Life in Canada

When the rudder on our vintage 1971 Ericson 32 sailboat developed deep cracks and lots of rusty stains, I knew we needed to replace it.  The easiest way would have been to order a custom built replacement from one of several speciality firms I found on-line.  Unfortunately, the easiest way was also the most expensive.  While researching rudder construction, I decided that I wanted to improve on the original design with the goal of a stronger blade.  One thing was clear, I didn't want to be out in heavy seas with a failed rudder. A problem with a lot of cruising sailboats from the seventies is slowly rusting rudder frames.  To be fair, I doubt if many boat builders from that era expected these boats to still be going strong, as many are, after 4 or 5 decades.  Of course, my homemade replacement rudder is intended to be a "next generation" version, correcting weaknesses revealed over 40 years of service.  Why not just copy the original?  After ...

One quiet morning down at the boat harbour, I was installing some curtains I had sewn for my boat's cabin windows.  "Hello, anyone there?" a voice called from the dock.  I poked my head up and found a well dressed man with silver hair and a trim silver moustache standing there. "Mind if I have a look inside your boat?" he asked, "I've always admired Bruce King designs, but have never been aboard one." "Of course," I said, "Please come aboard.  I'm just seeing if these curtains fit." "Where did you get the curtains?" he wanted to know after he found his way down into the boat's saloon. "I sewed them myself, out of some scrap acrylic canvas..." "Oh," was all the man said, but he went part way up the stairs and looked up and down the docks.  Not another person was to been seen.  He returned back down the companion way and told me "I sew, too!!" I guess some guys are shy about ...

I am a man who sews and that troubles my friend Bob.  I sew lots of dog booties.  I've sewn hundreds and lost most of them.  I experiment with all kinds of different fabrics and closures trying to make a better boot that allows dogs to run in the snow and not get ice-bound feet.  Not all dogs suffer snow packed paws, but our dog Rocket does big time. So far, the best stuff with which to make snow booties is thin, uncoated nylon.  Most nylons are urethane coated to make them water-proof, but the coating makes them ice up faster as well as slower to dry out later on.  I always keep an eye out for good fabric and lately I've been recycling all our old jackets and wind-breakers into dog booties.  It's fun to see dogs wearing wildly coloured boots!  Last week I found an old Columbia anorak of mine that had a really nice, finely woven, uncoated nylon lining.  In hot pink. Initially, I sewed a set of hot pink booties for Ruby, an ado...

Herman "Jackrabbit" Johannsen is one of my heroes for having introduced skiing to North America.  During the great depression, Johannsen settled in the Laurentians region of Quebec and was a patron to the rugged Canadian Ski Marathon.  The Canadian Ski Marathon (CSM) is a two day endurance event, where skiers follow trails beginning outside of Montreal and ending up on the outskirts of Ottawa, some 160 kilometers later.  My wife has skied this annual event many times and has been eager for me to join her.  So at long last,  on a cold February morning in La Chute, Quebec, I entered my first ski marathon. We started training in the fall, with hikes and longer bike rides while waiting for the snow.  Once the ski trails opened, we skied at every opportunity.  My wife usually took care of our ski waxing before every ski outing.  Occasionally, I would prop our skis on a couple of chair-backs and iron on new base wax.  Not very sturdy. ...