05-15-2013, 04:14 AM
[quote StacyR][quote Fishaholicsteve]I very much appreciate this thread. I just bought my first boat. It is a 15' tri-hull with a 50hp mercury outboard motor. Should be a great little fishing boat. One small question.....When is the best time to load small children in the boat? Before backing down the ramp seems like a bad idea incase the boat gets away from me, but waiting at the dock for the Mrs. to walk them down from the suv will take a while as well.[/quote]
Keep the kids in the car and have the Mrs. get out while on the ramp. Tie a long rope to the eye on the bow where the winch attaches, and another rope to a point near the stern. Have your partner hold the ropes while you (slowly) back the trailer into the water. Once the boat is floating, she can easily pull it up next to the dock or shore and tie off. Let the kids out and have her put them in the boat while you park the rig.
On a boat that small, do NOT have anyone inside before it is in the water. Once the transom straps and bow hook are undone, the boat is just sitting on the bunks or rollers. Shifting weight could cause it to slide off the trailer before it's in the water. Not good.
One more thing... If the trailer has rollers, do NOT undo the bow hook at the top of the ramp unless you want to launch it onto dry land. Back the trailer as far as possible into the water, then get out and unhook the winch. The boat will roll off into the water.[/quote]
Thanks for the tips. I may have left out that while this is the 1st boat I own, it is not the 1st boat I have launched. There are a few things in the common sense department that I take for granted like not unhooking it until backed down into the water, and not forgetting to put the plug in the boat. I am just hoping to learn a little from the others here that have more experience than I do. One thing I have noticed in life is that no matter how much I know, somebody out there knows more and can teach me if I am willing to learn.
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Keep the kids in the car and have the Mrs. get out while on the ramp. Tie a long rope to the eye on the bow where the winch attaches, and another rope to a point near the stern. Have your partner hold the ropes while you (slowly) back the trailer into the water. Once the boat is floating, she can easily pull it up next to the dock or shore and tie off. Let the kids out and have her put them in the boat while you park the rig.
On a boat that small, do NOT have anyone inside before it is in the water. Once the transom straps and bow hook are undone, the boat is just sitting on the bunks or rollers. Shifting weight could cause it to slide off the trailer before it's in the water. Not good.
One more thing... If the trailer has rollers, do NOT undo the bow hook at the top of the ramp unless you want to launch it onto dry land. Back the trailer as far as possible into the water, then get out and unhook the winch. The boat will roll off into the water.[/quote]
Thanks for the tips. I may have left out that while this is the 1st boat I own, it is not the 1st boat I have launched. There are a few things in the common sense department that I take for granted like not unhooking it until backed down into the water, and not forgetting to put the plug in the boat. I am just hoping to learn a little from the others here that have more experience than I do. One thing I have noticed in life is that no matter how much I know, somebody out there knows more and can teach me if I am willing to learn.
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