never lend your boat!

[blackz3]

soninlaw and grandson wanted to borrow the boat to go fishing/crabbing..not a problem they both have been on the boat numerous times and know the routine.. well they brought the boatback with a spun prop got a crab line raped around it..got that fixed..walked in the garage a few days later and darn near puked.. 2 dead crabs behind the gas tank!! oh and he took the key with him when he left.. then when i called him for it he had to look for it...seems he forgot to tell me he had it grrrrrrrrr. went to hook up the boat the next weekend and the transom straps were IN the boat not ON the transom where they belong
iv learned my lesson!!!

 

[CV16]

Re: never lend your boat!

I lent my first boat out to a couple of friends of mine. Both of them had been out with me 100's of times. When I went down to the dock the next day, the owner of the marina about killed me. Seems my boat slammed into a few piers, then into the owners boat! Nobody said a word to me about it, just said they had a good time. My boat was already a pos, it's name was "Piece of Ship" lol. As it was my boat, I had to repair the piers, and the damage on the owners boat. I haven't talked to those two guys in 15 years. Neither offered to help with repairs, and never even said sorry. I found out they weren't friends after all. I also will never lend a boat out to anybody again, well, maybe my dad, maybe.

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: never lend your boat!

Nobody quite looks after it like the owner eh !!!

 

[kellmike626]

Re: never lend your boat!

If you want to destroy the trust between you and the person wanting to borrow the boat, lend them it. Works 100% everytime. I wouldn't even trust my closest friend, let alone my brother
I've learned that just because they are perfectly fine with the routine you have when you are on board, doesn't mean they will be the same out on their own with a couple of friends, or by themselves...they always act differently, which is why you can never turn your back on them for one second. I baby my boat, and if I saw any signs of damage or if anyone complained...well, they'd have to deal with me

You learned the hard way, but with every lesson learned, we become smarter for the future

 

[eaglejim]

Re: never lend your boat!

Well I guess I am odd man out because their are 3 people that I would loan my boat, jetski, and car/truck 1.my Dad,2.a friend I grew up with,3.another friend that I have known for 32 years(since I have the keys to his lake house if he needed borrow my boat no problem)

 

[scipper77]

Re: never lend your boat!

Even after reading these horror stories I would likely loan out my boat to two people. This is based on there knowledge of boating, level of responsibility, and the strength of our friendship. I would be prepared to take a total loss on the boat in this case (don't ever loan out something you are not prepared to lose). not to say I'd be happy if I lost the boat but my relationship with these individuals is worth more to me than my boat.

I'd have to have a reason to loan it out however.

 

[DennisM]

Re: never lend your boat!

My therory is if you cant trust them around your House/Wife/Daughter then you cant trust them with the boat.

If they pass the above, then happy days....

 

[45Auto]

Re: never lend your boat!

My therory is if you cant trust them around your House/Wife/Daughter then you cant trust them with the boat.

How many people do you know that you can't trust around your house or wife or daughter???

I would trust all my family, friends and neighbors around my house or wife or daughter, I do it all the time. Doesn't mean I'd loan them a boat.

Only one that has the knowledge and skill to run a boat is my brother, who also has a boat, but lives 6 hours away. I've told him he's free to use my boat when he's here, and he's said the same thing to me when I'm over there. We've been out on each other's boats lots of times with the families, but neither one of us is the type to use other's stuff anyway, so it's never came up.

 

[JerseyMark]

Re: never lend your boat!

I guess boats & trucks fall into the same catagory. I have loaned my truck out 2 times and both time it was a nightmare. Never again.

 

[DennisM]

Re: never lend your boat!

How many people do you know that you can't trust around your house or wife or daughter???

Any male over the age of 16 around either wife or Daughter! lol

Thing is its about really knowing someone, and trusting them to treat you and your belongings as their own.

I only have two really good friends that I would trust with any vehicle of mine. Only because over the years I know I can trust them to treat it as their own, if not better. Also I know without a doubt if something happened to it, it would be taken care of. Period.

The rest of ones I know are acquaintances not friends. There is a difference..

 

[Thajeffski]

Re: never lend your boat!

I only drive my boat, even mom and dad don't get to take it out alone.

 

[204 Escape]

Re: never lend your boat!

A "friend" (a guy that I barely know) stopped by the other day while I was cleaning up the boat, and ask if he could "use the boat for a couple of days". I looked at my wife, she looked at me, and I gave her the nod to answer him.

She told him it was not out for "loan", BUT, he could purchase it !! He got a deer in the headlight look, and replied, "My God it's just a boat". To which she replied, "Well they make them and they sell them EVERYDAY, and the boating industry will certainly appreciat your purchasing a boat".

He left !!!!!!!

I personally don't care if he ever comes back or not !!!!!!

Gotta love a woman who speaks her mind !!!!!!!!!

 

[lonesouth]

Re: never lend your boat!

I've taken my dad's boat out loads of times, while growing up and now. I don't even trust him to take my boat as it is newer than his and he's not driven one as large as mine in 30 years. I know he'd make it right, but I'm not interested in the hassle entailed. I've only got one friend I might lend it to, but I doubt he would ever ask.

 

[wbc1957]

Re: never lend your boat!

It is not just the possible and probable loss of a friendship, if I lend my boat out to someone. I would be showing my fellow boaters that I don't care about their welfare, their time lost in giving more attention to the "newbie", and/or their expense if damages occur. I believe if my trusted fellow boaters stick to not loaning out their boat, I too should try and follow the same example. It should be a closed system. You wish to join? Shell out the bucks and plan on the investment of time for learning proper boating rules, time for providing maintenance, and time for dealing with issues and expenses as they arrise! It's called paying your dues! Any shortcut is the result of someone breaking the trust and loaning out their boat to trouble....

 

[DennisM]

Re: never lend your boat!

It is not just the possible and probable loss of a friendship, if I lend my boat out to someone. I would be showing my fellow boaters that I don't care about their welfare, their time lost in giving more attention to the "newbie", and/or their expense if damages occur. I believe if my trusted fellow boaters stick to not loaning out their boat, I too should try and follow the same example. It should be a closed system. You wish to join? Shell out the bucks and plan on the investment of time for learning proper boating rules, time for providing maintenance, and time for dealing with issues and expenses as they arrise! It's called paying your dues! Any shortcut is the result of someone breaking the trust and loaning out their boat to trouble....

Your assuming then if they dont own a boat, they do not know how to use it? Many many boat owners out there that prove that wrong.

It would have more to do with knowing the person who wants to borrow it. Are they capable? Have they shown themselves to be responsible with a boat? have they ever owned one themselves?

I have a really good friend, one of only two, who if he asked me, I would not hesitate to loan him my boat. he has owned them himself, grew up on the water for the most part and is one of the most responsible people I know. I would never feel like I was jeopardizing the safety of others with in at the helm..

A closed system, little bit of a privileged comment there I would say. Encourage more to have to take a boating saftey course at the least would be a better idea. But hey its your boat you do with it as you wish, thats the joy of owning it.

 

[wbc1957]

Re: never lend your boat!

Your assuming then if they dont own a boat, they do not know how to use it? Many many boat owners out there that prove that wrong.

It would have more to do with knowing the person who wants to borrow it. Are they capable? Have they shown themselves to be responsible with a boat? have they ever owned one themselves?

I have a really good friend, one of only two, who if he asked me, I would not hesitate to loan him my boat. he has owned them himself, grew up on the water for the most part and is one of the most responsible people I know. I would never feel like I was jeopardizing the safety of others with in at the helm..

A closed system, little bit of a privileged comment there I would say. Encourage more to have to take a boating saftey course at the least would be a better idea. But hey its your boat you do with it as you wish, thats the joy of owning it.

Knowing boating from prior boating experience isn't enough. I can sight the simple example that there are thousands of auto rental cars out there, and that most people understand that the condition of them is not to be trusted due to how its "non-owner" treats them! Sure, you are loaning to a "friend", but when it comes down to the dollars and cents, friends tend to come up with great stories to cover themselves, in a pinch. Then, it's you that has to decide what kind of friend you are. Or worse, what kind of relative you are...

 

[DennisM]

Re: never lend your boat!

Knowing boating from prior boating experience isn't enough. I can sight the simple example that there are thousands of auto rental cars out there, and that most people understand that the condition of them is not to be trusted due to how its "non-owner" treats them! Sure, you are loaning to a "friend", but when it comes down to the dollars and cents, friends tend to come up with great stories to cover themselves, in a pinch. Then, it's you that has to decide what kind of friend you are. Or worse, what kind of relative you are...

Very true, thats why I love a old saying my old man taught me..

There are friends and acquaintances.

A true friend you might have 5 of your entire life. How can you tell who is who?

A true friend is someone who, in a time of need will be there no matter the distance nor the time of day. If you need anything and they can get it for you, they will on the drop of a dime. Period.

A true friend is the one that when hearing of their or your death, you drop everything you are doing, no matter what it is, and sit, remember the good times, remember the life you shared together, and cry knowing that it will never be again.

The rest are just acquaintances and will come and go...

If you do not have at least one person in your life, that you can lean on, count on, and KNOW without a doubt that they fit the above friend, then your life is missing something..


Now with your car rental, well any body with the cash or credit can buy a boat too.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: never lend your boat!

I gotta be honest, I don't trust my dad with his own boat

 

[lncoop]

Re: never lend your boat!

I've got the best old man anyone could wish for. He has a heart of gold. However, a few years ago I talked him into buying a nice console steer flatbottom because he said he wanted something to take the grandkids fishing in. We took it out together the first time and I tried to teach him how to idle it onto the trailer. On his first approach he hit one trailer light. On his second approach he hit the other one. He then looked at me as if to say "well, we tried", turned off the motor and told me to drive the boat onto the trailer. We went home with the understanding that I'd get rid of it for him. Don't think he'll ever ask to borrow either of mine. Kind of sad in a way.

 

[scrat]

Re: never lend your boat!

Only person I ever will loan or have loaned to is my middle daughter. She knows how particular I am and I have personally trained her and tested her on it.