Water tune-up, part II

As with any big event, preparation is important. As noted previously, I am an on-water volunteer for the Ironman(tm) event scheduled for next weekend. At some point, I decided that I would haul my boat to the river with my Bikes at Work trailer rather than depend on my aging truck. I tested the system today--well, one could call it an excuse for a bike ride, I suppose--and had only very minor tweaks to make along the way.

Before I could haul the boat, though, I had to reconfigure the trailer a bit. In my usual configuration, the trailer axle is in the fourth of six possible positions (with some of those positions requiring that the trailer only be one of the three modules). The axle module is usually the middle of the three modules, and the axle is aft of center by a foot or so. Since the boat is a bit over twelve feet long and the trailer only eight feet long, this was not going to work--the center of gravity was too far aft of the axle for safe transport. I broke down the modules and set the axle at its rearmost position.

I then loaded the boat to the trailer, securing it with a quartet of elastic straps (two bungee cords that came with the trailer section I ordered from Bikes at Work, and two straps made with old inner tubes and It-Clips--see prior entries or this link for It-Clip information).

Mindful that the way to Waterfront Park is mostly down hill from home, I rode what seemed the most direct route--Frankfort Avenue to River Road.

For Sunday's Ironman event, I am to meet the other boaters at the UofL Rowing Center parking lot, just west of the River Road intersection with Frankfort Avenue. For the Saturday practice swim, I'm to meet the other boaters near Joe's Crab Shack, a bit further down-river. I wanted to time my trip, so that I wouldn't be late. I found that I can get there in forty-five minutes or so, and plan on giving myself an hour so that I have time to unload and lock up before needing to be ready to hit the water.

Since I was at the river, I took the opportunity to do a little paddling. I stopped in the parking lot for the amphitheater between the Tumbleweed restaurant and the Rowing Center, and encountered a police officer arriving for his shift as a river patrolman. We had a cordial conversation (he's clearly been chosen in part for his willingness to be a good PR guy for the LMPD), during which he offered that I can use the LMPD slips for launching my kayak AND lock my bike and trailer by the LMPD river station for better security than I would have leaving my rig in the Yellow Parking Lot. I took him up on the offer, and had an enjoyable time on the river in my boat.

When I got back to the slip and prepared to get out of my boat, my phone was ringing. I realized that I still had it AND my small camera in my shorts pocket (good thing I didn't go for an intentional or unintentional swim!) instead of it my dry bag!

After the phone conversation, I got out of the boat and reloaded it on my trailer. A couple of passers-by commented quite favorably on my rig, then moved on to look at the police boats (the aforementioned officer seemed quite happy to discuss things with them, further supporting my assertion that he's a good PR guy).

Astute observers will recognize that the bike pulling the trailer is my Globe instead of the Big Dummy. Both bikes are equipped with Bikes at Work hitches, of course. The Globe has the dyno-powered headlight, though, and that will be important come Sunday morning! The boat is heavier than I would like, but not terrible given what I paid for it when I bought it ten years ago. I didn't need the little chainring getting up the steepest part of Frankfort Avenue during the return trip, so I figure this bike is fine for pulling loads like this (I've pulled a 250# load using this bike in the past, before I bought the Dummy, so the weight was not a concern anyway).