C
Craig
Guest
I was just looking thru the archive and came across this old post...
Brought a smile to my face
I finally have a chance to give you all a run down on the big day. I
had to come back to work just for the rest. I had three and a half
weeks off and it was just insane. In that three weeks I put in a new
lawn, bought a boat, had new carpets installed, had about a dozen
friends and relative stay at the house, got the Amphicar swimming and
oh ya... I got married too. I was a busy beaver running people across
the lake. I never would have gotten it all done if I hadn't broke
down and bought a pontoon boat. My little 14 foot glasstron would
have never hauled everyone back and forth let alone got a 15' roll
of carpet to the house. Lets just say I was an absolute freak.
Don't get me wrong. It was a blast. I had friends up for the wedding
I hadn't seen in a long time. My father-in-law, Dave, turns out to
be a retired auto mechanic. He has half a dozen project cars at home
attends shows with his 72 Mustang on a regular basis. We got along
great. He loved the Amphicar! I got him out to the storage unit with
a tool box and my Amphi and in one afternoon we had installed most
all the bits and pieces I had purchased this winter. We became fast
friends to boot.
I was ready to test float her that night. Taking the advise from
several list members I plugged the bilge and turned on the hose. I
filled most of the bilge with water with no leaks. Last thing to
check was the ugly fiberglass patch under the battery. It leaked
like a sieve. :-( Well being two days before the wedding I decided
against using it to transport my new bride. It just wouldn't do to
sink the car on our wedding day. After the wedding we spent a few
days in Talkeetna for much needed rest. I had no idea how much work
wedding really were. I thought I'd done the hard part by getting
down on one knee...
Anyway after getting back I snuck out with Dave and went at the
fiberglass patch with a tube of silicone. I had the fullest
intentions of
removing the rear seat tying a rope to my old plow truck and backing
in real slow... Well maybe it was the beer or the crowd gathered at
the ramp but I just said the hell with it and drove right in. I had
installed a Jacubus pump and hoped it would keep me from looking
like a fool.
It went great! I drove in made a few turns and drove back out. After
checking it out I started giving rides, and rides and more rides... I
went a little farther with each swim. By the end of the day my
courage way in full force or maybe the beer was by then... I decided
to take a real cruse and made my way all the way across the lake. it
was a seven mile trip to my house. I stay close to shore so it may
have been a little longer then that. I made a lot of stops on the
way. People were coming out on there docks and taking pictures. If
they had a ramp that looked good I just drove right out and said hi.
It was a good excuse tocheck out the car and have a beer or two to
boot. The Bar where we had our reception was on the way so of
course I had to stop and give rides to all the girls. It was a
blast. I got the car home and tied up to my dock. I actually left it
there over night, I don't have a ramp yet. I was a nervous wreak
that night. Up and checking the car several times. All was well in
the morning with only a few inches of water in the bilge. The
silicon was holding... I got the car back to storage that day and
left for work a few days later. So there you have it.
My first swim...
Craig in Alaska
Red 66
Brought a smile to my face
I finally have a chance to give you all a run down on the big day. I
had to come back to work just for the rest. I had three and a half
weeks off and it was just insane. In that three weeks I put in a new
lawn, bought a boat, had new carpets installed, had about a dozen
friends and relative stay at the house, got the Amphicar swimming and
oh ya... I got married too. I was a busy beaver running people across
the lake. I never would have gotten it all done if I hadn't broke
down and bought a pontoon boat. My little 14 foot glasstron would
have never hauled everyone back and forth let alone got a 15' roll
of carpet to the house. Lets just say I was an absolute freak.
Don't get me wrong. It was a blast. I had friends up for the wedding
I hadn't seen in a long time. My father-in-law, Dave, turns out to
be a retired auto mechanic. He has half a dozen project cars at home
attends shows with his 72 Mustang on a regular basis. We got along
great. He loved the Amphicar! I got him out to the storage unit with
a tool box and my Amphi and in one afternoon we had installed most
all the bits and pieces I had purchased this winter. We became fast
friends to boot.
I was ready to test float her that night. Taking the advise from
several list members I plugged the bilge and turned on the hose. I
filled most of the bilge with water with no leaks. Last thing to
check was the ugly fiberglass patch under the battery. It leaked
like a sieve. :-( Well being two days before the wedding I decided
against using it to transport my new bride. It just wouldn't do to
sink the car on our wedding day. After the wedding we spent a few
days in Talkeetna for much needed rest. I had no idea how much work
wedding really were. I thought I'd done the hard part by getting
down on one knee...
Anyway after getting back I snuck out with Dave and went at the
fiberglass patch with a tube of silicone. I had the fullest
intentions of
removing the rear seat tying a rope to my old plow truck and backing
in real slow... Well maybe it was the beer or the crowd gathered at
the ramp but I just said the hell with it and drove right in. I had
installed a Jacubus pump and hoped it would keep me from looking
like a fool.
It went great! I drove in made a few turns and drove back out. After
checking it out I started giving rides, and rides and more rides... I
went a little farther with each swim. By the end of the day my
courage way in full force or maybe the beer was by then... I decided
to take a real cruse and made my way all the way across the lake. it
was a seven mile trip to my house. I stay close to shore so it may
have been a little longer then that. I made a lot of stops on the
way. People were coming out on there docks and taking pictures. If
they had a ramp that looked good I just drove right out and said hi.
It was a good excuse tocheck out the car and have a beer or two to
boot.
The Bar where we had our reception was on the way so ofcourse I had to stop and give rides to all the girls.
It was ablast. I got the car home and tied up to my dock. I actually left it
there over night, I don't have a ramp yet. I was a nervous wreak
that night. Up and checking the car several times. All was well in
the morning with only a few inches of water in the bilge. The
silicon was holding... I got the car back to storage that day and
left for work a few days later. So there you have it.
My first swim...
Craig in Alaska
Red 66
