First Float

The first float of the season is the most amazing thing that I look forward to every year.  While this is not going to be one of the three "majors" of the year, it will provide some much needed release from the daily grind.  It might be hard to believe for some people but this image is what I'm waiting for.  The Tugboat and flag riding proudly in the bow of the mad river.  The rains have been a blessing so far this season, providing ample water in creeks that were thirsty for it.

Early discussion has confirmed a float to commemorate Quatro Mayo.  Fortunately for anyone who will be in attendance this means that the loco bombs will flow freely as we test the waters.  I'm not sure if a destination has been officially decided upon but I'm sure it will be the highlight of discussion at the birthday festivities this weekend near the Man Barn.

In other news, PBC (Predator Brewing Company) has recently produced all of the beer for the Crawdad Boil.  I was only able to get involved in one brew but I had a great time while we were there.  I'm looking forward to consuming copious amounts of this on the 31st of May.

Tug Boat Smoke

Every now and then the breeze will carry the sweet smell of the Tugboat's pipe to the rear of the canoe.  It is the subtle reminder that you are floating with a real man's man.  This has been true of many rivers for me.  However, on the last trip things went a little south for Tugboat.  His patriotic shorts quickly became the American skirt after over exposure to moon burn resulted in some excellent decision making.  Then things got worse when an overexposed cliff jump resulted in a flesh eating bacterial infection.  Needless to say he had a rough last day on the water.  Then from the back of the boat came the smell of a different kind of smoke.  Instead of the usual sweet smell of the pipe it was the odor that comes from a trash fire.  I'm not sure if the Motorboater realized the was burning a flag at the time, but in the moment it was extremely funny.  I hope the coming float season brings us all as much joy as we had last year.

Home Brew

You have to ask yourself, "Would you drink from the Buck Hole?"  Anyone that knows the man would say Yes!  His home brew is a delicacy on the river, appreciated by all who have a cup to drink from.  Referred to as "The Predator," he has added a wild card dynamic to every float he attends.  His pre-mades are legendary on the riverbank and provide a huge burst of energy when it is needed most.  This year he is planning on taking his game to the next level and everyone is ready to see what it might bring.  There is only one important rule, don't eat his hair!

Have you seen this Frog?

This is your friendly notice that all photos have finally been uploaded to the Jackal Photos page.  It has been a long time coming but the quality of these pictures are totally worth the wait.

Water Boarding

There is no doubt that this is one of the highlights of the year for me.  I watch this video and laugh every time.    I wanted to make sure that everyone gets to see this along with the rest of the Elk River photos that have been posted to the "Jackal Photos" page.  This is just another reason why a "Keg in the Coffin" should accompany us on every river trip.  My hat goes off to the Tugboat for making that happen last year.  I also know that nobody is more excited for float season '13 than him.



There are more videos yet to come so prepare yourself for a healthy dose of the Moon Burn.

Float Season 2013

The blog has been neglected for far too long. Its time to get back in gear. Last year saw the fewest miles floated by the Jackals in our four year history. Some of this was due to the awful weather and extreme drought. The rest of it was due to river dementia, PBR, and Loco Bombs. However, it also marked some of our biggest accomplishments. This was the year of the night float and the coffin keg. Its so hard to put into words how awesome things were last year. I pledge to do my damnedest to get up some of the great pictures that were taken along with a few other posts.

Now, for the real reason for this post. Another year is already upon us and we must begin to prepare mentally and physically for 2013. Here are the proposed floating dates and destinations for the big three. As always, spur of the moment adventures will be taking place outside of these trips. Let us know if there are conflicts cause I think we are pretty flexible if need be. In the words of the master motor-boater "All it will cost you to get a date changed is the scalp of Dustin Mareth."

Crawdad Boil / Flat creek : May 31 June 1-2 

North Fork: July 13-14 

Huzzah: August 3-4

Niangua Madness

I float the river for moments like this.  The joy of a man in the back of a canoe is hard to beat, especially when its on a new stretch of river.

Canoe Repair 101

In light of the success that Nick has had with the strip canoe project (which we all hope to see more of soon!) I decided to start a little project of my own.  I recently purchased this 1978 Mad River "Compatriot" that I found on Craigslist to be the first solo canoe for the River Jackal fleet.

It is a 13 foot fiberglass canoe that weighs in at just over 40 lbs.  It came outfitted with an aftermarket saddle seat, a nasty paint job, and a fair bit of rot.  But the Jackal spirit is definitely there.  The hull itself is in great shape but the gunwales and flotation tanks at either end were in pretty tough shape as you can see from the pictures.

I decided that new gunwales, seat, and a coat of paint inside would really bring this boat back to life.  Over Easter the Master-Motorboater and I were able to remodel the flotation tanks by cutting them down and sealing them in with fiberglass.  This is modeled after the style that Hemlock Canoe Works uses on their beautiful boats in upstate New York.  We also patched up a couple of small holes in the sides that were hidden just under the gunwales.  The picture below shows a before shot of how we trimmed down the old rotten foam and filled in a couple of cracks before laying the fiberglass.

We then added two layers of fiberglass to make both ends water tight and reinforce the bow and stern of the canoe.

This last picture shows the Compatriot and the Motorboater outside the garage while the resin sets up.  You can see here the original gelcoat after I stripped off the old nasty black paint.  Still trying to figure out how to finish the outside of the boat so if you have any ideas please let me know.  the next steps are to gelcoat the chips and big scratches, paint the inside, and then do all the wood work.  Its really turning out better that I expected and I can't wait to get it in the water.

The A-Team Has Got Nothing On Us

If you haven't seen these pictures yet then you are in for a treat.  Thanks to the River Jackal that brought us Soundwave, we now have the sweetest river van on the face of the planet.  While I don't know much about this one-ton Dodge Sportsman, I do know it is a thing of beauty.  I have already spent several hours staring at the amazing pictures and thinking about the potential an acquisition like this might hold for the hoard.  Any suicidal river bus driver would love to sit behind the wheel of this beauty shuttling drunks and topless women around southwest Missouri.  While I don't have any technical information on the new ride, I think the pictures pretty much speak for themselves.  This thing is bad ass.  I am already looking forward to seeing Nick's strip canoe perched on top as we head to another flowing stream.  My hat goes off to the Jackalski for pulling through with this and setting the bar really high for the 2012 season.  I think everyone is ready to see this baby in action.  All it needs is a name.

CANOE BUILDING 201

Class is in session. One instructional video I watched said "the best way to learn how to build a boat, was to build a boat." So here we are again in mom's basement putting our heart and soul into the newest addition of the jackal fleet. With a lot of good help we made tremendous headway. We were able to complete one side of the boat and lack 18 strips on the other side of the boat.

As always I had my nephew Conner at the ready with the glue bottle, so the strips are going on the boat with a little hand planning and help from bungee cords and clamps. The hardest part by far has been getting the boards to fall in line with the stems but with a little time they are going on just fine. It is amazing to step back after a
couple hours of work and really watch the boat
start to take shape.

With enough strips on the boat we were able to
start hand scrapping the joints to make the
sanding go a little faster. Eric and Nathan were
beasts with the scrappers and knock that step
out in very little time. Also it exposed a few areas
that needed a little more attention, so we stepped up our game and reglued a few seams. We took advantage of already having the epoxy and fiberglass cloth and did a test run. To all of our amazement the cloth almost completely disappears under the epoxy. That really pumped us up to see a glimpse of the end product.



My next move will be to cut the center line and bring the other side up to match and then install the last piece which will be a football shape in the middle of the floor. I am looking forward to that piece. Then bring on the sanders!