Re: Holding up the boat ramp!
It was the evening of July 4th, (I know?should?ve stayed home). We stayed out watching the fireworks from the water along with several thousand likeminded folks. When all was finished, we headed to the ramp to go home and found the creek buzzing with 15 to 20 boats in various holding patterns. The parking lot was another cluster of activity having been designed with a road only wide enough for one vehicle to pass through going in a circular pattern to the ramp, all else was taken up with parking spaces. Basically, from the highway to the ramp area you could not physically pass another vehicle, and the same is true while leaving. All of the 4 ramps were taken up with people getting their boats out of the water and onto their trailers and leaving. My brother pulls our boat up to a dock and I get off to get the truck and trailer while he returns to the creek and circles until I get a ramp. I walk through the parking lot, get my truck and get in line. All 4 ramps are steadily moving using this same method, one person waits in the creek in the boat and comes in once they see their particular vehicle backing down a ramp. After waiting 10 to 15 minutes in line, I finally get my opportunity and line up on a ramp. As I back down, I see another boat has pulled in and tied up at the ramp dock, completely blocking by brother?s approach. I figure they are going to unload and pull back out like everyone else so I can get loaded and leave.
After they unload the boat, a man proceeds to the parking lot to get their truck. I wait, and wait. Finally another guy that was sitting in the boat gets out of the boat and walks up to me. He tells me that I need to move my truck so his buddy can back down. &%$@# HUH? His ?buddy? is still waiting in traffic to even get to the ramp, much less back down, who does he think he is? I attempt to explain that I already waited my time in line and was here to get my boat to which he responds by telling me that his way of loading is the correct way and ordered me to move. He even looks at my trailer and says that his boat is bigger than mine and that I am supposed to move based on that mere fact alone. Did I mention that his new 27 foot SeaPro center console with new twin Yamaha 200s was so clean that it couldn?t possible have seen water more than twice in it?s entire life? Needless to say, but this went nowhere fast. Was I totally off base here?
Eventually, his buddy got the truck to the ramp area and they finally moved, but in the meantime, he successfully tied up a ramp for 30+ minutes because he simply didn?t want to pull back out and wait like everybody else. I had nowhere else to be and decided to wait him out. I realize that I could?ve just moved and let them get their way but?nah. He called me every name in the book except a child of God, I just sat there until he tired.
and to make sure no one blocks the ramps or causes problems for others.
