Launching and retrieving
 

Ok folks, I am new to boating and want to know how you guys launch and retrieve, I have been told a couple different ways. To launch, I back her down until the wheel wells are just below the water, hop in the boat and have the wife undo the front latch to release the bow strap. Then she unhooks it and gives me a push out. I have also seen people unhook everything, back it down and hit the brakes once the trailer is far enough in the water to give the boat some reverse momentum to glide out. My wife is not the most adept vehicle driver or boat driver so I have not gone this route. For retrieving she gets about in the middle of the trailer so that she can attach the bow hook then we reel the boat in from there. I have seen some people just power it all the way up to the front support.

Personally I think you're doing it the right way! But do what's comfortable for you. Powerloading can potentially damage the boat if you're not experienced.

A lot of the technique you use will probably depend a lot on the grade of the launch ramp. My usual launch/retrieve spot is steep enough that I can have my boat just floating off the bunks yet I can still step out to operate the winch without soaking my feet. So I back it down to that point, throw some lines to my mates, release the winch and then just drive the trailer out. Retrieval is just the opposite, though I don't back in quite so far. Once the bow strap is attached it's only a few of cranks on the winch to bring it home. No need for power loading. Of course, a lot of your technique depends on the overall weight of your boat.

You're doing well! Do not powerload! I've seen a few failed power load attempts - they were not pretty.

Thanks for the responses, I will stick with my method. Now if I could just teach the wife how to back the trailer down...

I have that same problem.....with the wife that is. :shakehead:

I wish I could find this somewhere online, but there was a great lesson on Ship Shape TV (when I actually used to watch it), about single handed launching. It showed a very clever way to launch the boat using two lines tied to the boat, and a line tied to the trailer. Very cool. If I can find it, I'll post the link.

For the record, by girlfriend just likes to sit and watch during launch, whether it's in the passenger seat of the truck, or the boat... She's too afraid to try and help. Maybe one of these days... :)

We all seem to have the same problem - uncooperative first mate... In shipping terms, that would be reason enough to make the first mate walk the plank, but given that the first mate is also the cook, that would be unproductive in the long run...

I was relatively new to launching and retreiving until last month... The first time I launched, I was a nervous wreck... A couple of launches later, I put together a laminated list of steps to launch and retreive.. Here are some things I have learnt

1. Do a few dummy launches when you have a half hour to spare. I would simply back the trailer down into the water until I felt some bouyancy on the stern. I then marked the trailer fender with a visible marker so I could repeat the feat in an actual launch.

2. I did not get the wife to push the boat out since that would annoy her... I would get on the boat and power back-out with the outdrive still in trailer mode. It won't foul the prop since the prop is sitting at the stern level.

3. During retreival, I would get the boat up on the bunks until it stopped by itself and use the manual winch to pull it up... A bunk guide helps tremendously to line the boat up...

To launch I unhook the straps and back down until the lower unit is in the water. My wife then starts the boat to make sure there are no problems. I then back down enough that the boat slides back just a small amount and she pull off the trailer and picks me up at the dock.
I am a power loader or I should say my wife is. I always back down until one inch of wheel well is out of the water. And she drives up on to the bunks; and I hook the winch to the eye! She powers all the way up. and I pull it out. She can do this in river current also. (I hate to say it, but she can load it better than me!) I have loaded both my Mariahs this way due to their weight. I one time had to crank my buddy’s Z302 on the trailer, and my arm hurt for a week! Everyone finds the way that is best suited for them. Just be cautious and safe.

I would be very careful when putting the RPM over 1200 with the outdrive all the way up. This can cause some serious damage to your gimbal ring I believe.