[wssb11]

How many people have drug there skeg on the launch ramp?........It is heating up here so of coure peopl are starting to drag there boats out and today there was a ton! of people at the launch ramp all trying to remember how to launch and retrieve there boats! Needless to say I was in a little hurry and I (actually my friend lol always blame it on someone else when you do something dumb hahaha) forgot to hit the trailer button so I drug the skeg, lucky I have a skeg guard so it didnt really do anything. But was just wondering how many peopl have had a little mental brain fart and embarressed themselves at the ramp!

[mikeyt]

me? Brain fart? nah....never.

[Z 202]

I was lucky, on one of the last haul outs I did last year I forgot to trailer the drive before I pulled it out. (it was my first time at that particular ramp, and I had an inexperienced first mate at the time, so I blame those two things... ) Fortunately the bunks on my trailer are high enough that the tip of my skeg is still about 1" off the pavement when the drive is all the way down, so no damage was done.

Now if we were to talk about the nice chunk missing out of the leading edge due to some surprise ledgerock, well that's a different story....

[blockp]

Anyone that says they've never left the drive down when pulling their boat out is either lying or the marina takes care of it for them.

On my fish n ski, the skeg is an inch or so off the ramp, so the times I've forgotten to raise that one have worked out ok. On the Mariah, I've yet to forget to raise it (knock knock knock on wood).

[VernB63]

DAY ONE... picked up the new trailer and headed up to pick up the 'new boat'. It's at a marina in the Muskoka's (Lake Muskoka - Gravenhurst, Ontario, Canada). I'm alone and a complete newbie. Back the trailer down the ramp, run over to the dock and slowly get the boat to the trailer. The locals wait as long as they can before steppping in to lend a hand. I get the boat aligned on the trailer and begin cranking it onto the cradle. Some resistance??? Well I never lifted the outdrive?? wasn't even sure were to find the button. Once again the locals stepped in (must have been killing themselves watching this). Finally loaded - minus one trailer light, a few scratches on the skeg and my ego slightly bruised. Have yet to launch without the drain plug or swamp the boat in rough water.

Its been an interesting learning curve, one made a whole lot easier thanks to MOC.

[jeffryb]

Sorry to say I did it last year for the first time, bunch of people around and trying to hurry because people waiting to load their boats and totally forgot. Only draged it a few feet didn't do any damage, later took a file and smoothed the rough edges, but had me worrying!

[22empire]

So what boater out there hasn't done this.. It is like a right of passage.. I have pulled out with the stern drive down (though there was enough clearance). My favourite is the launch without the plug, and the quick trailer work it takes to get it back on the trailer and out.. My most embarrassing was with my fishing boat after a camping trip.. I backed the car down the ramp (obviously not a large boat) and I proceeded to attempt to pull the boat out. The ramp was on about a 30 deg angle and I could feel the car trying. The next thing I now I am making a smoke show in this little fishing camp trying to pull the boat up this small ramp.. I couldn't believe it.. It turns out emergency brakes do work.. I took a couple of years of wear off those michelen's.. But it was worth the laughs..

[Z 202]

Originally Posted by 22empire

My most embarrassing was with my fishing boat after a camping trip.. I backed the car down the ramp (obviously not a large boat) and I proceeded to attempt to pull the boat out. The ramp was on about a 30 deg angle and I could feel the car trying. The next thing I now I am making a smoke show in this little fishing camp trying to pull the boat up this small ramp.. I couldn't believe it.. It turns out emergency brakes do work.. I took a couple of years of wear off those michelen's.. But it was worth the laughs..

Sounds like one of the times I pulled my Mariah out using my turbo mini-van. Lot's of power, but on a steep and slippery ramp I just couldn't keep the tires planted. Smoke show on Canada day weekend!