Big snow last night. All night long the world was pink with the sodium lights of town illuminating the falling snow. It came down hard and heavy. I spent until after noon snowblowing and shoveling before I could get the second coat of paint on Betty’s bottom. And damn, these red paints just don’t cover. So at eight pee-em this evening I put on the third coat and pulled the tape. I’ve seen this boat somewhere before…
If you click on this next image to enlarge it you can see Gary Ladd’s 1971 poster on the wall above the boat. In the foreground is the Emerald Mile, the first Briggs dory in Martin Litton’s Grand Canyon fleet. Behind her is the Betty Boop. And behind that is the Malibu Canyon, one of three Keith Steele boats that Martin bought after his original 1962 Portola.
Betty’s cute butt:
This boat is really growing on me.
The Harpoon design was inspired by Ron Hayes' appreciation for classic Literature. At first Dad was toying with an arrow, deliniating "Down River", but this looked too much like a rather trite symbol for "Male". Dad was macho, but not to that extent. By erasing on half of the arrow, he arrived at the harpoon, and it is no mistake that he kept it: Dad became "Ahab" and he was seeking the great "White Whale/Water" with his metaphor. We talked about this before he settled on the final design, and thus was born the harpoon on the bow of the "Betty Boop".
Red paint truly does not cover. Something about needing more pigment to get the color. Can drive you nuts!