It was frigid cold outside this weekend. So cold we had to cancel our weekend outrigger practice on the Anacostia. Instead the group moved inside the boathouse and did a group workout on the Concept 2's. We have six machines which were modified to use a canoe stroke instead of the sliding seat rowing stroke. If you're a regular blog reader you may remember that I actually own a Concept 2, so it may seem silly to drive all the way in to DC to use one. But working out alone is not the same as working out with the group. We had some very interesting music selections blaring and of course Nate yelling at us through our reps. Much better than rowing at home ... alone.

But that's not what this post is about. This post is about how you can make your own kayak stand out of PVC pipes! Here's the recipe:

These are all 1" PVC pipes.

Get 24 feet of 1" PVC pipe cut into the following lengths:

Four sections of 4 feet each.
Eight sections of 1 foot each.

One small can of PVC cement.

About six feet of pipe insulation and duct tape in the color of your choice. I chose pink.

Twelve end caps and four elbow joints as shown in the photo above.

Two 3" bolts and two washers and two nuts.

About 12 feet of heavy duty rope or cord, preferably something that won't degrade in the sun and rain if you intend to keep the kayak stand outside.



If you have a saw you can cut the PVC pipe yourself. But what I did was go to Home Depot and find a really cute guy and ask him to cut it for me. This seemed to work out pretty good and he even cut a few extra sections because the original cuts weren't exactly one foot each.

On the four foot PVC pipes measure down about two feet and drill a hole large enough for the three inch bolt. Then attach the two pipes together with the bolt and nuts as shown in the photo. Then using the PVC cement coat the ends of one of the four foot sections and add a one foot section on each end using the elbow joints. Coat the end of the pipes with the cement and apply the end caps.

To keep the stand from collapsing on itself you'll need to secure the bottom. I drilled a hole through the pipe and the bottom near the elbow joints and secured each with some old spectra cord ... which is really strong. Ok you're almost done ... now just wrap the pipe insulation around the top part of the stand to protect the kayak and secure with the duct tape.

And that's it! A kayak stand made out of PVC pipes!

-Susanita

I have to admit I've been glued to the news and the TV lately following the debates and trying to understand the fall of my candidate ... Hillary. Yes, I'm a Hillary supporter. I voted for Bill and I was a supporter of the Clintons all through the Clinton drama in the 90's. I even ran into one of Bill's "girlfriends" on the streets of DC once. She was very tall. I passed her on the way into a hotel and all I remember is staring into her breasts. That's how tall she was.

I'm also one of those "older Americans" who saw a return to the 90's as a good thing. And I was excited about the possibility of the first woman president.

But every day Barack Obama catches more momentum. And it's not about race. It's about personality. Hillary, for all her intelligence and strength and perseverance, is not an engaging personality. She's about as exciting as Margaret Thatcher or Queen Elizabeth. And I'm not saying this to be mean. After all Hillary is my candidate of choice. I say this with an air of resignation.

Every day the news reports on some new crisis. The global warming crisis. The oil crisis. The looming recession and the return of inflation. The threat of terrorism. The senseless war in Iraq. And what Americans want now; what Americans need now is optimism and hope. Obama offers hope. He offers hope in his smile. He offers hope in his calm, noncombative demeanor. He offers hope in his calm, surfer dude approach to the world.

Of the four democratic candidates on that stage Saturday night he was the only one who protested the war in Iraq from the very beginning. This alone shows that he is capable of a calm, reasoned approach in a crisis. Edwards is not calm. Edwards is combative. Richardson ... well Richardson is just dull. And Hillary is political. I suspect that she supported the war because it looked like the best political move at the time. That's not the best reasoning.

In an era when all the forces seem to be against us, Obama gives us hope.



-Susanita