hey you! just bought that new boat!

[jjacobs007]

Do me a favor and try to relax, I know the only thing on your mind is gettin it wet. do some research on boating before grabbing all your friends and beer and thinking boating is a right, not a privilege.Yes boating is awesome but from launching to anchoring many things can go wrong and people can get hurt and die even.Be carefull and go with another experianced boater in your boat first and learn the things no on else told you,it will be worth it, and even save you or a family members life too one day.,
example: You and your best friend are on first maiden voyage cruising full speed when he goes to look out side of boat at water splashing.suddenly boat hits big wave over he goes ,no worries your life jackets are in a locker under the bow seat. You go to bow to get a jacket to throw to him but realize hes too far away.So you go to start boat but it turns over but wont start over and over.then your friend stops yelling for help as he nears the bottom of the lake,sad right, under all the stress you have forgotton there is a kill switch that came loose as you walked away from drivers seat to get jacket,remember you hooked it to your swim trunks slightly.

 

[25thmustang]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

I'll try and remember that, thanks.

 

[jjacobs007]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

I think i scared all the newbies!! point well done!

 

[5150abf]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

I pulled a rod out last night and my rod holder fell in!!!!

Luckily we were in 4' of water and I fished it back out with my net but it was pretty scary.

Point taken and I agree 100%, there is alot that can happen on the water pretty quickly and you need to be ready to deal with anything but alot of people just can't deal with an emergency situation, I have read somthing like 20% of the people who die in plane crashes do so because they were just to freaked out to walk off the plane.

 

[Fireman431]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

And do yourself a favor. Aside from the boating safety course (a 'must-do'), talk to some of the locals and get the information that only experienced boaters know about your favorite waterways. The hidden dangers under the water. The sandbars, shoals, broken pilings, rocks, etc.

 

[jjacobs007]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

And do yourself a favor. Aside from the boating safety course (a 'must-do'), talk to some of the locals and get the information that only experienced boaters know about your favorite waterways. The hidden dangers under the water. The sandbars, shoals, broken pilings, rocks, etc.

Your boat looks fine! LOL

 

[nlain]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

Also, at least buy some paper charts of the waters you are going to be in. Study them, they will help you understand what you are going into. The small numbers like, 1, 2, 3 tells you how far the bottom is from the surface in feet, rocks as a rule are marked, if the water is tidal then the numbers are taken at low tide, now you need to know what the tide swing is and where you are at in the tide change. High tide you can sometimes boat right over the sand/mud bars, half tide you may be sitting for quite awhile saying I boated through here yesterday.

At the boat ramp, transfer all your coolers, towels, toys, put the plug in, test start the engine, take the stern tie down straps off before you back down the boat ramp, when backed down the ramp, loosen the winch some, get in boat, start engine, unhook winch from boat, back out and go to dock to load people. If you have to load and launch by yourself then just do it in a timely manner. When you come back to load do the above in reverse order.

 

[hostage]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

I hate to say your words falls on deaf ears. Pretty much everyone on this forum comes here so they won't be that person. The people you need to worry are the people who will never read what you said.

 

[TerryMSU]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

Nlain:
Your advice is good, but not all of us boat in big waters with charts. For example, I boat only in small uncharted lakes.
TerryMSU

 

[nlain]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

There are a lot of lake charts out now, may have to go to fishing hotspots to find them, I know probably not all are charted but a lot are.

 

[TerryMSU]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

The lake that I formerly lived on was about 300 acres. I could get a map of it on-line and also thru Navionics, but frankly having the map was not required to safely boat on that lake. Look it up. Gilletts lake in Jackson County in Michigan. Frankly, the map was a waste of time. I also fish the Grand River near the city of Grand Rapids, Michigan. No map, and even if there were, the depths and structure are constantly changing.

TerryMSU

 

[wilyesteve]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

Remember to check the drain plug. Don't ask how I learned.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

This is why I always lash my crew to the mast before embarking (but I do it quickly so as not to tie up the ramp)

Do me a favor and try to relax, I know the only thing on your mind is gettin it wet. do some research on boating before grabbing all your friends and beer and thinking boating is a right, not a privilege.Yes boating is awesome but from launching to anchoring many things can go wrong and people can get hurt and die even.Be carefull and go with another experianced boater in your boat first and learn the things no on else told you,it will be worth it, and even save you or a family members life too one day.,
example: You and your best friend are on first maiden voyage cruising full speed when he goes to look out side of boat at water splashing.suddenly boat hits big wave over he goes ,no worries your life jackets are in a locker under the bow seat. You go to bow to get a jacket to throw to him but realize hes too far away.So you go to start boat but it turns over but wont start over and over.then your friend stops yelling for help as he nears the bottom of the lake,sad right, under all the stress you have forgotton there is a kill switch that came loose as you walked away from drivers seat to get jacket,remember you hooked it to your swim trunks slightly.

 

[jjacobs007]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

I fish on lake mead here in las vegas,there are so many water hazards here the rangers dont even mark them.My plan has always been, easy in and little faster out.

 

[Fishing Dude too]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

Your running along motor begins to smoke, stops, you are 3 miles from shore, storm brewing, oh and your on Lake Erie. Take cover of outboard find wires fried, seperate wires, motor fires, buddy runs boat in as you watch wires making sure they don't short. No Problem.

 

[haley]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

New to me boat. Previous owner had fire extinguisher in locked glove box. Not the best idea .

Yes - a lot of what you said is not new to me but it is new to the people that are on the boat with me. Like if it was you that went over the edge would your buddy know where the PFD's are? Or what the kill switch is? Wife and kids did not know what the kill switch was. They just know that Dad really likes his boat and if he wants to clip himself to it when he drives it that is just Dad being Dad.

I do a short intro that also acts as a quick inventory. For the kids it is now questions instead of instructions - since they know it all. So where is the whistle if the horn does not work? How much rope do you need to anchor in 10' of water? Where are the spare spark plugs?

Thanks for the refresher.

jh

 

[sw33ttooth]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

who uses that safty kill switch? seriously i clip it on to my key ring i dont plan to have drunks aboard nor do i plan to drive drunk. when my mom and sister get drunk they are more then a hand full in a car. i think i'd have to put them in the cuddy cabin if they got drunk out on the water, just so not to deal with them.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

I hadn't though about the fact that you take the kill switch clip with you when you fall over (duh). Yiou could also lose it if the thrown out at high speed. I carry an extra but my paniced crew would not know that. So one more thing to keep readily accessible and tell the family about.

Here's what I do: I have an old kill switch and the lanyard was falling apart, so I cut it off about 8". Long enough to grab, but it's out of the way. That's for fair weather boating. I also have the lanyard (with all varieties of kill switch clips) and I use that one for solo boating, night time, bad conditions, etc. I've used the extra clips to bail out others. Redundancy on all safety and essential operating gear.

 

[jjacobs007]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

who uses that safty kill switch? seriously i clip it on to my key ring i dont plan to have drunks aboard nor do i plan to drive drunk. when my mom and sister get drunk they are more then a hand full in a car. i think i'd have to put them in the cuddy cabin if they got drunk out on the water, just so not to deal with them.

Me thats who,well if you own a 27ft bayliner cuddy, yes the switch seems funny,but if you own a bass boat that has little freeboard and goes 70mph well its your other arm or it should be.
my storynce i was cruising along side a seadoo and we were trying to see who was fastest i think,when suddenly i noticed the water changing color before me,i was going like 63mph and made a strong turn to avoid the reef lol.I rolled across the seats and out the port side of boat into the water.to this day i am so happy i had that killl switch latched on to me belt, or my boat would have kept going i dont know where.
just one of many stories.

 

[Bamaman1]

Re: hey you! just bought that new boat!

Some people have common sense, and some don't (have any sense.)

Some people are boat people, and some aren't.

I'm just thankful i was raised on the water, and my past mistakes are behind me.

I don't want to be around anyone that cannot handle their own boat in a safe manner.