Deckhand, Shannon Kelso dons a full yellow rainsuit as the weather began to take a turn on us north of Ricketts Creek, Tennessee. When building tow, deckhands pull cable rigging as tight as possible by hand and then loop it over a hook on each arm of a ratchet. The center crank on the ratchet can then be turned to draw in the arms, tightening the cables to a secure level. In his hand is a "toothpick", used to get leverage on the ratchet's hook. The chainlinks act as adjustment notches at the end of a tight cable. The shortest link is used in order to tighten up the cable. Toothpicks then allow the deckhand to pull the hook through a link in the chain and secure with a metal "O" ring for tightening.
