Pet Peeve at boat launches....

[The Grebe]

It seems that people that are adamently against something, either can't do it (Like golf), don't have it (A motor big enough to powerload with), can't afford it (The big boat to go with the motor).....I'am all of the above and I hate everybody!

Another of my pet peeves is when your bud/s sits on his rear

at the landing, comming in, or going out, letting you do all the work...or if you entrust him to do something and he does'nt do it..."I thought YOU put the plug in?"

I guess that it is'nt anything that a little strangulation and a severe beating would'nt cure.

[mamohr686]

I think the powerloading situation is only going to continue to get worse. The industry trend is bigger and heavier boats with bunk trailers. Once I was at a small local bass club event when a warden showed up at the weigh-in. Most boats were beached and when the first guy came to load up the CO told him not to power load. So he starts to use his winch for the first time and pulls the bow eye right through the fiberglass keel of his stratos bass boat. Then the warden says I guess it's ok. Bunk trailers are ment to drive on. If you have to goose it then your not deep enough. The problem is not bad right now but when we have low water like in the 80's drought years then we will see more serious issues. I think the problem is that the boat launch slabs are not long enough to compensate for the new trend of bigger boats.

[fish-n-geek]

I actually don't mind the power loaders for the couple of local launches that I use. Reason being that if you have a boat that's big enough to require power loading, there's about a 90% chance you won't make it back to the landing

Watched many thousands of dollars worth of damage happen in the span of about two minutes at a tournament start a couple years back. Lot of BIG boats that didn't know the water. There were at least four boats that never wet a line, seeing as they were searching in two feet of water for the bottom half of the outboard :-)

I haven't seen a boat/trailer combo yet, that could only be power loaded. If the bow eye gets ripped out, I would think you need slicker bunks, and/or to back in deeper. If the boat likes to float off-center on the back of the trailer, put on side guides.

I know there are people who will power load anyway, and if the landing isn't posted otherwise, I see no reason for them not to, if that is how they are comfortable.

Back on the topic of the thread... This was a couple years back, but I remembered it when I saw the launch the other day. The ramp is alongside a bar on the river, and down a steep, narrow gravel drive. You have to back down the hill about 100 yards to the launch and then drive back up the same way. Gent shows up in a small SUV with a Lund and a Honda 90 on the back. Gets about half way down the hill and tries to slow down, starts skidding in the loose gravel. Stopped quick when his trailer hit a tree off the side of the drive. Helped tow out he SUV, then one of the other guys hooked up his boat and launched it for him - lucky there was no more than paint damage.

Still wonder how he got that boat *out* of the water that day...

-rus-

[kc0myy]

What makes me mad is. When pepople don't put there trailers far enough in the water. So there sitting there with the boat wide open trying to get the boat on the trailer. JUST PUT THE TRAILER BACK FAR ENOUGH IN THE WATER. Thats my 2 cents

[finny]

My biggest on is when someone sits holding on to their boat at the dock and it is blocking the launch so you can't back your boat in till they leave the dock and while they are sitting there they have to make 3 trips back to there truck to get there coolers, towels and tubes. I don't get why they just can't move to the other side of the dock out of the others way.

[fishlakeman]

I witnesses a pretty comical launch yesterday at the Fish Lake access. There was a large group of people trying to load a heavy 20ft 70's Glastron with a little S-10 extended cab. The guy didn't know how to back up a trailer, and they had the motor down all the way trying to get the boat on the trailer. Well, they got the skeg caught on the concrete and couldn't move the boat. It took them 25 minutes to finally get the boat on and lined up. The truck was bubbling water from the exahaust, and I thought the whole truck was going in with the trailer. I couldn't believe that that thing got it up. Well there was 6 people that crammed in the s-10 and they drove away without any straps to hold it down. It was one where you had to be there. I would've helped them, and tried telling them to get the motor up, but they didn't speak English. I was trying to remember back in sophmore spanish how to say "motor up" Haha, oh well, they just ground the skeg down a little bit when the pulled it up.

[gilby]

We were over in Algoma Wisc for the weekend salmon fishing, with real good luck. I went down to the public pier saturday night to see how some other fisherman did. Ended up standing down there for about a hour just watching boats come in from the lake and watching them load. Everybody that I saw load got along just fine no yelling or swearing. The launch is a no power loading launch. Some of the guys with the big heavier boats had a little more a difficult time loading but they managed. It was nice to see that it didn't ruin a good day on the water.

[finny]

Just wondering then how do you load a boat on trailer with bunkers instead of rollers?? I know I am not winching my boat up my bunker trailer it would be impossible.

[Dave1]

Never heard of a No Power Loading launch.

I assume you are expected to crank your boat up at these launches.

Whats the reason behind these?

Not that I care. I never powerload, because my trailer is not exactly an engineering wonder and if a roller gets out of place I end up with a big gash in my boat. Back the trailer in far enough and I usually only have to crank up 3 - 4 ft.

If its a steep ramp and she's crankin too hard, back in a little further.

[76k20]

when taking in a boat after dark please turn off your headlights when fiddling around at the launch. This makes it rather difficult for the guy backing his trailer in on the other side to see where he is going.

[The_Duckslayer]

Quote:

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when taking in a boat after dark please turn off your headlights when fiddling around at the launch. This makes it rather difficult for the guy backing his trailer in on the other side to see where he is going.

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Good point... also applies to early morning drop off... ie duck hunting! On the Chevy that we have if you hit the dome overide button twice the DRL's will turn off as well. Have a good one and N Joy the Hunt././Jimbo

[Northlander]

Out watching fireworks on the St.Louis bay and I saw a 18' boat with 11 people in it running around at cruising speed after dark. Just plain old stupid!

[upnorth]

I was at a little lake out by Finland MN and I get to the ramp a couple guys pull in just in front of me start backing to the water then stop and get out pull the motor out of the truck, hang the motor, get the gas tank, install the gas tank, get the coolers, rods, bait, tackle boxes, etc and then finally launch the boat.

Where the hell do these people come from? I mean really do they pull out of their drive way park in the middle of the road and run back in the house and get their coffee and lunch?

[bobO]

this boat launch was 3 across. so that means 3 boats could launch at once. We were the only ones lanching but had to wait until someone moved there boat off the dock. i flipping hate when people launch there boat and then park it right on the dock and wait for the person driving the truck to get back. We were waiting to put in and no one even thought about moving there boat to the other side of the dock or even move down to the end of the dock. It make you wonder if some people have ever launched a boat before.

[Dan Thiem]

Was this at Lax Lake? If so I helped two old timers up there once.

One old guy was backing down the ramp while the other old guy was walking behind the truck holding the front of the boat. Well the guy decideds to do the hard reverse then hard brake to make the boat slide off the trailer and into the water. He almost pancaked the other guy who couldn't move fast enough. That's when I decided to help them out.

[Cooter]

My peeve is people with nicer boats than me (about 75% of em) and those who bring in more and/or bigger fish than me (about 99.9% of em)

[bigdog]

My pet peeve is all the beautiful girls standing around the ramp that want my phone number. It can really slow down the launching process!

[Dan Thiem]

Big Dog...

You wish. That's funny!

[First Ice-Mike]

I witnessed a good one Saturday night at Hobo Park on Lake Minnewaska. There was about 70 of us in the campground lined up along the marina watching the fireworks when this brand new pimped out G3 comes in from the lake. The guy drops his partner off at the dock to get the trailer and then he whips a nice little doughnut in the no wake area just to make sure everybody saw his nice boat. It took this poor guy 10 minutes to get his boat on the trailer - most of the time he wasn't even close. A bunch of people watching the fireworks were giving him a hard time. They would yell HIT IT!! whenever he approched his trailer and were yelling a bunch of other funny stuff. When he finally got his boat up everybody stood up and started clapping and cheering - freakin' hilarious!! I bet he went out and bought side guides for his boat the next day!!

As for some of this other stuff sometimes I think people need to develop a little more patience. My biggest pet peeve is the up tight guy who thinks everybody is a professional boat launcher - some people just need to relax a little bit - they'll live longer.

FI

FI

[wastewaterguru]

My pet peeve is when anyone (other than me) is using the boat ramp. Don't they know that I have priority over everybody.

I am good enough...

I am smart enough...

...and gosh darn it, people like me!!

Sure would be nice if everyone else just stayed home.

By the way Bigdog, those girls are standing there waiting for ME to arrive. I always have my girls arrive before me so I can make an entrance. You'll here my theme music and see the fishbowls under my shoes as I arrive holding my "pimp" of the year trophy.

[upnorth]

Dan, This incident was a Lake Harriet and it was just a couple of guys, nothing special about them, just inconsiderate. I can overlook the very young and inexperienced and the forgetful older folk. I am guessing these two were in their 40s and didn't seem like newbies to the sport. They actually had it down pretty good putting the motor and such on at the base of the launch, they did it fairly smoothly

[Guest]

I pulled into a local lake last night an saw a lady parked right in front of the boat launch. I stopped about 75 feet from her, got my straps off and got the boat ready. Slowly approached the boat launch to indicate that I wanted to launch my boat. After about 5 minutes waiting for her to move so I can launch the boat, I walked up and politely said "Excuse me mam, can you please move your car so I can get my boat in the water?". She said "There plenty of room!" and mumbled some other stuff. I just smiled and got back into my truck. As so drove off furiously, she yells, "Learn how to drive!". That was my pet peeve yesterday.

[Ely Lake Expert]

Wow, I finally read this thread and all I know is that I am happy I live nowhere near the metro area.

Any "pet peeve" I could imagine has already been listed.

[backlash 1]

It's not just the metro. I saw one on Gull last weekend, 2 docks and 2 ramps between, 1 dock had a trailer launching, the other dock was full with one boat just about ready to leave, and some guy makes a 3rd lane and backs in a empty trailer inbetween. I'm going what da ----??? If he could have waited 2 more minutes either side would have been open.

The wife and I went back the next day with some beer and lawnchairs and watched for about an hour. There's some really funny stuff there, including the kid who had his winch rope tied to the bow eye, of course it was so tight he could'nt get it loose so he pulls out a bic lighter and tries to burn it off, finially one of the people on the dock offered him a knife. Most of the people actually were pretty good though.

[toonfish]

mine is slipped now ...thank god....but earlier in the year at the prior lake north launch....my wife dropped me off to go get the truck...on my walk up all I heard was two punk kids blasting their bass....with f*** this and f**** that lyrics (my kids where still in the boat with mom or there would have been words exchanged)the line was at least 15 truck and trailers deep and they were about 5th.....I went to get my trailer waited in the 15 deep line and finally got a chance to back trailer in....one of these punk kids was still holding the boat on the launch side of the dock...(there was no parking that day) finally I said something and that opened the flood gates for everybody else...I just asked him to move....others were pulling up on boats yelling...so finally he hand pulls the boat to the other side of the dock....people are still [PoorWordUsage]ed....so when his bud shows up from parking the trailer...people unleash on him too...This kid has the nerve to starrt dropping f-bombs on all 30 others at the launch.....hops in his boat just as my wife is pulling towards the trailer....this (Contact US Regarding This Word) decides to buzz everybody....floors it out of the launch....and his bow popped up on him so he couldnt see where he was going...missed my wife and kids by 3-4 ft tops and the wake throws my wife off track from landing the boat...If there would have been a waverunner or jet ski near I might have gone super action hero and tried to use it to follow him and jump a wake into the back of his boat and taken him out with a mid-air karate chop to the skull.....That is my pet-peeve story...to the 16 yr old jerkoff "the world owes you nothing, get over yourself"