After two months of sawing, gluing, steaming, measuring, painting, swearing and one test float, the Sea Clamp set sail (row) on Lake Nokomis on Sunday, July 29, 2007--a special day since it was also Kristen's birthday! It was a busy weekend with final paint coats on Friday, birthday party prep and buying of life jackets off of Craig's List on Saturday, but all-in-all when Sunday arrived we were prepared for a beautiful, relaxing day of sun and water. It went something like this:
9:45 am: Peel stencil of letters off boat to reveal precise painted letters proclaiming the boat’s name
10:00 am: Load lifejackets, oars, cooler, and boat into/onto car, drive to Mel-o-Glaze to get donut holes.
10:30 am: Arrive at Lake Nokomis in perfect sunny hot weather, unload stuff, set up drinks cooler with orange juice, lemonade, champagne, and plastic champagne flutes.
11:15 am: People start to arrive.
11:30 am: Critical mass assembled. We open a bottle of champagne, give our thank yous to folks that helped us, put on life jackets and sailed off into the water!!!!! The Sea Clamp floated like a beauty. We had a bit of trouble with the oars due to mis-matched oar locks and a clamping problem, but for the most part, we had total success out on the water.
11:45 am - 2 pm: People take turns taking out the Sea Clamp. Chris sailed his skiff, we drink mimosas on the beach, take pictures, go swimming, take mini naps, get super sunburned (Bryan).
2:00 pm: Load stuff into the car.
2:05 pm: Kristen and Susy have conversation with a man on the beach that love The Sea Clamp but doesn't believe that it was built by two women.
2:15 pm: Car doesn't start (argh). We leave Sea Clamp on car at lake and pile into Bryan's wagon.
2:30 pm: Go to Sea Salt for fishy eats and beers and sleepiness in the shady sun of Minnehaha Falls.
5:30 pm: Go see the Simpson’s movie at Block E. Revel in extreme air conditioning.
7:30 pm: Back to Nokomis and other places to rescue broken cars (both Sarah's and Kristen's!).
8:30 pm: Eat leftover birthday cake and icecream at Kristen’s while watching part of a pirate movie from 1935.
9:45 pm: Go home feeling sun-tired, water-logged, and drowsy with happiness!
