All of us pontooners do things we love in our spare time. Some of us read, some play ball, some conduct bedload dynamics research on the river bottom.
Grad student Eugene Randle of Alabama plans to do just this. Tuscaloosa News brings word about his cool project, taking place on a pioneered pontoon officially dubbed Minerva this past Labor Day.
Randle plans to conduct his research on bedload dynamics on the Black Warrior River—essentially, to monitor the changes in the riverbed’s sediment using a sonar array he specially fitted to his pontoon with an adapted trolling motor mount. This University Alabama grad student plans to track the changes in the riverbed’s sediment over time. Minerva will also be a hub for gathering samples of river water and of the riverbed itself.
Randle personally took on the job of patching together the pontoons from a 1994 South Star pontoon boat, replacing the rotted decking, and installing refurbished deck furniture and a Humminbird sonar array (purchased by the university department). That and a few little additions of his own will enable him to conduct his study.
Four months were already spent fixing up Minerva and creating parts that Randle would need for the specialized task. A little more electronic tweaking stands between Randle and the start of his research—he plans to start his survey of the river bottom by spring—but lady Minerva is now river-ready.
Randle’s wife, Kristy, thought of the Roman goddess of wisdom and her connection to UA when they were brainstorming names for the pontoon. “It was fitting,” Kristy Randle says, as the goddess’ image is in everything from the university seal to the setting of the class ring.
Randle’s public boat launch was supported by family, neighbors, and fellow colleagues amidst the Labor Day bustle of fishing and ski boats parading down the Rock Quarry Branch Boat Launch.
Champagne was poured on the bow and everyone expressed their excitement, including co-supervisors Lisa Davis, an associate geography professor, and Sagy Cohen, an assistant professor of geography at UA, who says they hope to develop computer models from Randle’s work.
“Minerva is a fitting name for a vessel which shall carry Eugene in his scientific journey,” fellow grad student Shawn Carter says.
As Randle jokes, “She’s not a luxury craft, she’s kind of spartan,” but for a job like this, spartan is exactly what he needs.
To read the full Tuscaloosa News article, click here.
Photo by Erin Nelson at The Tuscaloosa News
