billvoss

I was there in 2011, so conditions may have changed. At that time the indoor bathroom had a composting toilet, and the bathroom sink drained into a bucket that needed frequent dumping. If you brought your own solar shower you could use the outdoor shower stalls. The outdoor shower stalls did not have running water. The only "conditions" were the tide races. The group I was with scheduled their paddles to traverse the races during slack, so I have not paddled those races when they were running. Have fun. I'm not personally very interested in places without hot showers.

Boston AMC whitewater rolling instructional sessions will be back again this winter. They have the Arlington Boys’ and Girls’ Club pool reserved from 5-7 pm for five Sundays, February 26 through March 26, 2023. NOTE: This is for WHITE WATER kayaks only. The pool entry path includes a right angle turn which will not accommodate sea kayaks. However, with advance notice AMC Boston does normally rent kayaks for this event from their fleet. I don't think registration is up yet, and I am definitely NOT the registrar. Watch this space: https://amcbostonpaddlers.org/public/white-water/ If you are looking for local inexpensive rolling instruction, this annual event is hard to beat. If you show up for all five sessions, and are reasonably fit, you are very likely to get your first rolls. (Then it just takes years of practice to keep and improve them.) Yes, I have volunteered to be one of the instructors with AMC Boston again this year.

Yipee!

Assuming your suit has socks, turning the suit inside out, then filling the bottom of the leg with water should let you perform your own at-home water test. However, if instead of a pin hole, you then find a wide area leaking and bubbling up I would suspect fabric delamination. Gore-Tex buys us new suits because delamination is not a repairable failure. DWR "deficiency" is also what makes it possible for me to enjoy wearing a drysuit in July and August. It feels kind of like wearing a wet long sleeve cotton shirt. Wearing a drysuit with fresh DWR during July and August is not so pleasant.

@mhabichI love my Icon shoulder-zip drysuits. I initially could not put it on and take it off by myself, until I learned the trick. This YouTube video does a good job of showing the technique. I do NOT find it necessary to use my teeth, but I do use the rest of the technique shown. Most importantly using the other hand to create tension.

Dan, Kokatat has been charging for the water tests for quite a long time now. Though it includes fixing the pinhole leaks. Warranty Evaluation, which in my opinion you should ALWAYS add when sending your suit back, is "Free" but if ordered alone requires a return shipping fee ($11.95 this October). To my amazement, one of my pandemic suits already de-laminated, so I love Gore-Tex! I also received my replacement suit this week. Joseph you should easily get more than a year out of a gasket. My last thick gaskets outlasted the Gore-Tex fabric! Any chance you are getting a tiny trace of suntan lotion on your gaskets? That includes putting suntan lotion on your skin, then touching a gasket with that skin. Any petroleum based product quickly kills latex. Personally, I wear a neck Buff, and Buff gloves to minimize my chances of getting suntan lotion on my gaskets. I try to rinse the gaskets after each paddle. If they don't look shiny, the gaskets also get the 303 Protectant treatment. One paddler did tell me they thought newer gaskets are thinner than they used to be, and thus do not last as long. Personally, I always specify the "Thick" aka "Coast Guard" gaskets these days, and I certainly get multiple years out of them.

I am looking for Pool Sessions this winter! (Sea Kayak or White Water, any leads welcome.) I signed up for the first two sessions with https://www.salemkayak.com/gear-trips-courses/pool-sessions, but I snoozed on signing up for later sessions, and now Kevin's "Practice" offerings are sold out till late March 2023! Any leads on other providers, and any update on NSPN Pool sessions would be very welcome.

Too long a drive for me with that launch time. Have fun.

I might join you, depending on ...

I've done most of those skills in isolation. Paddling underwater by itself exhausts my breath control very quickly. All the head underwater activities would be much harder during a RACE. I would still need to try, or to master the following: Switching to a reverse straddle before paddling backwards. The front deck spin, though I've done it much more slowly on the back deck. Spear the hula hoop with the kayak's bow. Upside down pushing feet above the water. The flip re-entry. I have stood up in a kayak, and damaged my skin-on-frame in the process. However, I'm not sure I could touch the bell. Definitely a fun video to watch.

I second Ed's GREASE suggestion. Once I started putting Waterproof Bicycle Grease on the threads when I installed my Thule Racks each spring, I stopped having significant rust problems on the threads or bolts. My newest problem is that one of my NEW, just purchased this spring, Yakima JayLow Kayak Carriers has started dropping rust on my car! The rust is coming from two press fittings, not a movable part.

Did the outlet mall make money, despite paying for your "free" charge, by inducing you to spend some money while charging? By your description, I'm guessing they only spent a dollar or two on your "free" electricity. Does the outlet mall make more money, averaged over all the transactions from all the EV's that spend time getting a "free" charge, compared to what they would make if they spent the money on some combination of Coupons, Google Ads, TV Ads, Radio Ads, Billboards, and US Postal Fliers instead? I'm confident the outlet mall put out a press release when they installed the chargers. I'm confident that Plug Share sends them some EV customers who would not otherwise stop. I strongly suspect the decision to offer "free" charging is paying for itself.

DC Fast Charging is like filling up with gas at a highway service plaza, not the frugal choice in most cases. DC Fast Charging also suffers from wildly varying regulations in different states. Some states mandate that DC Fast Charging must charge by kilowatt hours, some mandate that they must charge by time, and some even regulate the specific price that must be charged. Some states allow utilities to charge DC Fast Charging sites "demand" surcharges which can significantly push up the site's electricity costs, while some states prohibit the practice, or exempt EV charging from "demand" surcharges. The cheapest way to charge is of course "free" charging. Some EV purchases include some complimentary DC Fast Charging. However, most "free" charging is the slower level 2 charging with power levels similar to an electric drier or oven. Usually companies or organizations are providing "Free" charging as an employee and/or customer perk, or to make a "Green" statement. Level 2 charging is so inexpensive, it can be a cheap form of PR. Similar to the "free shipping" that Amazon made so popular. Fortunately, when FREE is not convenient, most EV owners charge almost exclusively at home. In the past 30 days the only time I have DC Fast charged was the trip from NH to RI and southern MA when I bought my Virgo. That represented just 4% of my charging over those 30 days.

Solved it, with some Button Thread, a Needle, Needle Nose Pliers, and something to cut the thread. First thread the needle, and stick it through the end of the shock cord. After pulling it through the shock cord, thread the needle with the loose ends as well. The needle and thread easily pass through the tether hole in the new hatch cover. Need a good grip to pull. So needle nose pliers pinch the thread, and add a quick wrap for a secure grip. Then pull while praying you don't damage the hatch cover. Sigh of relief, the shock cord made it through the tether hole without breaking anything, Remove the thread, then a simple overhand stopper knot like the factory did the other covers. Put away the tools. Apply some 303 Protectant and the kayak is ready for more fun on the water.

Is there a trick to threading the bungee tether line through the tether hole of a replacement hatch cover?