.  There is nothing more miserable than trying to paddle what was seconds before a canoe and was now a filled up bathtub to shore!  All I could do was this almost obscene gyration of hips to keep from flipping before I reached shore and all I could think was that I did not, I mean DID NOT, want to go in!  Tommy helped me as I reached shore and I slowly started emptying my boat while the rest of the crew came through.

The boat with about half of it emptied out

 So, here's what I have learned, yes, there is always a learning curve, make sure your drybag is really tight before you clip it in.  Most of my spare cloths were a little damp.  Make sure your 5$ sandwich for lunch is in a better place than your cooler.  Should have taken my 5 bucks and thrown it into the river. 

A bad view of the dam

Jim C diggin' in deep

I know what he was thinking, GET ME TO SHORE!

I wish I had more pictures of the others running it but others in the group got some good shots which are linked here.
http://vimeo.com/31699294

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QrGv0b2CWQ

http://picasaweb.google.com/TommyC1Taylor/NashuaRiverLeominsterToLancaster11611?authuser=0&feat=directlink


 Bottom line is every open boat became a bathtub.  Both kayakers came out unscathed, there were, technically, no swims but there were some Soggy Bottom boys after that run!  I had to take my boots off and empty them!  Hell, it was a blast but I did notice that there were no takers for a second run!  After everyone bailed their boats out we got going again only to pull off on a sandbar for a lunch break.  My lunch was a 12 oz can of suds, bummer.

Back on the river again we came to the powerlines were there was some fast water and there was a lot of playing around there.

Now somewhere along the line I pulled into an eddie to take photo's and I guess Scott motored on past and here's where the story gets hazy for me.  I pulled up to the iron bridge which was our take out as the rest of the boys started pulling in.  As usual we started carrying our gear up to the cars and when all everything was up there except for Scott!  WTF, where the hell was he?  Ya gotta love technology and I called him on his cell phone but no answer.  A minute later he called back and it went kinda like this:

Where are you?

I don't know?

Did you pass an iron bridge?

Maybe, but I can see the road.  Maybe I can head back up to the iron bridge!

How far down are ya?

Don't know! 


So, Tommy and I headed down to the next junction and kept looking for Scott as we passed by the river.

Ring, Ring, Ring and Scott says,

I saw Tom's car go by, I could see his canoe.

Ok, head downstream cause I'm heading back up to the takeout.

I saw Scott and blew the horn a shitload of times and drove to a farm stand where he could pull out.  All was good!  We loaded up and headed back north, not getting lost this time, and after I dropped him off I headed another 15 miles or so north to home.

As I get up to speed I hear a little thumping sound but think nothing of it as I have a lot of gear in the car.  At the tollbooth I notice that my canoe is kind of slumped over to the side, being loaded on the racks on the passenger side, and pull over to find that one of my racks had slipped and was loose, of course the front one.  It's one of those ratchet kind and would have to off load the boat, screw around with it in the dark and then reload the boat.  That ain't going to happen.  I hammered it back into place with hand, I'll pay for that tomorrow, and ran a rope from one side to the other through the car to get me home.  If you ever have to resort to this please make sure you place your knot on the opposite side of the car.  Damn thing kept slapping me on the side of the head.

So all in all it was a fantastic run at great water levels, no one swam, we had a few misadventures that were just inconveniences, and we met a bunch of folks who it was great to put a name to a face deal!