Herald & Lantern 7 December '83

39

Cape Man Designs Very Unusual Boat

By DORIS WARD * Nichols of Rio Grande, innovation began early. He For 42-year-old Harold was only 4 years old when

TIME OUT — A man of many interests. Harold Nichols of Rio Grande relaxes for moment in his Hydraulics Inc. office.

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by Dr. Robert C Beitman

Pneumonia and other serious lung disorders will be our topic for the next several weeks. As an introduction to the topic it is instructive to learn the parts and function of the respira tory tract. Breathing i$ a fundamental part of staying alive and we all tend to take it for granted. Yet, preventive measures can play a key role in our wellness program, particularly for the very young and very old. Carbon dioxide is one of the by-products produced by our bodies. It is not a product we can use and we must get it out of our body. This elimination is done in the lungs. We exchange life-giving oxygen for the - waste product, carbon dioxide in our lungs. All the - < mm~

m Next week's menu of meals served by the Cape May County Nutritional Project for the Eldeily

Next week’s menu: Dec. 12: Veal patty with brown gravy, cream style corn, beets in orange sauce, fresh apple, raisin cookie. Dec. 13: Spaghetti with tomato sauce, meat balls. Parmesan cheese, mixed salad with creamy Italian dressing, pineapple tidbits. Dec. 14: Creamed chicken, buttered rice, peas and carrots, fresh Bartlett pear, biscuits. Dec. 15: New England clam chowder, deviled crab with tartar sauce, diced butternut squash, chocolate pudding. Dec. 16: Apple juice, stuffed creole pepper, tossed salad with French dressing, doughnut. All meals are accompanied by bread, margarine, and beverage. Snacks to be delivered to the homebound with the mobile meals are: Dec. 12, Roast beef sandwich, fresh orange, milk. Dec. 13: Peanut butter and jelly sandwich, fresh apple, milk. Dec. 14: Two hard-boiled eggs, tomato/lettuce salad, mayonnaise, crackers. Dec. 15: Swiss sandwich, canned ] milk. Dec. 16: Chicken salad sandwich, apple sauce, milk.

other parts of the respiratory system serve basically as channels to bring in the oxygen and remove the carbon*dioxide, and to protect the delicate linings from foreign bodies. THE BEGINNING of the respiratory tract obviously includes the nose, throat, and trachea (windpipe). Where the trachea extends into the chest it divides into two main branches called "bronchi.” Each branch lead£ to the lung, where the branch spreads into smaller air passages called "bronchioles.” At the tip of each of the bronchioles are tiny balloon-like areas called "alveoli,” of which there are about 300 million in each lung. It is in the walls of the alveoli that oxygen and carbon dioxide are exchanged through a complex chemical process. Other important parts of the respiratory system are the muscles we use to draw in and expel] air and gases. The main muscle, the diaphragm, is attached to the lower ribs and separates the abdomen and chest areas. When we tighten the diaphragm and other muscles which lie between the ribs, a vacuum effect is created around the lungs, causing them to expand and draw in the air. When we relax these muscles, the lung walls fold back toward each other and push out the used air. Note: The air we exhale still contains, some oxygen, otherwise mouth to mouth resuscitation couldn’t work. Several mechanisms protect the lungs. One such is the “pleura,” which is a membrane that forms a double layer surrounding each lung. Their main function is to lubricate the lungs so they can work smoothly. Also, the multiple tiny hairs called “cilia” line the airways and protect the lungs from infection and respiratory diseases including pneumonia, bronchitis, emphysema and pulmonary edema. A basic concept to remember is that a chronic nagging cough is not normal and should be brought to the attention of your doctor. Health Watch is a public education project of the Cape May Unit of the New Jersey Division of the American Cancer Society. For free pamphlets on lung cancer or smoking and lung disease contact the main office at 15 Delsea Dr.,Rio Grande.

he fashioned his first pair of skis from old barrel staves and was challenging the snow covered slopes near his Londonderry, Vermont, home. For Harold; it has been a world of challenge ever since. His most recent accomplishment is typical of his premise that "nothing gets done by sitting still.” For the past several months, drivers along Rt. 9 may have noticed the steady construction of a large barge-like craft at Nick’s Hydraulics in Rio

Grande.

Recently completed, the boat was .launched at Pharo’s Marina and successfully plowed its way through the back bay and into the Cape May Canal, pushing a huge wall of water before its square bow. Back at the marina, the test run completed, an excited Nichols remarked,

“She performed just the way I knew she would. She took nine months to build, but she’s all ready to go.” THE CUSTOM-BUILT craft, known as a push-pull boat, was ordered and purchased by the Improvement and Maintenance Department of Pompano Beach, Fla., and will be used to assist dredging operations in clearing the inland waterways around Hillsboro Inlet. Measuring 25 feet in length by 10 in width, it is propelled by a 3208 Caterpillar diesel engine. Nichols explained, "The top speed is only about 10 knots but the need for the powerful engine is for the thrust.” A man who enjoys doing the unusual, Nichols explained, "I came up with the idea for the boat from an advertisement placed in a national boating magazine by the State of Florida which was searching for a craft that would meet their rather unique specifications. “I guess we filled the bill, for my plans were chosen over some 40 other replies.” The firm has already received three additional inquiries about the push-pull boat and Nichols is hopeful that these will lead to further orders. IT IS THIS type of enthusiasm, ambition and innovation that propelled Nichols from a factoryworker in Londonderry’, Vt., to the owner of a successful hydraulic companyin Cape May County that presently employs eight

men.

"I moved here from Vermont in 1964 and went to work*with a dredging company, commuting back and forth to Philadelphia, Nichols said, “but I was looking for a position where .1 could devote more time to my family. We all enjoy the outdoors and spend a good deal of time camping, fishing and hiking." While he was employed with the dredging firm he

became interested in hydraulics. After a two--year home study course h£ decided to open a local firm serving the fishing fleet. "It sort of snowballed and we incorporated in 1969. It’s worked out quite well now that the fishing industry- has become more advanced in its technological demands. ' NICHOLS HAS the added, support of family members in his undertaking. His wife Sheila serves as treasurer and bookkeeper and daughter Lianne, 22, works as a secretary, between trips to Stockton State College where she is pursuing a career in Marketing. Eighteen-year-old Mitchell is training as a mechanic in the family business. Christopher, 20, attends^ Messiah College in Penn " sylvania and ^laughter Laura, 21, works at.a nearby supermarket. Always active and never still, this man of many interests is engaged ill restoring his tum-of-the-century home iii Rio Grande. Asked about the future, Nichols confessed to a long interest in old

FINAL CHECK — Last minute inspection of engine is completed at PhariTs Marina and unusual cHft is ready to go.

fashioned blacksmithing and is considering opening his own shop. Based on his past record, if Harold Nichols can find a

"spreading chestnut trpe," somewhere in the county, he may soon be on the ^vay to establishing another sue cessful enterprise.

SHAKEDOWN CRUISE — Unusual 'Push-pull- boat designed by Harold Nichols plows through Cape May Canal on test run. As bow wave attests, craft butts, rather than cuts, through water.

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