I did it. I got my boat. MY BOAT! Oh what a boat she is, so stunning, I'm still working on the perfect name. Something with an Italian flare for sure.
Being a seasoned boating veteran (read, owned a 15', 70HP bass boat for one boating season) I obviously know what I'm doing.
Ok, I don't... but I know people and they do. I get a deal on a 95 Mariah Barchetta 182. Finally something that will actually fit the family! The first outing was exactly how it should have been. Just me and the Mrs to learn the boat. So blissfully uneventful (not actually true, had to phone a friend who explained how the choke worked. He told me how when I bought it but lets all keep in mind, I was much more entertained with the boat than anything that was being told to me). So fires up and away we go. fast, slow, tight turns, testing all the seat, sitting on the swimming platform, oh the kids were going to love it.
Fast forward a week, we are going to take the kids out with us. Everything as uneventful as before as I get in line at the ramp. This is always one of my favorite times. I'm in an 05 AWD Denali that holds the earth like a mountain goat with its aggressive A/T tires that are on it. Maybe I shouldn't have laughed at the little truck that almost went swimming in front of me, maybe I shouldn't have laughed at everyone trying to get up the ramp (is it a custom for everyone to floor it spinning the tires the whole way up or is that just my redneck part of the woods that people act this way?!?!) Anyway, onward!! its my turn now. Back her down.. NAILED IT! boat is floating so I hop out to get in the boat, get it off the trailer and tied to the dock. Problem #1 occurs right here. Jump in, I remember the choke this time slam in the key, turn it and notice I'm still holding the end of the key in my hand. yup, didn't have the key all the way in and just snapped it off in the ignition cylinder. $%@#*@!! Ok... ok, its not all bad. I'm at a marina after all, maybe they have a key and I never unhooked the front of the boat so I just crank her back up on the trailer. Marina has no Mariah keys. Actual quote “oh, you have a Mariah, no way do I even need to look, I know I don't have keys for her. Nice boat though”. Here's another interesting fact for you, master keys to all other popular boats do NOT work in a Mariah boat. Ok, I'll head to Ace/True Value/Etc to get a key made from the broken key as I was lucky enough to get the broken end out of the ignition.
Strap the boat the rest of the way down, thank the guys for letting me test keys and we're off to find an old guy that makes keys from broken keys.
1/4 mile from the marina I hear a loud POP and look back to see smoke rolling out of the trailer wheel well. Pull off to find the wheel well resting on a NOT blown tire. puzzled is all I am at this point. How does such a thing happen. Limp to a store for safer parking, burning up this tire the entire time at a solid 10MPH, wait for an hour for the brother in law to come to my rescue. We tool around with the issues and he climbs under the trailer. Broken leaf spring. not bent, not over flexed, broke in freaking half!! The luck here is that this happen on the back half of the spring so the front was able to keep the axle in line instead of either just letting the entire axle fall from under the trailer dropping the boat on the ground or even worse, pole vaulting the trailer in the air (I have to look at positives at this point or I'm going to explode!!!). So the brother comes up with actually a good idea, we jack up the trailer, take a hitch and turn that side into a solid axle setup by strapping the hitch between the axle and the frame, instead of a leaf setup. This actually worked well enough to get home with no further issues. I could literally cry at this point in time. I can't start my baby, and even if I could I can't get her to water.
In the time since, I did get a key made at a local hardware store that works PERFECTLY! not only that, I was able to contact Kennedy Marine (thanks to this site pointing me there) and get factory keys sent to me as well! The Mrs just smiled and said happy early fathers day.
I also got new leaf springs (stepped up a size from a 3 leaf setup to a 4 leaf setup with a bit higher load range) while that's apart we find that one side of the axle the bearings were destroyed, might as well replace both, tires are great looking on the outside but the inside are TORN UP, lets replace those too!! Its only money right?
My wife, what a sport she is. She has not griped, moaned, even given a glare. She is actually the one to keep pointing to the positives. God I love that woman.
Fast forward to yesterday, finally a break in the rain. Everything is flooded, its cold, its windy, but its not dropping tornadoes, hail, or inches of rain per hour... WE'RE GOING OUT ON THAT WATER!!!
Beautiful, just beautiful. Trailer ran like a champ, the new factory keys fit in (though I confess, I pressed it about 3 times to make sure it was 100% seated into the cylinder before turning it). The boat, it ran like a champ! Like I knew it would, like I knew it could. I couldn't stay out but about an hour. The kids were cold, the wife was cold, I was cold too... but the smile on my face was huge even if it had to be short lived.
This can only happen to me...
