Use care, common sense to avoid dangers of boat launching

SBT · 05-02-2006, 09:32 AM

Trailering your boat to your favorite waters can produce unforgettable, rewarding experiences — or monumental headaches. The differences lie in precautions and commonsense techniques when towing your vessel.
Every boater and fisherman dreams of exploring new waters either nearby or some far-off spot. A boat that can be towed on a trailer makes such pleasant discovery on almost every outing possible. But safety begins in the driveway, not at the dock.
To the land-locked boat owner, trailering behind the family car puts those favorite boating waters within easy reach. But along with the nomadic itch that hits all boaters at one time or another comes some unusual problems for the trailer boater — yet most of these hurdles are easy to overcome with good planning.
Slipping the boat off the trailer and into the water without the drain plug installed is a common fault. Next, perhaps, is backing the trailer and car too far down the launching ramp, often requiring a rescue tow from a local wrecker truck.These are accidents difficult to laugh about, but are minor compared to what can happen on the highway. To avoid serious mishaps on the road, there are a number of trailering safety precautions to be seriously considered before leaving home.
Making certain your boat is properly secured on the trailer is the most obvious. All lines and tie-downs should be inspected. The winch line should be checked for tightness and the lock positively engaged. Criss-cross the safety chains.
The boat should be properly balanced on the trailer, with most of the weight over the wheels, and a slight balance toward the car, with 10 percent of the total weight on the trailer hitch. A weaving trailer usually indicates the boat is not balanced.
The wise skipper lubricates all moving parts of the trailer before a lengthy trip. Wheel bearings can be a problem. They should be repacked with grease anytime they are dunked. When launching, it is not always possible to keep wheel bearings out of water, but their life can be extended by avoiding dunkings — especially in salt water.
Other precautions: Make certain that the boat's fuel tanks are tightly closed and secured. On long trips, transport the tanks empty and fill them on arrival. Outboard motors should be raised and locked in a tilt. Bumps and chuckholes could do real damage, and it's even possible to dislodge the engine from the transom.
Proper tire inflation may save a blow-out or excessive tire wear. Take a spare along for extended trips. Trailer tires are hard to find in a small town, more so in the middle of the night.
Canvas tops are less likely to be torn or damaged if lowered and secured. The same applies to antennas.
An excellent precaution is to periodically pull off the road when towing a trailer. Make an inspection. See that everything is riding correctly. Check wheel hubs for signs of overheating. Make sure all trailer lights are operating correctly, including directional and brake lights. Launch your boat on the water, not on the highway. And don't forget to make allowances for extra space required for passing, stopping and turning.
Boating courtesies

Reach your destination safely and you launch your boat. There are a number of boating courtesies and examples of bad and good manners that are covered in Auxiliary public education classes. Here are some of the more important:Speed - Keep it down in narrow channels, anchorages, harbors, near docks and in the vicinity of fishing vessels, water skiers and small sailboats.
Wakes - Severe damage to moored vessels, docks and seawalls results from heavy wakes. Keep your wake down in confined areas. You can be liable for damages.
Bow riding - An extremely dangerous practice, especially where children are involved.
Buzzing - The boating “hot rodder” — and that applies to personal watercraft equally — shows his lack of courtesy by buzzing piers, swimming areas and other vessels.
Pollution - The considerate boater retains used cans, cartons, garbage and other debris in a container until the cruise ends.
Right-of-way - If the other boat fails to recognize your right of way, the well-mannered, prudent skipper will avoid a collision by giving way.
Anchoring - Only the thoughtless or selfish boaters anchor in midchannel or tie illegally to a buoy or navigation aid while fishing.
Coast Guard Auxiliary boating instructors stress that practicing courtesy and good manners is elementary but essential to developing boating skills and seamanship. Why not enroll in a free course in boating skills and seamanship. To learn when the next course is scheduled, call 565-8736.

John Keshishoglou's boating column appears in the Ithaca Journal every Tuesday, offering tips on boating skill and seamanship prepared by the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. He can be reached at 535-5471.

Originally published May 2, 2006

temge988 · 05-02-2006, 10:27 AM

dumb question I guess, BUT.... is it possible to have your ratchet tie downs TOO tight??

dcmomentum · 05-02-2006, 11:27 AM

Quote:

Slipping the boat off the trailer and into the water without the drain plug installed is a common fault.

Yup, and so is riding all day, wondering why your ski feels like it does have its usual acceleration b/c you didn't notice.

ndh5 · 05-03-2006, 01:54 PM

Should also be added to the article:

1. Leave the bow of the boat (bow pin or bow eye) attached to the trailer until you are backed down the launch near the water. Possible negative results are only funny to those around you!!

I saw 2 boats on Erie last summer attempt to launch. They obviously disconnected the bow from the trailer too early. The boats slid off the trailers and hit the concrete with a very sickening thud/crunch as they backed towards the water.

2. Untie your boat from the dock before attemting to move. Seems like a no brainer, but I have watched guys try to head out into the lake while still tied to the dock and have watched them try to pull their boats/trailers out of the water while still tied to the dock.

3. If you ever need some comic relief. Spend a few minuites watching others load and unload boats at your local launch ramps. Observation will also give you pointers of what to do or not to do if you are new to boating.

KawGirl · 05-03-2006, 07:47 PM

Yep, nothing like backing the trailer into the water, undoing the bow eye winch and forgetting the hook at the back of the ski. LOL

h20addict · 05-05-2006, 04:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ndh5

Should also be added to the article:

3. If you ever need some comic relief. Spend a few minuites watching others load and unload boats at your local launch ramps.

Isn't that the truth, its the kind of thing you sit back and grab a cold beer so you can really enjoy it.

djyox · 05-06-2006, 04:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by temge988

dumb question I guess, BUT.... is it possible to have your ratchet tie downs TOO tight??

only if your breaking something. Just make sure they are tight enough that you can not move what ever your holding down. The boat will move around a little when driving, so if you feel the need drive your way for a few miles then pull over, and recheck everything.

djyox · 05-06-2006, 04:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by h20addict

Quote:

Originally Posted by ndh5

Should also be added to the article:

3. If you ever need some comic relief. Spend a few minuites watching others load and unload boats at your local launch ramps.

Isn't that the truth, its the kind of thing you sit back and grab a cold beer so you can really enjoy it.

I try to make sure I do this every year, already missing some of this year, but I will get out there to watch! Spring is the best time to watch, as you get new boat owners who have no clue what they are doing, and also some who have forgot a few things to check.

Thank god I grew up around the water, and have been doing this stuff for as long as I can remember. I remember thinking it was great to be able to help out getting tie downs off, checking the pug, getting into the boat get a line ready to tie off to the dock.

Now days I get yelled at if I call it "rope" rather than "line" bahhhahaha, I tell em to shut up and give me a beer!

LakeLoverHubby · 05-25-2006, 10:37 AM

Wave runner trailers (empty) are pretty hard to back, but one guy had it all figured out last year . . . his buddy was carrying the trailer as he backed down the ramp. The weird stuff you see on a boat ramp is just funny . . . you could make a video from all the antics that we caught last year. The houseboat row faces the private (marina) dock where we are at Truman Lake (Missouri) so it's great fun to watch people. Just last weekend a guy didn't get the boat tied up good enough and it was drifting in the cove. Luckily a guy on a PWC came by and helped him out.

blaster94 · 05-25-2006, 11:06 AM

Last weekend I saw a dude back his sea-doo down to the water having unstrapped it. When he hit the brakes the ski slid off the trailer and started drifting to another boat. He had to swim to get it. At the same ramp I saw 2 boaters forget to raise their motors pull out of the water with the skegs dragging the concrete and the motors bouncing. That one makes me laugh every time I see it happen.