Proper launch

[O2BESOHUGE]

We Have Ours Down To A Science Now. We Almost Got Divorced A Few Times In The Beginning Though! My Wife Didnt Grow Up Around Water Or Boats So It Was Tough!! Haa!

It Blows Me Away As To How Long Folks Need To Get Thier Boat Out Of The Water. It Literally Takes Me Less Than 2 Minutes

[MattsCraft]

Our routine is exactly the same every time, prep in the staging area, boards and gear loaded, people loaded except driver of the truck( typically my son, been backing her down since he was 17), back straps removed, center plug in, battery switch on, blower on, as we head to the ramp, place boat buddy pin to lock out.

Back in until trailer fenders are just under water, start the boat - I think the most important part...Lift the rear lockers, check to make sure water is flowing through the pick up (another reason why I love the perko flush pro) check to make sure no water is coming in or squirting out of any hoses, engine sounds good and healthy! If my wife is with us, she already has the lockers open for my sight check and knows what to look for Close the lockers, unhook the bow strap, give the thumbs up, son backs a bit further and bumps the brakes, she slides right off, bump reverse and or forward if she is off center slightly, thumbs up again and he pulls off, and I walk her to the dock using forward and reverse.

I am now good enough with walking the boat, left or right, we don't even deploy fenders, this process takes less than 2 minutes and we just hold the boat at the dock for the amount of time it takes him to park and return to the dock. If it is busy, I clear the area and come back in and pick him up off the bow. (Another vote for pickle fork bow)

Loading is about the same routine, drop him at the dock off the bow, clear and start coming in as he is backing down, he already has the boat buddy set to trigger, timed so that I am about on the trailer once he is set, power her up slowly till she clicks, attach bow strap, shut her down and we clear the ramp in under another 2 minutes. He never gets out of the truck, no wet feet etc. BooYa... As Wiily T would say..."Now that is how you do that"

[tph]

Originally Posted by Miss Rita

I back the trailer in the water until the hull is wet, then pause. Once the driver (whoever it may be) gets the engine started, I back in further until the boat floats off the trailer. They drive away, I drive away.

It's not that complicated.

Ditto

[MNWild]

Your instructor is correct, always drive it off and then pull away from the dock and hover off shore. Our ramps up here get busy, when your family is holding the boat with lines you're taking up dock space, and if it's on the same side as the ramp, the next boat can't launch. When your tow vehicle is parked and the driver gets back to the dock pull up and they jump in. Way too many boaters are not ready when is comes to launching or loading. If someone in your party doesn't know how to do a particular job, teach them. This will make boating more enjoyable for everyone.

[wheelerlake]

Turn blower on, be sure plug is in tight; back up until I'm floating and safe to start, get it started (yaay if it does as it hasn't, then you go back and buy a new battery), unhook bar and strap, hubby gives me a little shove, back off if necessary. "Let the summer begin!" I always shout, drive across the lake and put on the rack for the next few months as I HATE loading. One year the lift broke a line when I first put it on so we had to reverse the process immediately I've learned a LOT from all of you through the years and really appreciate all the tips, tricks, warnings, etc. I've read about. The kids we bought the boat from told us "be careful when you power load the boat that you don't give it too much, you can go over and hit the truck". From the looks of the extra prop they gave us and the back bar on the trailer I think they were speaking from experience

[GoneBoatN]

Originally Posted by thatsmrmastercraft

... The price you pay for trying to get the wife more involved than she is comfortable with is too great. Just sayin'

I can so identify with that.

[strad]

If the tie-up dock is available, I float it off. If the tie-off dock is not available, I'll drive it off. It's not a big deal to me. Mine has yet to fail to start on the first try, but it takes a minute for it to warm up enough to where it will idle at normal speed, which is why I prefer the dock method. But again, if the dock is occupied I can always warm up the engine for a minute before backing it off the trailer. I give my wife a lot of chances to practice maneuvering the trailer so I'm reasonably comfortable with her skill level. She can dock the boat too, but we have not yet tried having her unload the boat from the trailer or vice versa.

It is fun to watch the clueless people at the launch though

[JohnE]

I didn't read all three pages. But I always start the boat as soon as it gets backed in deep enough to hit the water intake. A compromise for the OP could be to start the boat while still on trailer then float it off. The point is to make sure you don't launch a boat the doesn't start and then need to get it back on the trailer.

[musicmd]

Appreciate all the opinions. It seems that what we've been doing works well. My wife, again, is really stressed about driving the boat around the dock, and I am not inclined to pressure her to do this.

With our local dock, I can literally float the boat off, park the vehicle and trailer and be back in the boat, ready to pull away, within 2-3 minutes. That doesn't seem unreasonable to me.

The driver who did my "on the lake" orientation said that I should always be sure the boat will start before it is off the trailer, hence, the idea of the power launch. I think this is definitely a good idea if it works for you, but I agree it isn't absolutely necessary.

[JohnE]

Originally Posted by musicmd

Appreciate all the opinions. It seems that what we've been doing works well. My wife, again, is really stressed about driving the boat around the dock, and I am not inclined to pressure her to do this.

With our local dock, I can literally float the boat off, park the vehicle and trailer and be back in the boat, ready to pull away, within 2-3 minutes. That doesn't seem unreasonable to me.

The driver who did my "on the lake" orientation said that I should always be sure the boat will start before it is off the trailer, hence, the idea of the power launch. I think this is definitely a good idea if it works for you, but I agree it isn't absolutely necessary.

Not absolutely necessary...but why not just start the boat before you float the boat off???? Seems like the best of both methods?