First time out = disaster...?

[Guest]

Am I the only one? I gotta vent!

I bought my first boat in August of 2001. That fall was fine - I'm only 30 but I grew up with boats so I knew the do's and don'ts.

Then last spring the first time out was a disaster. I put in the starting battery but forgot to charge it. My brother, being helpful, put the plug in the intake for the live well.

Granted, both of these are my fault and I accept that. So it really, REALLY sucked last year having to have my arm in 50 degree water to replace the plug in the right hole while my friend ran the battery up to the truck to charge it up a bit.

It took about 15 minutes of running the bilge to get the water out, and even after that I couldn't get up on plane for a while.

So, after all that, you would think that THIS year I would have learned something, right? No, I think I'm just cursed. This year I blew a tire (not quite, huge bulge and I had to drive 30mph from Hawley MN to Detroit Lakes to get a tire) and then, among other things, I didn't catch a fish AND somehow I bent a prop blade slightly.

Geez...what is it about the first time out? Luckily I try to get out before they really start biting to have a shake down cruise, but this is getting old AND expensive fast! It reminds me of an old riddle my brother sent me once:

Q: What is a boat?
A: A hole in the water you throw money into.

[Crawlerman]

Ayep. I've allready thrown $300 into getting some work done on the lower unit and having the trailer re-wired. And I still need to replace the floorboards sometime this season. Ugh

[bigeyes]

Yup I feel for you, seems like every time I go out I break something. Rack up trailer lights, tackle box and trolling motor just so far this year.

[mpete54]

I went to re-pack the bearings on my trailer this weekend. I've had the boat for 2 years and I am good about keeping the hubs greased, so no problem, right? WRONG! The bearings fell apart right in my hands. After 3 tries, I finally got the correct bearings and hopefully everything is good to go. FYI: a new set of bearings is between $10-$16. A brand new hub that is greased, packed, and ready to go is $21 at Northern.

[Guest]

Comes along in three's.

[leechlake]

It all happens...breaking stuff things not working etc...but remember the day around supper time fishing your favorite spot, setting the hook makes it all worth while. Meanwhile, back at the boat ramp someone is backing into your trailer breaking a tail light!!! It's great...

[kslipsinker]

The problem with fishing is there is a lot of work to keep all of the tackle, boat, and trailer in great shape. I have a fairly new rig, and I spent all day Saturday working on my boat and trailer. I go the extra mile at home so I don't have problems on the water. There isn't enough time to fish, and doing repair on the water is not fun.

[hydro]

Remember,

Maintenance = amount of stuff squared

or

Free time is inversely proportional to the amount of stuff squared.

[dfv87]

Hydro, nobody said there would be math on this board!

Actually I thought it was: the square root of the hypotenus = preparation of the boat in the spring, thanks for clearing that up. LOL

Best of Luck this year everybody.