Antique Boat Show at Boat Ramp

[convergent]

The forecast for this past Saturday was 95 degrees and sunny...water temp was 80 degrees, so we had planned to go to the small lake near our house for a fun day in the sun... not bad for end of September. The boat ramp is really nice with four large loading docks that are long enough to tie off 3 boats on each side of them. The boat trailer parking lot only has about 2 spots, and then there is an overflow lot with smaller spots. You have to drive through a large park to get to the water and launch.

We get there and it looks way busier than normal and I see a big sign saying something about the "antique boat society" and look and all the docks are lined with antique boats tied off just sitting there. There were maybe one or two spots that weren't occupied. Then I look and the whole row of trailer parking spots was 3/4 full with ez-up tents and displays, and a several antique boats on trailers.

When I paid, they told me I could park my trailer way back up in the park in a field, about a 1/2 mile from the ramp. Great, but where do I tie off so I can go park? We figured we'd think of something so I pulled down to my normal prep spot to get ready to launch and this guy with one of the antique boats just sitting there decided he wanted to leave and we were blocking him in his spot. He talked to my friend and apparently was pretty hot under the color that I was in his way. It took me a total of about 4 minutes to undo the straps and get ready to back in, and it turned out to be our lucky day because after we backed onto the ramp, he backed out and left, leaving one open trailer spot. I told my friend to pull up into that spot as soon as I backed off the trailer. He did, and after he got back in the boat and we were out in the water, he told me that some of the antique boaters told him he couldn't park there and he just told them that I was out in the lake and he didn't have and he didn't feel comfortable moving it.

The antique boats were pretty cool to look at, I will admit, but it seemed like they thought they could just take over the whole launch area. They had all these static displays tying up most of the places you could park a trailer, and there were no people at them. Because it was hot, they were all huddle up under the trees in the shade trying to keep anyone from parking in the few spots that were available. They could have setup their displays anywhere else ... like in the shade where they were hanging out... and left the trailer spots open.

I did see a couple of the boats out in the lake cruising a little, but mostly they were just sitting at the dock all day. We had a great day, but what a fiasco at the launch.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Antique Boat Show at Boat Ramp

I suppose when they scheduled this, they didn't expect the record-breaknig temps and people wanting to go boating. And of course if it's a private ramp, they can close it for events.

A local private ramp here recently closed, supposedly because those who use the nearby "party cove" thnik you're supposed to leave your trash around, and not in, the dumpsters. Sadly, it also provides access to unusual protected water fishing even through the winter. Maybe he'll reopen when the mullets leave.

 

[Adjuster]

Re: Antique Boat Show at Boat Ramp

If possible you should speak with the organizers. Suggestions may make for a better event next year for everyone.

 

[convergent]

Re: Antique Boat Show at Boat Ramp

And of course if it's a private ramp, they can close it for events.

This is a public boat ramp and park run by the city... so it surprised me that they blocked everything.

I agree with the other post about giving them suggestions... good idea. They should have made sure that at least one ramp and accompanying docks was left open throughout the day; and they should have also had them set up their displays in an area other than the boat trailer parking lot.

I suspect the problem is that this antique boat "society" is probably mostly run by older guys, and most of the employees at the facility are high school and college aged girls and a few guys. They were probably able to push them around a bit and just do whatever they wanted.

I don't think the unseasonal weather was really a contributing factor to the way this was done, because this lake is equally trafficked by anglers and watersports folks. If it had been cool, the boat count would have shifted to bass boats and still had just as much demand for ramp and parking spaces.

I really felt bad for the guys that were out alone. I saw one fisherman that was circling around for a very long time because there was no place he could tie off to go get his truck... being that it was a 1/2 mile from the ramp.

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Antique Boat Show at Boat Ramp

someone, somewhere, is posting a thread about an inconsiderate boater that barged into the middle of an organized antique boating event!

 

[scanman]

Re: Antique Boat Show at Boat Ramp

Maybe they could've done something to accomidate the daily users. If I had an antique I wouldn't want the everyday boater anywhere near it.

 

[convergent]

Re: Antique Boat Show at Boat Ramp

someone, somewhere, is posting a thread about an inconsiderate boater that barged into the middle of an organized antique boating event!

Possibly... but not sure if that would be warranted. The ramp and parking lot were open and there weren't any signs preventing people from parking in an open spot. I was in the next to the end spot, and the car/trailer in the end spot wasn't part of their program either, or if it was the boat was in the lake because it was a regular galvanized bunk trailer... not antique. I wasn't blocking anything and I was just trying to get my boat in the water and enjoy the day. I actually looked at a few boats and talked to a few of the owners that were tied to the dock that we were able to wiggle into and tie off while I parked. Ironically, I was able to answer some of their questions about the engine thanks to a thread on iboats last week about V drives. The guy wanted to know how the motor could be mounted backwards in the boat, and I explained V drives to him. Then I got in my boat and off we went.

My comment about parking is that some of the folks were trying to say to my friend that he couldn't park where he did. If the parking lot was closed to regular boaters, there were no signs saying that and I asked the people that run the park when I paid and they said I would probably not find a spot in the normal lot, but never said I wasn't allowed to park there.

I guess in hindsight it was the park operators that messed this up. They should have thought ahead and expected there to be a problem on a Saturday if 20+ antique boats tied off on display to the loading docks, and then setup displays in the middle of the trailer parking lot. There was plenty of room for the displays either around the edges of the parking lot, or in the many fields around the parking lot. They could have reserved half, or even 3/4 of the ramps and docks for the show and put up some signs indicating that, and made sure that the remaining ramp/dock was kept open by having a staff member monitoring it and keeping people moving along. I'm sure this would have resulted in happier antique boat show participants, as well as the regular boaters and anglers. As it was, you had the normal yahoos trying to launch and retrieve their regular boats with both sides of their pathway out to the water lined with antique boats... resulting in more bumping around on the docks for them I'm sure, and an accident waiting to happen when you think about all the usual ramp follies.