[Rhodes22-list] July 4th light show and damn spiders...

[Brad Haslett]

John,

I've had serious spider problems at my marina from the beginning.  The list
has recommended several cures but none have worked yet.  The cups on my wind
indicator have remained frozen in a web up to 20 knots.  I have had success
using one of those kid's water guns that shoot  long distances.  You'll be
wet when you're done but it works.  I've thought about using one of those
wasp killer cans.  I use them around the house and the range is pretty good
but I'm not sure how high they would go vertically.  You'd want to wear eye
protection and take a bath immediately after.

Brad

On 7/5/07, John Lock <jlock at relevantarts.com> wrote:
>
> 4th of July on Lake Sinclair in GA yielded the best sailing weather
> we've had all year.  Wind was a steady 10kts from the east, which is
> across the channel in our orientation.  I could sail north or south
> at around 5kts without tacking for miles.
>
> I bought some 12vdc rope light and cut 30-foot lengths to string up
> from the mast at night.  One string was tied to the stern rail and
> the other on the bow pulpit.  We motored around and watched the
> fireworks shows around the lake, looking like some huge glowing
> triangle.  It must have been quite a sight from shore.  If I find any
> pix, I'll post them.
>
> Now for the problem... as I mentioned the wind was fairly steady from
> the east, but my masthead fly refused to point east!  I watched it
> for a while and it was clearly moving, so I knew it wasn't stuck in
> place.  I was convinced the winds at the surface must be blowing in a
> different direction than at mast height.  Not likely, but that's what
> the evidence supported.
>
> As the sun set, the light hit the masthead just right and I spotted
> the problem.  A spider has built a web from the VHF antenna down to
> the wind vane!  It was securely trapped into pointing within about 90
> degrees of dead-astern.  The wind could blow it around a little
> before the web stretched tight and stopped it going further.
>
> So now the masthead fly is pretty useless.  That spider is camped out
> up there and I can't figure out how to get rid of it or even clear
> the web.  Tried to spray it down with a hose, but the water pressure
> won't reach that high.
>
> Anybody got a bright idea on how to clear it?  Do I need to haul
> myself up there and clear it by hand?  Speaking of which, has anyone
> used a bosun's chair on the Rhodes?  Is that practical for a 165lb
> person?  Will my wife have heart failure if I try it (rhetorical
> question, I already know the answer)?
>
> Cheers!
>
> John Lock
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> s/v Pandion - '79 Rhodes 22
> Lake Sinclair, GA
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>
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