'Atta boys' all around!

I commend those involvoed with doing the leg work to have these docks donated, but did these marine "experts" not realize that these former Vasser crew docks were not well suited to the direct punishment that the river delivers to the Cornwall Landing river front? Cornwall bay is a much different pplace than the fairly narrow and much calmer section of river near the Mid Hudson Bridge.

I have seen these docks first hand and would imagine that one would need to basically double the freeboard to allow for enough flotation to be added to make them stable. Not a simple repair task.

Who is going to perform this work?

Agian, I have to give it to them for getting the docks, I just don't think it was thought through very well.

The wood and the floatation devices are worth the work.

Dear "Village Idiot",

Could you please share your credentials? We could use more "experts" like you to volunteer some time. And why not use your real name?

John Wenz

Dear Editor,

I wish you had asked me for my thoughts before you published this article. Here's the text of a letter I sent to the Village Riverfront Revitalization Committee:

The reason these crew docks are slippery in areas is related to the low freeboard, but low freeboard is not the cause.

There are, in fact, some very slippery areas of algae growth and slime on the deck surface. Most of the surface, where there is no growth or slime, is not slippery at all; wet or dry.

A couple of the dock sections have missing floatation modules or are otherwise in need of minor repair causing them to float lower in spots. Given the extra low freeboard in those spots, some boat wakes have been washing over the top. That has allowed the boards in those areas to stay wet, basically water-logged. Algae and slime have accumulated in these areas, causing them to be slippery in these spots.

Keep in mind that these docks haven't been used by the Vassar rowing team since springtime, so they haven't been washed in several months. A regular cleaning with a power washer would have prevented the algae growth and the buildup of slime. There are also chemical inhibitors which can be applied as a preventative. The wood, if kept clean, is quite a safe surface to walk on- even when awash by a boat wake or in a downpour. That's why dock builders use this type of surface. It also requires very little maintenance beyond a regular washing. By applying paint or non-skid to the wood, an ongoing yet unnecessary maintenance task would be created. Wooden docks are NOT inherently slippery.

As you can see, with proper maintenance and repair, these floating docks will function as they were designed. If we plan to use them to accommodate boats other than canoes or dinghies, we will need to increase the freeboard either by using additional floatation or by raising the structure beneath the deck. When the time comes, we can ask the dock builder for his advice on how to best accomplish this. Just like a boat or ship, the location of centers of buoyancy and gravity must be accounted for in order to achieve optimal stability.

I hope this explanation is of help to all.

John Wenz

Thank you to John Wenz, the Village of Cornwall on Hudson and the volunteers who work so hard to improve our water front and community. It is a very easy to throw rocks like a village idiot. It is very discouraging to the generous and proactive folks who make things happen.

Thank you john for a well written explanation

J Buescher