SCOUT in the TEXAS 200

200 miles in fives days. The Texas 200  2014 is in the books. There was lots of wind, very little wind, broken masts, broken rudders, capsizing, towing, and a lot of sea stories told. If I looked on Facebook once, I logged in a million times, keeping up with Scout and the Ducks. Sean and Scout had an amazing trip, and Sean came away with some wild sea stories, and a new appreciation for home built boats and the sailors that sail them.

Here are a few of the pictures from Sean and some of the other guys.

photo by Charlie Jones

photo by Charlie Jones

photo by Sean Mulligan

photographer unknown

photo by Paul Moffitt

 Photo by Capt. Votaw

Scout looks like Momma Duck leading the way for the Ducklings.

PROUD MOMMA

Sean sailing 'Scout'.                          photo by Kiko

I feel like that mother that gave up her child for adoption. I will always love that child and watch her blossom. Instead of recitals and graduation... I will be watching for those reports and videos of sailing the different waters of the world. Okay, maybe not the world, maybe the adventurous sailing events like the Texas 200, the Everglades Challenge, Sail Oklahoma...

Yesterday, 'Scout', formerly TARDIS, was taken out for her second sail. The winds were 20+ knots, but a Paradox knows how to handle it. Sean is still getting used to the lug sail, but it won't take long to get the hang of it.

Sean had a friend video the sail, and Sean put together an amazing video. Yes, I did tear up, but nobody was in the room, so it was okay.

To follow Sean and Scout's adventures, visit Sean's blog: FullnBy.blogspot.com

TARDIS GETS WET

photograph by Sean Mulligan

Okay, I know her name was changed to "Scout", but I will always know her as TARDIS. When I checked my email this morning, I found an email announcing a new post on her guardian's blog: FullnBy.blogspot.com. I have been following her progress as Sean gets her ready for her first sail. Reading of her splash and seeing pictures of her floating, tears of joy and jealousy, streamed down my cheeks. This was my baby that I created and nurtured, and I never dreamed I would feel such emotions seeing her in someone else's hands. But, I will get over it, life goes on.

Scout is in good hands, Sean will take care of her and take her on all those sails that she was built for. I hope she treats him well and gives him years of fun.

Someday, I will see her again.

TARDIS MOVES TO ARIZONA

Yep, TARDIS  has a new owner. She has moved to Arizona. It was hard to let her go, however, I had lost my vision for her. Originally, I began building her so my husband and I could take her sailing. We began the dream together, and for over a year, that was the vision. After the separation, she was a reminder of a dead dream. I worked on her, but it just wasn't the same. I had to revise my dream; for me to sail her alone, but I lost my motivation.

After I moved to Kemah, I had to keep TARDIS parked at the canvas shop, and it was not as convenient to work on her. I would put off the work, even though she was almost finished. I was asked so many times when I would splash her. I didn't have an answer.

TARDIS was the last thread of my old life, and now it has been snipped. It is sad, but it is also the beginning of a fresh start. No more reminders of my old life, everything new. I don't regret the build, it was a good thing. I learned a lot, and made a lot of friends in the boat building community. I do wish I had been able to sail her... at least once. Maybe someday.

Last year, I had a fleet, now I don't own even one boat. I'm sure that will change at some point. I think I will start out with a kayak. I can make a dolly for it to pull behind my bike. Where there's a will, there's a way! My daughter and I are going to get snorkel gear in the next few days. There are so many fun things to do here in Key West, I will stay busy, and it will most likely involve water.

Much Interest in TARDIS

Yesterday, I was standing on the dock, watching work being done to the sail of s/v Kairos, when my phone rang. I looked to see who was calling me, and below the number were the words "United Kingdom". I stared at it for a few seconds, confused. Never have I ever had those words on my phone.

It seems that there are a few across the pond, interested in buying TARDIS. The cost to ship a container overseas, is quite expensive though.

Today, I realized there are discussions on several forums, about the sale of TARDIS. She is still available, waiting on her trailer for someone to give her a good home.

Meanwhile, I am here on Kairos. We are waiting for all the contractors to finish their work, so we can take off. Hopefully, that will happen in a couple of days. We have spent our evenings planning routes, playing cards, telling tales, enjoying adult beverages... life is good.  We are having fun, even here at the marina...

"Deal me in and pass that bottle..."

LIFE RING

My brother, Kelly, is almost as excited about my boat as I am. When finished, we are going to take her on a 3 day weekend cruise, beach her and camp out two nights. Kelly helped me move recently, and I promised him a trip for his help.

I just had a birthday, and Kelly got this personalized life ring for me. I love it. And what TARDIS would be complete without a Sonic Screwdriver? I got that for Christmas... from my brother! He is so cool!

For those of you who are not Doctor Who fans, why aren't you? It's just about the coolest TV show there is. Google "Doctor Who" and be enlightened! It's a wonderful new world!

From Pair of Ducks to Paradox

Guest Blogger : Dale

Lezlie is out in the garage fiberglassing the water tanks on the Paradox "TARDIS", and asked me to think about putting up a blog post. So with password in hand, I decided to post some photos of something besides epoxied plywood, namely from our vacation in Belize. If you look closely, there is a channel marker at the top ,so it's not completely off topic. Incidentally, after she sees this, it may be my last blog post.


Moving from arid West Texas to the Gulf Coast four years has been a real exercise in adjustment. You see, in West Texas there is very little water unless you have it shipped in, and quantities large enough to sail in are prohibitively expensive. Wind is cheap, though. Little did I know when we started sailing Galveston Bay where it would lead. When I stumbled across Matt Layden's Paradox, I daydreamed a bit, and thought it would be fun to build one. Then when Lezlie asked for plywood for Christmas, I knew it was going to get serious. Despite us never having built a boat before, and barely knowing how to sail, soon there was an intimidating pile of plywood stacked in the garage. As a warm-up exercise, she decided to build a Puddleduck Racer. Joining the forums at Yahoo helped a lot by introducing us to people who had tried this sort of thing before. Discovering Chuck's Duckworks saved us countless amounts of time with information and small boat hardware. What the heck is a gudgeon ? They got 'em! Fast forward now, a year and a half later, and there are two Puddleducks on a trailer, and a Paradox named Tardis growing in the garage.



The plumbing design on the Paradox will allow the water tanks to be both filled and emptied with a small electric pump and a combination of valves. Both water tanks will be used for ballast only, not a source of drinking water. The pump and valves will allow draining or filling of either port or starboard water tank, as well as serving as a "convenience" bilge pump in the event of water from entry through the hatch or over the transom baffle in following seas. I found some nifty 3-way valves from US Plastics , that greatly reduced the amount of plumbing necessary. The plan is to do all the plumbing and electrical work before the deck is installed. Yeah, I know, something will be forgotten and have to be installed lying down in the boat, in the dark, in an inaccessible spot, with special tools., by a contortionist. But at least at the present there is a plan to do it right.

Two weeks until the Centex messabout at Lake Bastrop, Texas on April 23, 2011. We plan to have both Duckish boats there, assuming a new leeboard for gOZling to replace the one cracked during the last sail at Lake Somerville. I hope we get to see some people from SailOklahoma! , and get a close look at that world-famous Scamp !

Fun begins when you push away from the dock ....

TARDIS

The naming of ones boat is very important. The name can be meaningful or just silly. My father built a boat and named it after his youngest daughter. He called it Princess Dana. But, what will my paradox be called? When I came up with a possible name, I thought of how it would sound on the radio; "This is sailing vessel ______". That immediately eliminated most possibilities.

Last year, I discovered the television program Doctor Who. For those not familiar with this program, Doctor Who is a British science fiction television program produced by the BBC. The show originally ran from 1963 until 1989. It was relaunched in 2005.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

The programme depicts the adventures of a mysterious and eccentric Time Lord known as the Doctor who travels through time and space in his time machine, the TARDIS (an acronym for Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space), which normally appears from the exterior to be a blue 1950s British police box. With his companions, he explores time and space, faces a variety of foes and saves civilizations, helping people and righting wrongs.

The TARDIS is a really cool ship. The outside looks like a blue box, but when you step inside, it is huge. "Bigger on the inside than it is on the outside" is how you will hear it described on the program. This blue box travels to distant places and has wild adventures. One night, while watching the show, I suddenly realized... I should name the paradox TARDIS. And, so I did.

No, we won't be traveling through time or space, but I do have a few adventures planned. I believe they will be exciting, even if we don't save civilizations or right wrongs.