Dumb Things You've Seen At A Boat Launch

[Rattler]

Once saw a guy get his trailer all the way into the water and get his boat off it, only to return to his SUV to find he locked himself out.  Other people waited a long time for him to get out of there.  None were too polite about it.

[grampy]

I once forgot to take off the transom straps. Kept backing in, till my front tires were almost in the water, and the front of the boat started floating. Another tournament angler saw me do this, and I was the butt of many jokes for quite some time................grin.

I earned that one.

Never be in such a hurry that you don't do a final walk around, to check everything before backing down.

[philoshop]

I worked at Krenzer Marine in Sodus Point while I was in high school. Part of my job was watching the boat ramp, as well as putting boats in the water after winter storage. They had an old army jeep with the hitch on the front. It's a lot easier than backing up. Why don't people do that? You could pull into the parking lot, unhitch the trailer, then drive around and re-hitch the trailer as a pusher.

[BizCT]

Sounds like it’s easier to own a dock slip


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Steuben Jerry]

Genesee river boat launch at Charlotte in the 90’s. Middle age guy with a brand spanking new Sea Ray open bow with an I/O, maybe 17 ft. He’s coming out and we’re in line to go in. Gets the boat on the trailer, pulls it out and parks right there at waters edge. Starts coiling his ropes, wiping down the boat while we’re all waiting or drop in. After a few minutes guys are bitching at him to clear the ramp. He took his sweet damn time putting everything away. He wasn’t really being a dick, he seemed clueless but was somewhat apologetic and I believe he said it was his first boat. He finally gets in the truck and starts to pull away. He never clipped it, and that nice new roller trailer promptly dumped his brand new boat on the ground just in front of the ramp.

What a disaster for that guy.

[Robhuntandfish]

50 minutes ago, philoshop said:

I worked at Krenzer Marine in Sodus Point while I was in high school. Part of my job was watching the boat ramp, as well as putting boats in the water after winter storage. They had an old army jeep with the hitch on the front. It's a lot easier than backing up. Why don't people do that? You could pull into the parking lot, unhitch the trailer, then drive around and re-hitch the trailer as a pusher.

Cause to launch vehicle usually has to go in the water a bit too. And the front of it is fairly important not to put under water. Lol

Edited June 20, 2019 by Robhuntandfish

[BigVal]

Worst I had was launching a friend's boat with my truck on a smallish ramp. It was a 42' fountain on a ramp that was meant for small fishing boats lol the fisherman weren't thrilled and I felt bad but we got her done. They probably didnt like the sounds of over 1000 hp either.

 

Edit last season I saw two different people take the jet ski trailer off the vehicle and manually walk it down the ramp to the water, then back up and re hook to avoid backing It up lol 

Edited June 20, 2019 by BigVal

[catskillkid]

This did not happen at the boat ramp, but out on Greenwood Lake. I was fishing from my boat when I noticed 4 people frantically waving at me using wierd hand motions from another boat. I motored over to them to see if they needed help. They tried talking to me but I couldn't understand them. I thought they were from another country and speaking a different language. After a few minutes I realized they were all deaf and we're using hand sign language trying to tell me they ran out of gas. I towed them back to a marina to fuel up. Was a day to remember.

Edited June 20, 2019 by catskillkid

[Dinsdale]

1 hour ago, philoshop said:

I worked at Krenzer Marine in Sodus Point while I was in high school. Part of my job was watching the boat ramp, as well as putting boats in the water after winter storage. They had an old army jeep with the hitch on the front. It's a lot easier than backing up. Why don't people do that? You could pull into the parking lot, unhitch the trailer, then drive around and re-hitch the trailer as a pusher.

Ya think someone would make a hitch that'd do that....

Oh, never mind, someone may already have one.

(although I put a work trailer in some pretty dang small spaces, most folks think we hand roll it there)

[philoshop]

16 minutes ago, Dinsdale said:

Ya think someone would make a hitch that'd do that....

Oh, never mind, someone may already have one.

(although I put a work trailer in some pretty dang small spaces, most folks think we hand roll it there)

Excellent!! Certainly makes thing easier.

[Lawdwaz]

The back up camera sure makes lining up the trailer to the ball childs play with my Tacoma. 

[Marion]

Back up cameras and guide lines make it cake

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

[kpkot]

3 minutes ago, Bill Schmidt said:

Back up cameras and guide lines make it cake

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk
 

What do you trailer with your jetta?

[Marion]

What do you trailer with your jetta?

Just 194 delicious turkeys is all

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

[tarheel95]

Not at a boat ramp but at a launch. Idiot didn't realize that there was a ten foot high jetty extending from the shore to the harbor light entrance. Tried to cut between the lights and shore at night to get into the harbor. Impaled his forty foot boat on the jetty.

 

Two days later they needed to use both hoists to pull the boat with all the water that had entered it.

 

After 45 years on the ocean, I think there is an inverse correlation between the cost of a boat and the intelligence of the person operating it.

 

Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk

 

 

 

 

[LET EM GROW]

I love this thread, it goes right there with ATV load and unload fails! i have sen many of them too!! If i get time one day I may just have to watch the marina for old time sake ! Great thread sir!!

[loworange88]

Last summer at the DEC boat launch in Bridgeport I was going out with my then 5 year old in my 12' aluminum boat.  This launch is pretty big, so 3, perhaps 4 cars could all launch at the same time.  I had just gotten shoved off and was trolling out away from the dock and this was in the lane to my left...maybe 20 feet away when this happened:

There was a two guys there with a yellow/white cabin cruizer boat (cuddy), decent sized boat I'd guess 20' perhaps.  It was on a trailer and these guys parked at the turn around and proceeded to get the boat ready for launch, I was already in the process of putting in the water.  So when these two chuckle heads line up the trailer with one guy on the floating dock, the driver of the truck backs down the concrete ramp as I'm about 20' away already out in the water, and I wasnt looking but I heard a very loud rumble and boom, so I looked over and the boat had flew off the trailer(roller trailer) and slammed down half in the water and half onto the concrete ramp.  Scared the hell out of me.  The two guys looked puzzled, and then the driver of the truck gets out and looks what happened....says out loud "Holy Sh!!, it was a roller trailer, I didnt know it was a roller trailer."  I was out on the water for a while fishing with my son, and they somehow got the boat out of there, as they were gone when I came back in, but holy crap, I cannot imagine the potential damage to the hull of that boat.

[ATbuckhunter]

I very rarely fish from a boat, but the last time I went was with my grandfathers boat that he just got (and only took out a few times in total). Took us about 20 tries to back the trailer up to get pick up the boat at the end of the day. Only reason we werent there all night trying was because a nice guy offered to get in the car and do it for us. He probably had enough of watching us fail horribly, than him being a nice guy. Thank god I fish from shore mostly 

[grampy]

Edit....sorry wrong thread.

Edited June 20, 2019 by grampy

[helmut in the bush]

You learn something every day, the hand on the bottom of the wheel methods great, I never heard that before.

[Five Seasons]

13 hours ago, Lawdwaz said:

The back up camera sure makes lining up the trailer to the ball childs play with my Tacoma. 

there's a trick on the silverado too. Use the safety strap or whatever they're called and instead of lowering your tailgate the full way, hang the strap tie on the beds tailgate latch. It provides a perfect view of the hitch and was supposedly designed for this (says the salesman at bob johnson anyhow)

[BigVal]

I have a gooseneck tailgate on my truck so backing to a trailer is a breeze. Oldschool lol 

[ApexerER]

I think the public boat launch can be the most aggravating place on the planet. I now avoid them like the plague. I have been boating since I could drive and my Dad would let me take our 15' Sportcraft with a 60 horse merc on it out with my friends. I have seen it all. Boat still strapped to trailers. People forgetting their plug, ( I did this once myself ) taking 50 tries to back in. Trying to start their boat that won't run while blocking the ramp. People getting all their gear ready while right in everyones way. 

And my favorite is all the people that put their trailer in the water way to far so the back of the boat is still floating when they pull out. Then they can't figure out why the boat is totally crooked so they back in and try again. Over and over again. 

None of these things would be that bad in themselves if people were humble about it, but it is always the most arrogant ahole that is having a problem, blocking everyone else. 

I will only use a public launch now on a weekday evening....I will gladly pay the money to a private person to not start or end my day aggravated. 

[Nomad]

8 hours ago, tarheel95 said:

After 45 years on the ocean, I think there is an inverse correlation between the cost of a boat and the intelligence of the person operating it. 

I know a Trooper who says , “ the higher the truck, the lower the IQ .”

[kpkot]

2 minutes ago, Stay at home Nomad said:

I know a Trooper who says , “ the higher the truck, the lower the IQ .”

Dont tell Moog