Boat Ramp Fun

[grim reeler]

Been a fun week at the boat ramps.

I watched a guy pull his boat out at the lake with out the winch strap locked in tight. Boat ended up on the pavement. Lucky for him he didnt have an outboard.

Saturday, we watched the cutest little lady in an itty bitty bikini try to run a 20 foot walk thur console bay boat into the back of a truck while driving it on the trailer.

I keep threatening to bring a lawn chair to the landing one day just to watch. Maybe i really should.

[Redfin]

I got to watch 4 boats clean out/strap down/etc.. thier boats at the Econfina Boat ramp last Saturday while me and 10 others waited on them to move so we could back in to load our boats...

there should be an even BIGGER sign about where to do all that.. you would think people would figure it out..

oh - and i love when people park directly in front of the ramp in the no parking area making boat loading that much more enjoyable.

[Mook!]

I think there's something in the water this year... We usually hit the St Marks fort ramp, never any shortage of idiots there. Last weekend Mojokoko and I watched a commercial crabber drop his giant skiff in the ramp, where it stayed, occupied by his female companion, while he parked the truck up the road, walked back down to the boat, was informed by said first mate that they had forgotten something or some such, at which time he walked back to the truck, got in, and drove off! He came back about 6 or 8 minutes later, parked, got in boat and headed out. That pretty much takes the ramp etiquette cake as far as I'm concerned; a professional who so obviously has to know better...tsk tsk

Here's my other observation about this year that shocks and awes me even more; for the last several weeks, VHF channel 16 has had more calls for "radio check" than for seatow, towboatsus and the Coast Guard combined, most seeming to come in the mid to late afternoon hours. My theory on this is that people are spending the morning shopping for a first boat, and taking it out right away. And who wouldn't think to test the radio on the emergency hailing frequency right away...

If anyone knows where these incredible boat sales are happening early Saturday mornings, please let me know. I'm in the market for a boat, and the prices are apparently low enough at these things to attract people who have never been on a boat, nor know anyone with any boating experience to take with them.

[RD]

[quote="Mook!"]I think there's something in the water this year... We usually hit the St Marks fort ramp, never any shortage of idiots there. Last weekend Mojokoko and I watched a commercial crabber drop his giant skiff in the ramp, where it stayed, occupied by his female companion, while he parked the truck up the road, walked back down to the boat, was informed by said first mate that they had forgotten something or some such, at which time he walked back to the truck, got in, and drove off! He came back about 6 or 8 minutes later, parked, got in boat and headed out. That pretty much takes the ramp etiquette cake as far as I'm concerned; a professional who so obviously has to know better...tsk tsk

And if anybody came up she was supposed to move the boat out of the slip,last Sat. she let go of the line and let the boat go out in the middle of the River,......good help is hard to find!!

[RHTFISH]

Best "circus" I've seen at Anky this year are people driving wrong
direction toward ramps to load boats when others are trying to leave the ramps = gridlock!
Of course, it's only wishful thinking to imagine any of these
folks having enough backing skills to correct their mistake.
As one of my dear departed friends used to say on a busy
afternoon at the ramps..."so far, so good, ain't been no shootings....yet"!

[birddog]

Best "circus" I've seen at Anky this year are people driving wrong
direction toward ramps to load boats when others are trying to leave the ramps = gridlock!

Which direction is the correct way to pull into Econfina to launch, RHTFISH. I've been a little confused myself.

I've been told to take the right fork and pull past the ramp and then back in, but coming in from the left seems to work better.

[Sir reel]

left is right you'd have to work pretty hard like RHT said to back in coming from the other (right fork) direction given the angle of the ramps.

[bballchrism]

while i was unloading my boat at lake iamonia i was backing it in and the lakes pretty low so you have to back in in pretty fare so all of a sudden my freind said i should stop because there was somthing wrong so i get out of my truck and the fender was like 4 feet away from the wheel so then i pull the boat off and pick the trailer up a little and i broke the axle b/c some person decided to go mud boogin on the ramp and made a big rut luckily i had another trailer at my house and got the boat and trailer back

[RHTFISH]

Left to ramp...back in and pull out and continue circle direction for parking and return to ramp same way. Sometimes you'll
see folks pull out and turn back right but that will hamper
incoming traffic and block flow especially when they stop abreast of
others doing the same. In the am it's not unusual to see two lines waiting on ramps and then it's a gentlemens' agreement who's next for an
empty ramp. People who sometimes pull forward of ramps to get out to
prepare their boat get cut off and have to go around and get back in
line. They really should not complain! Why not get a boat ready
before getting to the ramp? I have on occasion been the
"complainee" and I just simply give my ever improving performance of "...I'm just an old, demented redneck who doesn't mind going back to prison" to the "complainor."

[wevans]

They really should not complain! Why not get a boat ready
before getting to the ramp? I have on occasion been the
"complainee" and I just simply give my ever improving performance of "...I'm just an old, demented redneck who doesn't mind going back to prison" to the "complainor."

THAT'S AN ACT

[CROCKER]

ALL OF THIS CONFUSION IS SIMPLY SOLVED BY BEING THE FIRST ONE OUT AND THE LAST ONE IN.

[RHTFISH]

They really should not complain! Why not get a boat ready
before getting to the ramp? I have on occasion been the
"complainee" and I just simply give my ever improving performance of "...I'm just an old, demented redneck who doesn't mind going back to prison" to the "complainor."

THAT'S AN ACT

[birddog]

Thanks RHTFISH. I thought coming in from the left made more sense.

[Charles]

Been a fun week at the boat ramps.

I watched a guy pull his boat out at the lake with out the winch strap locked in tight. Boat ended up on the pavement. Lucky for him he didnt have an outboard.

Saturday, we watched the cutest little lady in an itty bitty bikini try to run a 20 foot walk thur console bay boat into the back of a truck while driving it on the trailer.

I keep threatening to bring a lawn chair to the landing one day just to watch. Maybe i really should.

Weaver Brown knows some folks that live near a public ramp in Pensacola and they do that. Take some chairs and a cooler and go sit in the shade near the ramp and watch.

"LET THE GAMES BEGIN!"

[Good Times]

My brothers and I always are in PCB for July 4th and go to St. Andrew's Park just to watch people unload and load their boats. We have talked about taking a table and chairs setting up and then holding up numbers based on each persons ability to load their boat. 1 being poor and 10 being perfect. We've seen some crazy stuff. Saw I guy power load a brand new Century Center Console while the waterline on the trailer was about three feet out of the water. Took him about 30 seconds at WOT to inch it up on the trailer. There was a huge pontoon boat directly behind him that he blew sideways and then that boat took out every boat behind him at he was being washed out of the lagoon. When the guy backed off the throttle he looked at everyone and said, "Now that's a 250!"

Saw another guy from GA doing a sea trial on a new 34" center console. That thing was huge. Looked like Noah's ark comming down the road. His girlfriend was backing it down when he realized he didn't have a bow line on and that he hadn't taken the cable loose. For reasons unknown he jumped onto the tung of the trailer, released the lock and then she hit the breaks. He crowching down directly under the handle. It spun around and caught him in the collar bone and wrist (broke both). The boat came sliding off like no tommorow and he fell backwards. Luckily the cable held when it spooled. The handle was spinning so fast the it actually broke off of the bolt. Not good. We helped get the boat back on the trailer. Parked it took it off the truck and they headed to the hospital.