92 IN THE SHADE

Ninety-two in the Shade was decent book by Tom McGuane and a forgettable movie starring Peter Fonda. But, with a Bermuda high parked over the East Coast it is a reality in the cockpit of BIANKA and the heat expected to last another day or two. The solar bimini I built over the cockpit:

is doing it's job by keeping the 12 volt and 48 volt battery banks charged up as well as providing much need shade from the summer sun. But,with temperatures in the mid 90's and fickle breezes it still gets hot. Luckily relief is just over the side with a swim.  The other day I was rewiring some digital panel meters and as I was sweating getting ready to fire up my portable butane soldering iron the thought the idea of anymore heat was unthinkable. So I stopped and jumped in for a refreshing a half hour swim instead before finishing things up.

Though I am not cursing the heat at all. It is summer and it was only five months ago that this was the scene I was looking at:

So the only thing is to keep the beers cold and fire up Ray Bonneville's July Sun on the MP3 player and enjoy the season and know that as hot as it is on board it is much worse on land.