One in a thousand? One in a million?
Either way, I think it's pretty damn rare.
Well, that happened to us about an hour ago. I wish I was joking.
I was at the helm, when all of a sudden there was a muffled 'thud'. We'd heard it before (you cannot avoid the debris you cannot see) so we weren't alarmed. Then I noticed our speed was down. Significantly down. I didn't even need to look at the instruments to know. Going 1800 RPM's usually got us going nearly 8 knots (with the current), and now we were going barely 5. Not to mention the propeller was making a whizzing sound, as if it was working harder. Houston, we have a problem.
At first I thought we had done something to our propeller. Lucky for us there was a marina just to our right. Right then and there I made the executive decision to pull in and haul out the boat.
I mean, you have got to be kidding me, right?!
So Scott took the helm and I went to the back of the boat. There was a significant current, so Scott did a circle to get back to the marina. And that's when I saw it. A 2x6 plank of wood pop up from the water. And I just knew that's what our problem was.
"Try throttling up again" I yelled to Scott.
He did. And sure enough, we moved along at our expected 8 knots - like buttah. Hallelujah!
I mean - what in the heck are the odds of that?
We can't wait to see the fun surprises the Big Apple has in store for us.
Although, we did accidentally buy some lotto tickets in a bar when we thought we were playing Keno - who knows, maybe we'll strike it rich?
Stay tuned,
Brittany (& Scott)
*At least we think this is what happened. It's so bizarre it's actually comical.
5 comments:
Canals and rivers--they are giving you their best shot, aren't they? We have a friend who went up and down every year between Chicago and Florida who claimed to know the location of every "prop shop" along the way.
You probably already figured this out, but sometimes putting it in reverse "cures" the problem. And if you are docked or anchored somewhere where there is a lot of debris that might get caught under the hull, put it in reverse before you go forward.
I have been following you from the link on Les and Diana's blog, and loving all of it. I'm not a sailor, but you are living my dream!
Wait til you get to have fun playing "dodge-crabpot" in the Chesapeake. Its one of the main reasons I don't like running the Bay at night. A wrapped crabpot line on your prop is no fun in cold water!
Hitting a submerged log cost me a transmission. I would look at a thing called a drive saver if I were you. I was in C&D canal my wife said something ahead and just as she said it I heard it hit hull. When I hauled out prop had a nice ding. Transmission was blowing fluid. Drive saver might have worked.
Hope we handle things as well as ya'll do. There's always something to keep you on your toes when in a boat!
watch out for dead bodies.
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