Launch Ramp Mayhem [Archive]

c640947

02-11-2005, 01:19 PM

I am lucky to have a girl that is a pro at ramp procedures. Probably b/c I taught her early..... although we are no strangers to fights on the boat. I am picky with cleanliness.

When I was a kid we used to go to a TVA lake with a big ramp and I loved (hated) seeing what we called "the hold your boat people." Obviously the wives either didnt know how to more likely werent trusted to manuever the boat (mostly fishing boats) so instead stood there blocking the ramp while hubby went and parked the car. All this while there is a line of people waiting 8 cars deep. The blood pressure rises quickly. Add to the fact that a lot of these people rarely boat and have not idea what they are doing and it you weren't waiting it would be funny to watch.

Now I put in on a river where it is mostly experienced people, mostly skiiers/boarders and people rarely wait for the small two ramp area. Down the lake a bit is a more popular area and it is the same old yahoos.

Last time I was there I saw a family that had come in after just being out (I figured this out after watching for 20 minutes while I waited) and had forgot their plug. But instead of moving away from the ramp they sat on the ramp and let it drain while 6 cars all waited. People started getting mad.... the usual crap. Makes for a bad start to the day.

There is definitely something to be said for paying extra to live on the lake......

Lake_Tippy_Skier

02-11-2005, 01:48 PM

got this on an email awhile back :eek3:

JEREMY79

02-11-2005, 01:49 PM

"The hold your boat people" I dont think there is anyone here who has not experienced that. Those people drive me crazy!! :mad:

mitch

02-11-2005, 01:53 PM

Saw one truck and and trailer slip into the water, actually got there right before they dragged it out. Guy was standing there as it was coming out and said, it doesn't look too bad. Right after he said that the roof and doors sucked in. Pretty funny. Skiing out in Nor. Cal (Delta) 2 years ago (off season), they had bleachers set up at the ramp, and my buddy said in the summer they're usually packed at the end of the day. Glad I don't deal w/ ramps much any more.

Brn85ss

02-11-2005, 01:54 PM

I have lots to tell but this one sticks in my mind the most.This guy starts to back down the ramp(200 yards long) with his family in the boat, the hitch breaks lose from his van and the boats heads down the ramp with family inside(no saftey chains).Their is a bunch of people at the water loading,this is a 4 bay ramp if I remember right. Lucky for everyone there the boat went about 100 yards and did a left turn down a small cliff and into the water. I think their was some broken bones but nothing major. Wish I had a camera at the time! I always keep my eye at the top of the ramp now! I have more I'll save for later wish I had pictures.

kpickett

02-11-2005, 01:57 PM

We have a very strict rule - no making fun of people on the launch ramp. We've sat in our truck, laughing at people doing really stupid things on the launch ramp, and then had the worst launching experiences of our lives - things like a freak wind storm picking up right when we are taking out or having clutch troubles right on the ramp. We call it launch ramp karma.

That said, I've seen some real idiots out there. The best one was a few years ago. My buddies and I were lining up to launch - the ramp was empty - and we see this truck backing down a beat up Bayliner. Something was making a weird sound. I kid you not - all four tires on the truck were flat and so were both trailer tires. The thing was riding on rims, and it's a dirt ramp. The tires were flopping around sideways on the rims. It was three women trying to launch. They asked us for help, but what could we do? "Get new tires."

Then, I saw someone trying to launch with one of those hinged trailers. As they were backing down the ramp, the hinge gave way, and the whole boat flipped up and was standing vertically on its outdrive. That was exciting. Plus it was a bay area lake on a weekend with a line of 25 people waiting to launch. Good times...

Here's another fun one: I was invited to go fishing with a guy in Alaska. He was really anal about letting anyone else help with his boat, so I just stood around pretending to know nothing. Turns out he was also stoned to the gills. He launched. I'm holding the rope. The boat starts sinking. He forgot the plug. I'm yelling for him, but he's moving pretty slowly. That boat took on a lot of water before he could get back down.

Good times...good times....

AirJunky

02-11-2005, 02:01 PM

I got lucky a married a gal who can actually drive the truck/trailer backwards or the boat! In fact a few times she has been sitting at the ramp waiting to pick me up & stabbed the trailer between 2 yahoos on a double ramp. About the time they start to b1tch, I drive the boat up on the trailer, the Boat Buddy locks & she gases it up the ramp leaving them behind to wonder how the he11 we pulled out so quickly!!

milkmania

02-11-2005, 02:06 PM

That said, I've seen some real idiots out there. The best one was a few years ago. My buddies and I were lining up to launch - the ramp was empty - and we see this truck backing down a beat up Bayliner. Something was making a weird sound. I kid you not - all four tires on the truck were flat and so were both trailer tires. The thing was riding on rims, and it's a dirt ramp. The tires were flopping around sideways on the rims. It was three women trying to launch. They asked us for help, but what could we do? "Get new tires."

sounds like one of those hinged spike strip things they use at state parks around here....
you can go out, but you danged sure better not back up!

kpickett

02-11-2005, 02:14 PM

sounds like one of those hinged spike strip things they use at state parks around here....
you can go out, but you danged sure better not back up!

Yeah, it sounds like one, but there wasn't one of those things anywhere around. I really have no idea how they managed to lose all six tires. They were just driving all around the ramp, too.

As I recall, we were pretty amused, but it wasn't a great day for us. We were pulling our boat early, because the points went out...

Footin

02-11-2005, 02:24 PM

I saw a guy back in his 25 foot open bow, loaded with family and coolers for the day, and try to power it off the trailer. As he did this a loud crunching noise was heard, the sound was awfull! He pulled the boat back out and saw he had totally lunched his stainless prop on the ramp, and to make matters worse, it was one of those "duoprops" so his actions not only caused him to ruin a family day of boating before it even started, but also cost him alot of money for two stainless props that were bent way beyond repair.
I actually felt bad for the guy.

tph

02-11-2005, 02:46 PM

This isn't exactly mayhem..but an interesting experience none the less.

Many years ago I was launching an Outboard boat on a moss covered ramp. I backed down the ramp, set the parking brake and got out of the car to release the bow hook. The entire rig started sliding towards the water. :eek: As I was trying to decide how I was going to tell my parents that they now owned an submarine, the sliding stopped. The boat had floated off the trailer and most of the weight that was pulling the car was now gone.

BriEOD

02-11-2005, 03:06 PM

Worst fight I ever had with my wife was on a 4th July weekend at the ramp putting the boat back on the trailer. $100 bucks later and a few hours to cool down, well we are still married.

MarkP

02-11-2005, 03:07 PM

$100 bucks later :confused:

ChrisG

02-11-2005, 03:10 PM

Rule of thumb: check to be sure your engine starts before leaving trailer.

Gotta love the donkeys who wrench on their boats, while tied up at the dock, with a line of cars waiting to launch on a beautiful Saturday morning...

OhioProstar

02-11-2005, 03:14 PM

Bail Money???

BriEOD

02-11-2005, 03:14 PM

A week later or so after I got it back from the prop shop. I've told this story 2-3 x's on here. So the Reader's Digest version goes something like this. I backed the truck down and she was coming up on the trailer. It was before I had put the boat buddy on so we had that ridiculous bar. I kept telling her a little more, a little more. Well she gave it a lot more almost put the bow into the back of my Toyota and the prop hit the trailer joist. Since then the bar is gone and in the junk pile in my garage and I am willing to be the spokesman of Boat Buddy for free.

east tx skier

02-11-2005, 03:18 PM

With our I/O, the jobs were standardized. I backed the trailer, the wife loaded the boat. I attached the winch strap and pulled the trailer out. She could nail the landing every time.

Shortly after we got our boat, we decided it was time for her to drive it on the trailer (had reversed our roles for the first couple of weeks). So I back the trailer in and she comes in just about dead perfect. Then, for some reason, at the last minute, she hesitates and decides she wants a do-over. She hits reverse and isn't used to the backing symptoms of a straight drive. I had to dive between the platform and the pier to protect our new toy (aka my firstborn). Barely averted catastrophe.

Long story short, she now backs the trailer better than anybody I know. When idiots don't pull far enough up the ramp before stopping to wipe down their boats, she can thread the needle with that trailer.

MasterMason

02-11-2005, 03:24 PM

I was out meeting some freinds of my on Lake shasta, I had my little 14 ft wooden rockholt at the time. Since it was a small boat I often launched it by myself. I was drivind down the very long steep ramp that appeared to have pleanty of room to turn around at the bottom, however when I got down it, there were several cars parked at the side of the ramp and it turned out I didn't have room. I had to unhook the boat on the steapest ramp I have ever seen to turn around. One of the chocks came out, and the boat was headed to the water. Luckly a couple of guys came out of the building and we caught it before it went in....

ski_king

02-11-2005, 03:41 PM

sbuell

02-11-2005, 03:53 PM

First I have to say that my wife backs the truck and usually amazes those around with her abilities. She is usually the one to complain about the jerks that can't figure out how to share a 2 place ramp. :mad:

I had a friend who learned a valuable lesson a few years ago. On a busy Saturday afternoon he waited through the long line for his turn on the ramp. When he finally got his chance he backed in and jumped out to push the boat off the trailer (little Bayliner) to his son waiting at the dock. When he did this the rest of the family took it as their cue to bail out of the vehicle. His security thinking wife hit the power locks. He goes to get back in the SUV to pull it out and it's all locked up and running ON THE RAMP! :eek: Needless to say there were many people waiting in line that gave numerous offers of heavy items to break the window with.

Just another reason to always leave the window down on the ramp.

aprgriggs

02-11-2005, 03:58 PM

husband backs the trailer and I drive the boat. If anyone is going to screw up my boat it is going to be me. ;)

captkidd

02-11-2005, 04:07 PM

I have a ramp on my lot. If someone asks nicely, I usually let them launch so I get to see all kinds......

There was the guy who had the trailer sitting on top of the ball and not down and over it. Everything was going fine until halfway down the ramp his buddy in the boat moved to the back of the boat and lifted the toung off the ball. That was fun to watch!

You would have thought this guy would have learned at that point how to hitch up the trailer. The next day when he went to pull it out he somehow managed to back the trailer ok and load the boat. But halfway up the ramp, his buddy went to the back of the boat again, and you guessed it, it wasnt hitched right. Another quick trip down the ramp backwards into the water.

He may have been using a 1 7/8" ball for a 2" hitch; it would look like it was hitched but wouldn't hold if any weight were moved to the rear of the trailer.

I had a friend who pulled his john boat out of the water and then started through the parking lot when the trailer came off. The stud on the ball he was using was too short and he could only get the nut on about 2 threads, so the whole ball came off. Fortunately he was on flat ground at the time.

east tx skier

02-11-2005, 04:11 PM

Just another reason to always leave the window down on the ramp.

Love the keyless entry on my ford. We usually leave the keys in it so they don't end up at the bottom of the lake.

bradamerry

02-11-2005, 04:12 PM

I will not laugh at any of these stories. I don't want Farmer to get jinxed ;) !!

kpickett

02-11-2005, 07:53 PM

I will not laugh at any of these stories. I don't want Farmer to get jinxed ;) !!

That's right! Launch ramp karma, people.

k2mc

02-11-2005, 07:56 PM

One day we approached the ramp and noticed quite a few people standing around on the dock. Several cars were scattered around a small 2 up ramp. I quickly recognized the whitish glow of a pickup under the water and that the gapers were wondering how in the world they were going to get it out (and what he was going to tell his wife). I drive the boat on cuz it idles a little fast and makes my wife nervous. She proceeds to thread the needle with the trailer and received an ovation from the crowd that had formed.

I assured the owners that they weren't the first ones to get a wet car. Years ago when I was a kid, I was helping my Mom load our 12 foot alum fishing boat and the parking brake failed. '78 Mercury Zephyr took a swim. Should have left it there.

east tx skier

02-11-2005, 09:13 PM

He who has not launched without putting the plug in, cast the first stone.

/did it with the I/O.

bradamerry

02-11-2005, 09:16 PM

He who has not launched without putting the plug in, cast the first stone.

/did it with the I/O.
My dad did it with a fishing boat we had once. But I am chunkin' rocks. But now that I said it, I will more than likely sink the 87' this year :noface: .

ski_king

02-11-2005, 09:24 PM

He who has not launched without putting the plug in, cast the first stone.

/did it with the I/O.

not me (http://www.tmcowners.com/teamtalk/showpost.php?p=7400&postcount=6)

Brn85ss

02-12-2005, 12:22 AM

My dad did it with a fishing boat we had once. But I am chunkin' rocks. But now that I said it, I will more than likely sink the 87' this year :noface: .

My dad and grandmother and I went fishing in the S.F. bay when I was a kid. We launched the boat and got my grandmother in,and my father and I went and parked the trailer. When we got back to the ramp the boat was half submerged and my grandma just sat in the boat with water up to her knee's and never said one word.It happens to everyone once,or twice. Laughing at yourself is good karma.

k2mc

02-12-2005, 12:53 AM

I've never forgotten the plug, but did forget to reattach the intake hose after running in the driveway. that's a big hole

whitedog

02-12-2005, 01:01 AM

I to have forgot the plug in the i/o. :(

Back in the late 70's first time out for the year my dad forgot to undo the rear tie downs, took quite abit of effort before we figured uot why the trailer was floating. We got a good laugh later.

whitedog

02-12-2005, 01:06 AM

In the late 80's we were in line to launch at a ramp on the Mississippi in the LaCrosse WI area, an area with several short but steep ramps. this guy with a glastron on a roller trailer loads boat and unhooks whinch strap to reconnect it. He gets distracted get in the truck to pull up the ramp and leaves the boat sitting on the ground half way up the ramp. We helped him reload, it is possable to hand whinch a 18 foot boat onto a roller trailer then spent the rest of the evening laughing to much to fish.

I have more but will save for later.

aprgriggs

02-12-2005, 09:09 AM

I've never forgotten the plug, but did forget to reattach the intake hose after running in the driveway. that's a big hole

I always put the plug by the keys or in the middle of the floor where I will see it. My dad forgot his plug and it took two weeks to dry out in the summer Texas sun...That was alot of water.

jsonova99

02-12-2005, 10:01 AM

My only story is launching the PS190 for the first time at a ramp without a dock. The girfriend refused to go past her knees in the water because it was cold, so I tried to maneuver over and sure enough I caught the prop right on the concrete. We've gotten past this, but needless to say I was a bit annoyed at the time. The damage was only to the prop though, so no harm done. :purplaugh

phecksel

02-13-2005, 04:44 PM

Here I am fairly experienced (spelled cocky). NEVER connected the bow strap on the old Supra, and had a bad habit on not doing it with the Tri-Star, until one holiday weekend up north. The ramp was built with concrete strips and set up a nice harmonic bounce and managed to bounce the boat right off the trailer. I did not make many friends for the hour or so that I had the only ramp on the lake tied up :( we lifted it with two tow trucks and slid the trailer underneath.

MarkP

02-13-2005, 06:28 PM

Bad carma dude... :noface: ... Keep them PFDs handy.:uglyhamme .

My dad did it with a fishing boat we had once. But I am chunkin' rocks. But now that I said it, I will more than likely sink the 87' this year :noface: .

bradamerry

02-13-2005, 06:48 PM

Bad carma dude... :noface: ... Keep them PFDs handy.:uglyhamme .
I know, I should have keep my mouth shut :( .

MarkP

02-13-2005, 06:54 PM

I’m thinking you had better get one of the stickers that reminds you about the plug and install it right over the key hole.

bradamerry

02-13-2005, 06:56 PM

The plug has now become Brandy and Farmer's job! That way I can't screw it up :D !!

MarkP

02-13-2005, 07:00 PM

I know, I should have keep my mouth shut :( .

Ya see I'm learning from you.. I will keep all my stones.

bradamerry

02-13-2005, 07:02 PM

Ya see I'm learning from you.. I will keep all my stones.
Easy MarkP, watch what you say!! :uglyhamme

BriEOD

02-13-2005, 07:09 PM

bradamerry

02-13-2005, 07:12 PM

Guess I have been lucky!

Leroy

02-13-2005, 07:18 PM

I launched once without the center plug. Shop said, "all ready to go" so we back in start up and luckily my wife notices almost instantly the bilge pumping out the side and then backs in to get me. The Maristar has two plugs and only the back one has the warning light. I wasn't sure she knew how bad it was, really feels bad in the boat and I was looking to drive up on the ramp or shore.

I also was driving on for ~first time on small ramp that stays 3 wide when there was strong cross wind and I couldn't figure out how to back up....needless to say I did several 360's and got to meet several bass fishermen!

Cody

02-13-2005, 07:19 PM

'79 Mark Twain I/O. The first time I lost the plug in the middle of the river and didn't know it until water was visible in the rear seating area.

Of course, I have forgotten the plug before taking off. Luckily, I learned from it and have not repeated myself.

I appreciate those who try to hurry so the next boater can back down, but I don't know if it is worth it to rush so much that you would forget to raise your trim and ruin your prop. It's not that bad, but it will ruin your day.

Gotta love the trim on an inboard!

Professor

02-13-2005, 07:42 PM

Get a sticker, keep the plug right by the engine box so when you close it you see the plug, get a carbiner and attach the plug to the steering wheel, attach the plug to the boat keys, etc. The best way to remember to do it is have a routine. :twocents:
Okay, I have to really agree that getting a specific routine is the ticket. Worse disappointment we had was the day we drove to the lake, hooked up to the boat trailer, uncovered the boat and noticed that the steering wheel had not been replaced from an intensive cleaning. (Yes, O.C.D.) Anyone know how to drive the boat without a steering wheel? We could not figure that one out :(

BriEOD

02-13-2005, 08:04 PM

Actually, you can use a crescent wrench or channel locks ... don't ask me how I know that.

Professor

02-13-2005, 08:08 PM

Actually, you can use a crescent wrench or channel locks ... don't ask me how I know that.
Your kidding. Thought of several things but did not think they would work and was afraid of scratching the paint or something. Okay...so did your "friend" find that they worked well?

BriEOD

02-14-2005, 06:29 AM

Yeah, it works.

atlfootr

02-14-2005, 08:28 AM

Does anyone have any launch ramp mayhem stories or pictures to share! Wish I had pic's for this one ... I don't. Story will have to do.

After a day on the lake, a friend was pulling out his boat onto his trailer.

As he says he often does, he left it hangn'n a couple of feet before the nose of the V. He explained that he "bumps it" foward w/ the brakes of the vehicle while the carpet's runn'n brd's are still wet -- thus sliding it into position to strap in down before towing.

Guess ya all can see, where this is go'n :(
You guessed it :eek3: Rt. thru his Ford Explorer!

The "support brace" broke at it's weld, and the bow of the boat went pass the V stop --
right into the guy's back window!!!

Wished I had taken some picture's of that!! :friday:

BriEOD

02-14-2005, 09:29 AM

Ya know, that's what happens when people try and cut corners.

MarkP

02-14-2005, 09:29 AM

I think we all wish you had taken some pictures of that one

ktn_cmu

02-14-2005, 09:47 AM

This is not at the ramp...but thought it was interesting. A few years back I bought a 1978 Glastron CVX-18 I/O (FYI: top speed 73mph) The first day I had it I did everything right, I put the plug in, checked it out, the whole shebang... for the evening I tied it up to the dock and went up for the night. I came down the next day at about 4pm (rainy day, went to town)...oh...there she is...on the bottom of the lake. Luckily it wasn't deep enough for water to go in the intake...but it still got water in the oil. I had to drive the ole willy's along the beach with the trailer moving docks outta the way. I was able to get the bow up on the trailer with only the rear axle of the jeep under water. But all the weight of the water in the boat I could only crank it up a little way up the trailer until the water level in the boat drained to the water level outside the boat, and repeat until the water had drained out.

With the boat on the trailer I proceeded to bury the jeep, had to disconnect the trailer to get the jeep out. The jeep couldn't drive down the beach with the boat on the trailer, so I had to put the boat back in the water and tow it with the CVX-16 I still had at the time, down to the launch. Whew...lots of work...

Why did it sink??? Well, now I know that I/O's have a bellows that can leak when they get old...sheesh...

mika

03-01-2005, 12:29 PM

I have had a great time reading some of these stories. I guess I am lucky. Since I was raised around boats I kind of grew up knowing what to do and all that fun stuff. Been backing up trailer since I was 14 so that is no biggie. And since our boat lives in a hoist I don't get to go to the launch ramp to much. Well I did have something launch related happen with the PS190. Bought the boat in early 98. It was in the dealership early March. We to to take it for a demo ride in March. It was nice we had a weird winter that year and the lake at the dealership had open water. The first voyage went perfect it was great. The dealership re-winterized it and stored it for us till the weather was a little better. The time came for the first time on our lake. It was April water was about 38 maybe 40 degrees. Well I dropped my brother off with the boat in the water and running perfect. I drive home and he is not there. I hang out some and still I do not see him or hear him. No one was on the lake. I get out the binoculars and I see him at the launch with the engine cover up. So I drive back to the launch. Well there were some quick disconnect plastic fitting on the coolant line that had broken. The engine was pumping a ton of water right into the boat. Not sure if MC put those on or if it was a dealer modification. Either way the fittings failed. I was able to get brass replacements at the local hardware so it did not ruin the day or anything. The best part my brother jumping neck deep in the cold water to keep the boat from having to be beached. Long story short took the boat back to the dealership to let them know what had happened and they gave it the once over. I wanted them to know so that if we had any problems MC could take care of it. The dealership was great and we continute to get awesome service from them all the time. Anyone in Michigan, I highly recommend WaterSports in Fenton they are great!

east tx skier

03-01-2005, 12:47 PM

I've wondered if anyone had a problem with the manifold quick disconnects. I've often thought about replacing the plugs on my boat. Are the brass parts you purchased simply plugs for the manifold, or do they go on the hoses on the quick disconnect kit?

ChrisG

03-01-2005, 01:38 PM

knock, knock...on wood. I haven't had any episodes on the launch...yet. But I will tell you about a buddy of mine who was attempting to launch his 209 one day. He couldn't figure out why his boat wouldn't slide right off the trailer like it normally does until he heard a snap. Apparently he forgot to take off his transom straps.

Robert Averyt

03-01-2005, 02:56 PM

The Brothers that put togeather the Secret spot movie should make another film feature based on a day at the ramp.

The very last time I was on a public boat ramp I had a drunk pull a gun on me.

There are some crazy people on public water.

AirJunky

03-01-2005, 03:08 PM

A number of years ago my brother & a friend of his had a series of episodes on the ramp. For years now we've always done the Air Santa run, skiing as Santa, the week of Christmas. One year it got pretty cold & they had some difficulties. The first day things went fine, dropped the boat in, skied, pulled the boat out & winterized it.
The second day of Air Santa, they stab the trailer down the ramp, one guy in the truck, one in the boat, boat driver hits the throttle in reverse & the boat won't go anywhere. Make sure the straps are all untied, tries it again. Nothing. So they pull it out, make sure there is a prop, no straps, one more time. Then they realize the trailer is still stuck to the boat.... frozen there! A few minutes later the trailer drops. They go ski & then pull the boat out.
The next day, they pull up to the ramp, pull off the straps & then one guy goes to get in the truck & the other in the boat........ but the boat slowly slides off the trailer!! It's sitting on the ramp, on it's rudder & prop & on the ends of the trailer bunks!! Apparantly the bunks were frozen from sitting out the day before. And the frozen boat didn't stick to it, but slides easily now! So they manage to get the boat back on the trailer & replace the prop... then they can go ski.
The last few days were fine... but they had to use the bow strap each time to keep the boat on the trailer!

MasterMason

03-01-2005, 03:40 PM

My brother and a buddy where launching the boat for a ski club weekend. the decided they were going to see how quckly they could launch. So they prepared the boat, my brother whips the boat around the ramp (5 slips full of boats) Threads the needle perfectly puts the boat in the water, other guy starts and guns the enigine and my brother listing for the sounds takes off up the ramp. Problem is the guy had gunned it in neutral so the boat was still not moving back. The prop catches before they are clear of the watter and low and behold you have a boat sitting on the ramp. Not a good day for them. :headbang:

jsonova99

03-01-2005, 03:51 PM

Somehow that isn't a surprise based on the planning. I've had a prop catch the ramp, launched with a dad battery and ended up drifting, and launched without the plug. All within 3 months!! :headbang:

Needless to say I have become the slowest most anal bastard when it comes to launching now. I still wake up sometimes with nightmares about forgetting the plug. When it happened I could picture it sitting on my workbench in the garage, luckily I had it in the glove compartment of the boat. I had about 8 inches of water in the boat though. I should have called it quits there, but after we got the water out went out for a while and then ran out of gas in a thunderstorm. I had a guy in an 8 foot row boat with a 3HP Yamaha tow me in. I also grew up around boats, guess it didn't help me any. :huh:

mika

03-01-2005, 04:05 PM

The brass one I purchased go on the hoses. They have a barbed (sp) fitting on one end and one has a hose male end the other has a hose female.

LloydP

03-01-2005, 04:36 PM

My favorite last year was the redneck I saw who had one battery for his truck and boat (you can see where this is going). Backs the truck down the ramp...shuts it off, takes the battery out, puts it in the boat, starts it, drives off the trailer and to the dock, takes the battery back out, puts it in the truck to drive the truck up to park it, takes the battery back out and drags it back down to the boat...

I agree that it's bad karma to laugh at someone's misfortune, but if people are going to be idiots, it's hard not to laugh!

As I am fond of telling the kids: "Every day is amateur day"

Lloyd

jsonova99

03-01-2005, 04:43 PM

Atleast my screw ups were learning experiences that will never happen again, sharing one battery between your boat and truck is flat out out ridiculous.

djhuff

03-01-2005, 04:43 PM

I was at the lake one evening, while I was waiting for the trailer, I saw this guy put a 23' cabin cruiser on his trailer, and when he tried to pull it out, tires would just spin. He had it hooked to an S-10 pickup 2WD. (it was his first time out with the boat) I offered to hook his trailer up to my truck and pull him out, no problem, when I got back in my truck after re hooking my boat back up, there was $20 on the dash. Got beer money for the night.

ski_king

03-01-2005, 04:53 PM

milkmania

03-01-2005, 04:59 PM

I had my battery die unexpectedly during a good skiing weekend when the boat was already in the water and didn’t want to waste good skiing time buying a new battery. But I didn’t take the one out of my truck, I took the one from my wife’s car.
Later the same weekend I siphoned gas out of her car to get that one last run before sunset when the water was glass.
Ya gotta do what ever you can not to waste good skiing time.

they make movies that start out that way...:uglyhamme

AirJunky

03-01-2005, 05:17 PM

Later the same weekend I siphoned gas out of her car to get that one last run before sunset when the water was glass.

Hehe, we ran out of gas on the freeway in the middle of the Utah desert coming home from a week on a houseboat on Havasu. So we just pulled the tank out of the boat & drained it into the van. Good thing we just happened to be dragging our own reserve tank with us! :uglyhamme

MasterMason

03-01-2005, 05:33 PM

I had my battery die unexpectedly during a good skiing weekend when the boat was already in the water and didn’t want to waste good skiing time buying a new battery. But I didn’t take the one out of my truck, I took the one from my wife’s car.
Later the same weekend I siphoned gas out of her car to get that one last run before sunset when the water was glass.
Ya gotta do what ever you can not to waste good skiing time.

My dad blow the engine in his boat, and while my mom was away for the weekend, he took the engine out of her car and put it in the boat. He slept on the coach for a bit, but we skiied while she was gone.

sfitzgerald351

03-01-2005, 06:05 PM

sfitzgerald351

03-01-2005, 06:08 PM

I still wake up sometimes with nightmares about forgetting the plug.

I have the same nightmares and I've never forgotten the plug. I put mine on one of those carabiner clip keychains and the ONLY place it goes when it's not in the hole is on the steering wheel. It's pretty hard to miss it there and even if you backed down the ramp and into the water, the minute you get in to start the boat to drive it off, you'd notice and no harm has been done.

AirJunky

03-01-2005, 06:14 PM

My dad blow the engine in his boat, and while my mom was away for the weekend, he took the engine out of her car and put it in the boat. He slept on the coach for a bit, but we skiied while she was gone.

:worthy: too funny...... we borrowed a buddy's PS190 while he was at work one time. Around noon the flex plate imploded. By 5 when he came home from work, we had the boat in the garage, the tranny sitting on the floor & the new flex plate ordered. The boat was on the water the following afternoon. He was a bit shocked but it got fixed at no cost to him & was done pretty fast so he couldn't complain...... much.

SDmc205

03-01-2005, 08:12 PM

Evey year you usually see one yahoo or another get arested DWI at the loading zone, but sometimes people just don't think. Last year at Naciemento a couple dropped their boat in the water. They pulled away from the loading zone and tied off at the dock.

No problems right?.....
Wrong.

The wife pulled the truck away from the drop off and the husband got out of the boat to do I don't know what.

Leaving their 3 year old kid in the drivers seat with the boat on!

Of course the kid threw the boat into gear slamming it into the dock and skidding it towards some other boats tied off there.

Luckily some passerby dove into the boat and pulled the kill tether.

So no one was hurt except the guys wallet from the ticket that the sherriff's wrote him.

(Of course that was the same trip that I hit not one but two anchor buddies, one being my own) And of course my friend who was making fun of me ran over his own the next day. Theres something to be said about Karma. LOL

milkmania

03-01-2005, 08:16 PM

(Of course that was the same trip that I hit not one but two anchor buddies, one being my own) And of course my friend who was making fun of me ran over his own the next day. Theres something to be said about Karma. LOL

aside from driving over your anchor buddies, how do you like them?
seems like there would be something to let the the other guys know there was a rope stretched out there.

SDmc205

03-01-2005, 08:24 PM

I have a floater at the end of the buddy. Long story short I was the only one on the boat who knew what to do and instead of doing it myself I relied on a passenger to unclip the tether. He did it too soon and instead of spinning off the tether and then pulling out to the lake the anchor buddy slipped under the boat and i caught it on my prop. (Partially my fault, I should have just killed the motor, but I tried to swing the boat around the line)

Then.....after spending 15 minutes bumping my head under the boat untangling the stupid line, I get free and hit another line floating in the lake. (Oh yeah, now that I think about it it was only the one anchor buddy the other line was just a anchor rope floating without a marker) So after half an hour of cussing under my breath, a bruised head, and the one of the other boats in our group coming back to find out what the heck happened to us, I was out on the lake.

Needless to say I am d**n careful around all anchor lines now. I may not be smart but I'm sure not dumb.

Oh yeah anchor buddies are a beautiful thing very convenient being able to pull your boat into shore and then releasing it back out into the lack, avoids the worries of grounding when the wind picks up.

milkmania

03-01-2005, 08:30 PM

SDmc205,

I'll have to look closer into the anchor buddy then.

btw, did you ever get my PM regarding your cousin's barefoot boom?

ski_king

03-01-2005, 08:55 PM

My dad blow the engine in his boat, and while my mom was away for the weekend, he took the engine out of her car and put it in the boat. He slept on the coach for a bit, but we skiied while she was gone.
Borrowing a battery and gas I can get away with, now taking the engine out of wifes car may be going just a little too far.....

But then again, you got to ski, so it sounds ok.

André

03-01-2005, 09:23 PM

SDmc205
What is the graphic pattern in the back of the left boat?
Never saw that!

tex

03-02-2005, 09:05 AM

Professor

03-02-2005, 09:27 AM

WakeSeeky

03-02-2005, 11:42 AM

Great stories! One of my more boneheaded moves turned out pretty lucky. Early last spring, I'm putting in at one side of the ramp, the shore's at my left, a couple with a jet boat putting in on my right, and a guy by himself pulling a 26-28-ish foot I/O onto his trailer with a rope. I try to start the boat: nothing. Try a couple times, dead, so we grab the trailer posts to keep from sliding off (steep ramp) and start pulling back on when the I/O goes zooming by behind me, in reverse, no driver, maybe a foot off my swim deck, and slams into the shore. Guy had left it running for some reason and it slipped into gear.

Husband gets on boat, we figure it's a loose starter wire or something, but he thankfully runs one of his many internal checklists prior to taking the dash apart and shortly announces - to all - that I have apparently been playing with the throttle and pulled it out of neutral.:o

I'm risking ramp karma now, but this was just amazing. The I/O guy corrals the devil boat and the woman with the jet boat tries to guide him onto his trailer. She starts hollering stop long before he does and he nearly puts the thing through the back of his SUV. He finally gets it on the trailer, I put in and am waiting for husband when this horrible SCREEEEE! rings out. Yup. He forgot to pull his drive up.

It wasn't until that evening when I was protesting, again, that I could neither remember touching the throttle, nor imagine why I would have done such a thing, when I finally put the timing together. If my boat HAD started, I'd likely have been far enough back that the much larger escapee boat would have "stopped" roughly in the middle of mine instead of the shore. I still get chills thinking about it.

86PowerSlot190MC

03-02-2005, 12:37 PM

ajnesbitt

03-02-2005, 01:22 PM

We were out looking at the houses on our lake one evening when a friend with a Malibu goes flying by toward the course. I figure he is trying to get one last set in before dark. All of the sudden he is flying by us headed back toward his house. We finally idle up to where his house is and I ask him what the hell he was doing. Turns out he blew a hose and the motor was pumping water into his boat. His lift was the only thing that kept him off the bottom.

I also looked at a wrecked boat that was sitting at a Malibu dealer. They were on a Cumberland houseboat vacation and had the boat tied up to the side of the houseboat. In the morning they were warming up the boat and didn't pull the button to disengage the transmission. Someone trips over the ropes and jams the throttle to the floor. The rope at the front of the boat rips the windshield completely off and (luckily) ejects the only person in the boat. The boat proceeds to slam into shore at full throttle. The dealer was planning on slapping an old windshield on it, sticking it on a pole and using it as a sign.

WakeSeeky

03-02-2005, 03:11 PM

It sounds like you where at Lake Hazesau??????

Lake Mead. It was 7 a.m., but I'm fairly certain the guy was drunk. Viva Las Vegas!:rolleyes:

SDmc205

03-02-2005, 05:42 PM

SDmc205
What is the graphic pattern in the back of the left boat?
Never saw that!

My cousin Mark is originally from Hawaii. He's got those flowers on everything, his Tahoe's seat covers, his motor home, and his boat. They are actually applied stickers like the Mastercraft tags.

rick s.

03-15-2005, 08:43 PM

I wish I had a camera.

Two years ago at the launch ramp on the east end of Lake Don Pedro (in California) I had just backed the boat into the water and was pushing it off the trailer. It's a big ramp...4 or 6 lanes wide, and another driver was coming down the ramp to dump his boat in the water. Comes down, does a u-turn, gets lined up in his lane so now he's ready to go. Gets out of the truck and unhooks the boat from the trailer. Both stern tie-downs and the bow rope. Two or three buddies in the boat. He gets back into the truck, puts the truck in reverse, and starts to back the boat the rest of the way down the ramp. The boat starts to come off the trailer and the guy stops the truck with the brakes, which completely dumps the boat (older inboard) right off the trailer onto the grooved concrete launch ramp.

Ouch. One of the ten commandments of launch ramps....never completely unhook the boat from the trailer until the boat is in the water.

I always enjoy the difference (on long weekends) between Saturday morning put-ins and Sunday night (or Monday) pull-outs. I've seen US Marshalls "supervising" launch ramp etiquette on Sunday's in California.

scott88prostar

03-15-2005, 10:21 PM

Buddy of mine went out on Lake Michigan by the Planetarium (Chicago) in a Calabria pro comp in the spring a couple of years ago. The the lake was low. As he was zooming around he hit a pylon (like a telephone pole) that was about 10" under the water. The skegs stuck right in the wood and he was stuck(bent shaft ,bent prop). The police boat came and took them off the boat. They said "they save lives not boats" The police called a salvage company. As they were waiting on shore the boat came free and floated to shore. Meanwhile a huge tug was comming to get the boat. He limped it back to the ramp rushed the loading, the water again was so low when he backed the trailer in it fell into deep water and was hanging almost vertically. He wants to get out there before the the tugs comes, so he guns it and the boat smashes the fenders. Just then a big white suburban with yellow lights comes up with the manager of the salavge operation. He wants $5,000 for scrambling his men. Starts talking about maritime laws and how they supersede other laws (which they do). He offers a $100 and the guy laughs. Luckily hes attorney and ended up settling for much less.....the moral to the story is (because I need one) you never know how a good day boating can end up!....and I never am offended if someone asks if the plugs in...last year got 2 barefoot ropes stuck in the prop then dropped my $60 leatherman in the lake!

ljothen

03-16-2005, 08:59 AM

My husband and I had a good one. He is very anal about his boat, every time we get off the water it gets a bath the next day and we always take the plug out to drain the water. The next time we took the boat out, I backed the boat off the trailer and it wasn't 30 seconds and I heard the bildge kick in, it was pouring water out the side of the boat, I knew immediately that we forgot the plug. I hollered at him to back the trailer back in so we could pull it out, but he couldn't hear me. When he got back to the boat we drove away from the dock and I had to jump in and go swimming to put the plug in. No harm done and we had a great day on the river. We never forget to tripple check if the plug is in.

ljothen

03-16-2005, 09:05 AM

Another story. We use a small lake in our home town with only one launch. We are the type of people who have the boat all ready to go when we get down to the launch. It takes us only like a minute to get the boat off and the trailer out. So one day we are waiting for this guy with a new fishing boat to get his boat off the trailer. We sat there for like five minutes at least, so we walked down to the dock and sat and watched this guy, turns out he was reading the owners manuel to his boat. It was a brand new boat and he obvioulsy had never owned a boat in his life. It took him like 20 minutes to get it off the trailer. Then he read the instructions on the break in period of his boat, he drove around the lake at idle all day. Then we were lucky enough to be ready to load up the same time as this guy, it was as funny to watch as him unloading. He still was reading the owners manuel. We have met this guy other times and he still isn't any faster.

captkidd

03-16-2005, 09:26 AM

He is very anal about his boat, every time we get off the water it gets a bath the next day and we always take the plug out to drain the water.

That's not anal; that's perfectly normal (I hope). :)

jimmer2880

03-16-2005, 04:47 PM

That's not anal; that's perfectly normal (I hope). :)

I sure hope it's not anal....

Thrall

03-17-2005, 12:07 PM

That's not anal; that's perfectly normal (I hope). :)
I hope so too, 'cause mine get's a bath, water drained from bilge, bilge hosed out (little oily), usually vaccumed, and Armor All the vynil.
I see the neighbors pull their's back in all the time, no wipedown, cleanup or nothing. At least it's not a MC!

whitedog

03-17-2005, 02:44 PM

That's not anal; that's perfectly normal (I hope). :)

I hope its normal too. Ours gets wipedown before we leave the ramp parking area. Gets bath as needed (weekly), and interior cleaning, armor all, and vaccum also weekly. Kept last boat looking almost new for 8 years and 900 plus engine hours

bfinley

03-17-2005, 02:49 PM

Whitedog,
Where do you usually take your boat out. I spend a lot of time on Lake Wisconsin and occasionally go out on the Rock River. How about you??
Brandon

whitedog

03-17-2005, 03:29 PM

Brandon,
Mostly on the Rock at either Janesville or Newville. Sometimes we will go to Waubesa in the evening. Once or twice a year trips to Cassville for campouts on a sand bar.

Jeff

AirJunky

03-17-2005, 04:23 PM

That's not anal; that's perfectly normal (I hope). :)

It's anal...... ;)

Somewhere I read that Lake Sammamish has more inboard boats per capita than anywhere else. MC, CC, 'bu, Tige', Supra, Calabria, MB, Moombo, etc. Their all a dime a dozen on that lake. And if you go watch the ramp, the bulk of all the boat owner will pull out, park the truck & wipe the boat down, maybe even cover it for the trip home. A very select few will clean it the next day (the few you'd want to buy a used boat from).

And then there are all the boats kept on the water where it can be tough to keep the boat spotless. We wide down the topside, pick up all the trash & gear & cover it. Then like twice a year it gets vaccumed & a thorough cleaning. This last group includes all the promo boats, dealer owned boats, boats used in competitions, etc.