Today was our second day of haul-out maintenance. We were challenged by an hour late start and by missing four of our hardy crew members (we were also amazed at that a 2.5 hour class can seem too short, while sitting at a desk for 2.5 hours might feel like an eternity!)

We jumped into our work with continued focus, pride, and a goal to work hard. Discussing the idea of critiquing (instead of criticizing) ourselves and others helped set the stage for improving our painting and varnishing skills. Scott gave us some direction on finding that “perfect tooth” that gives the finish something to cling to, while leaving as much on as possible. He also helped us improve our rolling and tipping skills.

The day was spent prepping and painting a second coat of green paint on the sole and sheerstrake and prepping and painting for additional coats of varnish on the transom, yards, tiller, and name boards.

Our snack was once again in the cozy bosun’s locker. We laid on ridge-rest pads and imagined we were sleeping on our longboat journey. We also said goodbye to Emerald today, who is transitioning to the high school. We’ll miss her!

At the end of the day we reflected on new skills we tried (painting, prepping with scotch brite pads, running a shop vac, working the tipping angle) and things we’d like to try or improve at (most of us want to try more varnishing and painting and get better at not having drips or sags). Overall, a highly successful day for Bravo Team and longboat Townshend.