The Big Day

Rejoice everyone for today has been a day of much progress! Today was the day that

Cassandra (technically still either Ken-Do or Coral Vette until I hold a denaming ceremony) came home.
The day began at 05:30. After a quick breakfast and picking up my cohort for the epicness that was today we were off, Dad leading the way in his Bonneville, Bonnie, and my friend Brian and I followed with the pickup, Clyde, towing my newly modified trailer.
The ride down was pleasant and uneventful. I plugged Clyde's radio back in so we could have tuneage for the trip. We arrived the house where Cassandra was being stored 15 minutes before the move was supposed to happen, but the truck was already there and working to maneuver itself into position. There is very little as impressive as watching two men effortlessly pluck a 4000lb boat from the field where it has been sitting for almost a year. The only thing more impressive was that they were able to do so with less than 2 feet of clearance on one side and not hit anything. You really have to have been there to get the full effect of it.
So, once the boat was out of the field and on it's way we took Bonnie and Clyde up to the Village Shores Marina in Hammondsport. Now, say what you want about Hammondsport, but I cannot over-emphasize how friendly and generous the people at Village shores were.
The two gentlemen who run the place were quite friendly, and patient as we adjusted the trailer for the boat. Although it took a few attempts to get everything where it needed to be, we soon had Cassandra situated. However, the hitch on the truck was too low to the ground once the boat was on the trailer. So, the marina owner called around until he found a suitable hitch extension, which he loaned to us to get the trailer home. He also was kind enough to loan a strap to hold the boat onto the trailer, since the one I brought was not long enough to reach.
I have to go back down to the marina later this week to dismantle the cradle for transport and to return the hitch and strap to the marina.
Leaving the marina was probably the most interesting part of the whole trip. You see, the marina is located at the bottom of a rather steep driveway that is only a couple feet wider than my trailer is. To get out I had to back the trailer part way down the launching ramp so I had enough room to turn around. Then I had to mucle my way back up the driveway onto the main road. I was a little nervous at times, but Clyde managed it in low gear. For the drive back I stayed under 50 mph the whole way and downshifted while I was stopping. Clyde handled it like a champ.
Once the boat was backed into the driveway Brian and I began pumping out the bilge to remove the rainwater from the big thunderstorms that had rolled through a few days prior. We managed to beat another wave of rain that chased us all the way back to B'ville. Then it was time to start scrubbing the muck of ages off Cassandra's once white hull and deck. That work will most likely continue for a day or two and involve much bleach and water. Then the real work will begin.

New pictures will be on Flickr in the next day or so. I forgot to bring my camera along for the road trip, but Dad took some photos with his phone, and snapped a couple shots of us cleaning the deck, so look for those soon.

Huzzah, It's a boat!!!