First post by Leif

When my Dad was doing a race the thing that  was securing a pulley ripped off the deck of the boat.  The people who repaired the boat after the hurricane had not put long enough bolts for it to be secure in high winds.  You have to get into the aft locker to get to the bottom of the bolts to see how long of bolts are needed an to try and put nuts on the bottom.  None of the workers or my Dad could fit into the locker.  It was hard for me to get in.  My sister could fit in,  but she couldn’t reach the bolts.  We took out the rope hanger to make more room and I could fit in.  I still did not want to go back in but then my mom and Dad said I could get the biggest ice cream in the store which turned out to be a brownie sundae.

Where plate ripped off deck

Deck fitting

It wasn’t easy to see.  I got a flashlight so I could see.  It wasn’t scary. The first bolt I could reach it but I could not get a nut on it because it was right up against the wall.   I could not reach the second bolt.  We tried using pliers but I could not angle the nut correctly to get it to grab onto the bolt the workman was turning from outside.  There was no room to get on a washer.

Leif’s view from inside locker

I was able to help because I was able to see the amount of bolt that was sticking out from the fiberglass.  This allowed us to figure out that the original bolts were too short.  The adults were able to determine that longer bolts would have more grip and they would not rip out.  

Leif reaching for tools