Eric Wettschreck Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 Some people don't powerload for the following reasons;They don't have power tilt on their motor.They are not comfortable doing it.They don't want to be "That guy" that made the big hole at the landing.Not saying it's right or wrong to power load or crank it in, however don't be so quick to judge just cuz they don't do things the way you do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylersk Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 I have hard enough of a time bringing the boat to the dock.. Much less try to drive it straight onto the trailer. Never grew up owning a boat so I'm learning everything a bit late. I think the old saying is "Cant teach an old dog new tricks" or something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoxMN Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 Only thing is, this is against the rules at a growing number of ramps. It simply ruins the ramp, and costs money to repair it. I used to drive on the trailer for years, "power loading" too. Now I or boat driver simply pull drive on up to trailer at idle, and winch in the rest fo the way. Your feet still stay dry and it only takes about 3 feet of cranking to get the boat up. But no more blowing out the gravel and sand due to us, and it still only takes litrerally 2-3 minutes tops between the time from tires entering the water until I am back in drive and pulling out. A bit more effort with the cranking, but still not bad.But, yeah, powerloading is fast and easy. It just ruins ramps, however. If not the concrete itself, it blows the supporting sub-ramp foundation material away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youngie22 Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 my little boat and trailer don;t power load so well. it can be done but I know that it can be done in less that a minute. I do it a few times a week got it down pretty well. easiest, fastest, and best way to load my boat at a boat ramp, a hill side, a sandy beach, a gravel landing a cement landing, any thing it may be. not every one can power load. they don't have your boat. But i know I can launch and load faster than most on any thing, where ever it may be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DinkADunk Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 My wife doesn't like driving the boat (she's not very good at it) and she's not a fan of driving the truck (or backing down either) so powerloading doesn't save anytime. She however is very good at using a rope to get the boat from the far side of the dock to the ramp we're loading on (while I'm backing down the ramp) and she's fast at winching the boat on the trailer. We're in and out in a couple of minutes and don't need to powerload. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UMDSportsman Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 one thing that bothers me is the people that can't get their boat straight on their trailor after 5 tries. ya, i know they don't always go on strait, been there, done that. after only five or six times loading the boat i usually use, i know exactly how far in the trailor needs to be. just so the tips of the tires are sticking out of the water. it may take a little more effort cranking, because the boat doesn't go right up to wench, but it is on straight 95% of the time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassboy1645 Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 Hmm....I know some people dont have the power to "powerload" but ive been around boats all my life and I can honestly say that there arent many boats you cant powerload...The exceptions are pontoon and sailboats. I know alot of boats cant powerload with the extra ppl or weight of coolers, ect. As far as damage to ramps goes I think thats nonsense! Especially when the motor is tilted. If anythign it shoots a stream of water up more so than level. Granted it might waer the bottom out a bit but so does backing the trailer in. current and waves crashing onto shore has the same effect. As far as manual tilts go..I use to power load the 15 hp I had and I can powerload the small 9.9 by simply locking the motor in place after hand tilting it. If it has no lock you can hold it in place but thats somewhat tricky but can be mastered. But like I sated before It takes practice to judge current and waves to get on the trailer straight. Smaller boats I just pick up the stern and hand straighten once out of the way. Ive never heard of powerloading being a rule at any ramps and I fished just about everywhere in Mn and WI. I still stand at my opinion, but I wasnt attacking anybody in particualar. Sorry If anyone took it that way. At any rate do what's fastest for you... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cold one sd Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 I have seen a lot of guys that could take lessons from my wife when it comes to backing down a launch. She killed my GMC pickup one day because it was a 4 speed. Some guys laughed at her when she killed it, but said holy sh*t when she put it in granny and smoked the tires going up the launch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muskiechaser Posted April 30, 2007 Author Share Posted April 30, 2007 I second this. 90 percent of the time it really doesn't matter if it goes on straight or not, it's not off enough to make a difference anyway. I gave up trying on my last boat, and it trailered the same. I do realize on a bigger boat this may create more problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eyepatrol Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 Power loading in some situations is about the only way to load, especially if you're by yourself and there are no docks out. A person can powerload gently (oxymoron there). Just keep the motor trimmed up and keep it in idle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slotlimit Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 Cold One,That didn't happen to be a lake just south of webster did it? That's where it happened to the guy i helped out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
river rat316 Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 Its amazing how this thread gets rehashed every year Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wade Joseph Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 As a general rule of thumb, especially around greater population centers. The amount of courtesy someones will show is directly proportional to the difference in price between your truck/boat and theirs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LoonASea Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 Lots of good opinions givin here,,,but its almost a moot point on this site since most of us are genuine sportspersons and are typicaly not the ones who are less then courtious at boat landings ,,,chances are the ones who only put the boat in the water a handfull of times are going to be the "THOUGHTLESS" at the landings. Just act friendly ,ask how fishing was, and help out if you can ,,I have helped several others and have even gone as far as suggesting they watch me load ,,kind of a lead by example type thing Organization is the key and well not every one is organized and chances are they dont frequent this site Randoid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pherris Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 I do "power load" but like mentioned earlier I do not have to do much more then idle onto the trailer. The key to doing this successfully for me is to make sure the trailer is alligned properly and backed in to the right level. My trailer is a bunk trailer and I make sure that I fully submerge the bunks before I pull out to the right level to load. The boat will glide on the bunks much easier if they are wet. I have found that offering help to others also works better then grunting and sign language. We all did not start out as good boat loaders. Good Fishing!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Water Hazard Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 I bought my first boat last summer and was a bit nervous when it came to unloading/loading it. It doesn't help when the prevalent attitude seems to be, "GET OUT OF THE WAY!" It seems to me that the more you rush a person, the more they are likely to make a mistake. That being said, this thread and its predecessor last year has/had some great tips that made life easier for me. Whenever possible I:1. Scout out the landing so I have an idea the layout and what to expect. I like to get a feel for where to stage, where I can tie off the boat (I usually fish alone), where to park, etc.2. Practice backing up with your trailer. Go to a large, empty parking lot and practice! Put your hand at the bottom of the wheel and then turn the wheel in the direction you want the back of the trailer to go. 3. When I arrive at the launch, I pull off to the side, take off the transom saver and tie downs, unplug the wiring harness, hook up the rope for tying off the boat, put the keys in the boat, make sure the plug is in, get the life jackets out, and put the poles in the boat. 4. When launching, don't feel like you have rush. I know when I first started, I'd rush because "someone might come" or "what will that guy think?" I have found that if I back down too quickly, I am more likely to jackknife the trailer. I don't crawl down the ramp, but I don't floor it either. 5. As soon as my boat is free, I tie it off to the opposite side of the dock. Then I park, jog to the boat, and get out of the way for the next guy.6. When it is my turn to load, I again park on the opposite side of the dock, get my truck, and load up. I originally had a lot of trouble getting the boat to center on the bunk trailer. At my dad's suggestion, I finally built C or U shaped spacers out of 2x4s. I just slide that over the back part of the bunk and it keeps the waves from sliding the boat to one of the sides.I don't power load my boat...it is just as fast for me to swing it around and winch it on since I am by myself and the boat is already turned off and tied to the dock.Just a thought for those "experts" out there. You were new once too. Offer to help instead of acting better than everyone else. Teaching someone some of the stuff you've learned will help them load/unload faster in the future. That helps both of you out.If you are new, practice when the ramps aren't too busy. While you are waiting your turn, think of ways to do things better the next time. Make a checklist of things you need to do before you launch.Remember, we are out there to have some fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
primetime49 Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 One thing that really makes people upset is when they get to the lake with a couple hours to spend and they find out that their is a tournament going on.We have always tryed to assist at the landing by adding extra docks,a couple persons in the wtaer to help crank and tie down boats .In july this year we have a one hundred boat tournament on a busy day[the afternoon is busy 3 to dark]our weigh instarts at 2.We put as many extra helpers around landing as possible and do not use docks that familys and persons with less landing experience will be using.Any bad experience they have at landing is just turmoil towards fishing tournament.We even help load and unload their boats.We also know that if its windy we have to get one of people in boat to drive tow vehicle to other side of lake to load boats and we try to prepare for this also.Also we get permission to use parking at two of 5 landings on lake and try to publish such so all day boaters or other users do not become frustrated with us.The one thing that really can create bad feedback is that we tie up landings and parking space.I think that is one reason for one day tournaments or weekday tournaments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cold one sd Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 Quote:Cold One,That didn't happen to be a lake just south of webster did it? That's where it happened to the guy i helped out. slotlimit, it was at Horseshoe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luckey Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 I think "Water Hazard" nailed it! Excellent positive post. I would never get upset just because it takes someone extra time to load or unload (sometimes things just don't go as planned) but failure to "prep" the boat prior to backing down the ramp is just wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schloogs Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 Water Hazzard, Well said... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cold one sd Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 I think the strangest one that ever happened to me was when the parking lot at a small launch was full and there were vehicles with trailers parked on both sides of the road for 1/2 mile leaving one lane for travel. I left the launch and was abour 50 yards down the road when a guy comming from the opposite direction with a pontoon headed right for me instead of pulling over to wait . He had to see me, but just kept comming. I found a spot with enough room to get off of the road, but I always wondered how someone could be that dumb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weed Shark Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 Last year I had the family to an old small sleepy resort in western, MN. We had the cabin nearest the boat landing, which seemed fine because only two people used it per day. We night-fished for walleyes and planned to "sleep in" the next morning. My wife was extremely sleep-deprived that week. We were surprised and disappointed when a tournament showed up, launching past our bedroom window in the pre-dawn; you could hit the wall our pillows were against with your boat. Seems like a poor choice of accesses and there was no advance notice. I don't mind that so much, its the chance I took renting a cabin. What was annoying; they stood 10 feet away from our open bedroom window, blabbering and laughing in loud voices. I cleaned a bunch of cans and trash out of our fire pit.There's no shortage of rude people in the world; never will be. Just need to find some patience, drink decaf if we need to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cold one sd Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 I know how you feel Weed Shark, I dropped my wife off at the launch to get my pickup and trailer so we could load. A tournament weigh in just got over and the boats were comming to the docks and dropping someone off to get their vehicles. They ran my wife off the road when she was comming down to the launch and when she finally started backing down to load me, a guy backed around her and backed his trailer under my boat. I told him I didn't think my boat would fit on his trailer and refused to move after the way he had treated my wife. He pulled ahead and backed his trailer at a 45 degree angle to the dock and loaded his boat. Another guy did the same thing. We went up to our camping pad and listened to these guys partying and yelling until about 3am when they finally quieted down. The next morning we watched them as they came by the dumpster and threw the walleyes from the tournament out of their livewells into the dumpster. If I have a choice now, I won't stay in a campground where there is going to be a tournament. No offence to you guys that fish tournaments as I used to fish them too, but you do have some real pigs that are fishing with you. I have arrived at the fish cleaning station and waited to clean my fish because there were 30 guys from a tournament there first which is fine with me. The problem was that when they decided to leave, they filled the fish grinder so full that it overloaded and quit. They just got in their vehicles and left their carcasses laying on the table. We had to unclog the grinder and finish cleaning up their mess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slotlimit Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 I was at swan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Wettschreck Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 I fished a walleye tourney on Big Stone this past weekend. The guys who ran the tournament had seriously thought this out, and it showed. The landing has 4 ramps and there were guys in waders helping launch boats. It took like no time at all to get 100 boats in the water. Landing was the same way. It was a very well oiled machine. As far as the fish go, once we weighed them in we never saw them again. The tourney guys put them back in the lake. I'm not really a tournament guy. However I can understand the frustration of a non-tourney guy on that particular day. A lot of it really depends on how the tourney is set up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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