Moving Day, Part 1

After the milestone of the Christening Day, moving day was the next hurdle to overcome. Words cannot express how nervous I was and sleep the night before was not easy to come by. I kept worrying that I had forgotten something critical or that something unforseen would complicate the move.

The transporter was scheduled for 9 am and after we secured the mast and boom on top and I took time to pose with my heroes - Troy and Amanda Boyer. Not only did they give me a safe haven in which to work the magic on the boat, but they gave me moral support and helped out when I needed an extra pair of hands. I truly owe them a great debt of gratitude and look forward to taking them both sailing.

Just before the marine transporter (Nautic Marine, of St. Clair Shores, MI) arrived I took one last photo of the boat in her home of five years. She almost seemed reluctant to leave the barn, but looked shiny, refreshed, and ready for new adventures.

It's easy to see the tight clearance between the hull sides and the loft and barn wall. It was both a blessing and a challenge. On the one hand I could easily step from the loft onto the boat, but on the other hand, the working space for painting was cramped. The clearance from the tip of the bowsprit to the door was only six inches, and from the back edge of the rudder to the rear door was more like four inches! This was the cleanest the barn floor has been for over five years.

This is a good shot of the transporter's hydraulic trailer backing into position. The two rails straddle the boat cradle and transverse steel beams slid beneath the cradle allow the operator to lift the entire load into the travel position. After strapping the boat and the cradle to the trailer she was ready to move. The upper clearance to the top of the door lintel was about eighteen inches.

Part 2 will show the extraction from the barn!