Biggest Mistake You've Made With Your Boat ?

[snowboardcorey]

Man that sparks memories, we were riding one day and could see a storm rolling in but the riding was SOOOOOOoooo good so we kept riding till the lightning came in. We had about 3K of ballast in the boat but with the lightning we figured we'd just put the boat on the lift and drain it later. As we're walking down the dock the lift cable breaks, boat falls back into the water and now we have nowhere to put it! Had to hook up the trailer and load it up in a full on thunder storm, man that was stupid.

[flaudia402]

Back when I had a Mastercraft and used to tow to the ramp, I pulled the boat up onto the trailer forgetting to shut the motor off. 15 min later realized it. Toasted impeller. Fortunately it wasn't a much costlier mistake.

Same boat, my girlfriend and sister were out with me one evening. We had gotten out late, and it was almost 6:30 in the evening during the summer. I was wakeboarding, and we were on one of the larger lakes on the chain. I ended up eating it, and as my girlfriend who was driving, comes around to pick me up, the wind had picked up and had turned the boat around, right over the tow rope. It was getting darker and I couldn't see the rope under the propellor, as it continued to get more and more tangled. On top of that we continued getting pushed into the weeds. Out of fear of worse happening, me being stubborn and not thinking, I decided to turn the motor on and try to get out of the weeds in hopes that the rope was just snagged on one of the fins under the boat. Well it wasnt -- the rope got tangled in the shaft and propellor. I got out of boat, into the water, wading in snake/alligator infested weeds (Funny thing is, I was barefoot walking along in some nasty muck and I was more concerned about my boat than getting bit by something). I wasn't able to untangle it. My girlfriend was the only one who brought her phone and I didn't have mine so I couldn't call any of my buddies on the lake. Using her phone, after some time, I was able to contact a buddy who called another acquaintance of mine. His dad ended up coming out, and towing us back to the boat ramp. Talk about embarrassing. Ever since then, if I even see the rope getting close to the back of the boat or under the swim platform I freak out and swat it away from it. :???:

[bkhallpass]

The biggest mistake I ever made with a boat was putting my first wife's name on the title Yellow_Flash_Colorz: BKH

[jpduster]

Don't be too hard on yourself BKH, wouldn't you have been screwed for a least half anyway?
Hope you used it as an opportunity to trade to a better model (i don't mean the boat)

[BigBald]

got several...

.....inagural run on my 99 sport 5 years ago. Didn't realise it had a center plug and a transom plug. Wow was it hard to trailer....like a whale.

....High speed turn with a passenger. The passenger was beside me....they had a wet suit on and had just taken a run. They were holding on to the tower, but were too slipery...they slipped into my leg, which was extended outside the drivers panel (towards the bow). She, pounded into my leg....huge huge bruise...but no serious damage.

....hit a stump or something and thrashed my prop and prop shaft. Bounced the boat over the rudder, so no damage there....$3000 total to fix.

....learned that key floaties don't work as anticipated....luckily only my glove compartment and gas keys were lost.

.....had my anchor hooked to the bow. Was lounging around. Decided to take another surfing run. Forgot to bring anchor in. Luckily, the rope didn't get tangled in prop...just had to pull it in. Very scary.

probably got others....because I learn most things the hard way....but I can't think of any more. By the way....this is a very humbling thread....

[bkhallpass]

Don't be too hard on yourself BKH, wouldn't you have been screwed for a least half anyway?
Hope you used it as an opportunity to trade to a better model (i don't mean the boat)

Half? I wish :grin:

Yes, in the end, things have a way of working out. An expensive proposition, but typically worthwhile at the end of the day.

BKH

[SquamInboards]

Lots of stories come to mind - lost ropes due to skiing at night, dock lines in props, but one that stands out is not checking wheel lugs. Usually we don't trailer very far but it doesn't matter, they need to be checked. Going maybe 25 on a side road about 1/2 mile from the marina, I heard a sound like a rock in the tire (tick tick tick) then a CLUNK and I look in my side mirror and see one of the trailer tires bouncing along next to me. (luckily, dual axle trailer) I hit the brakes and pull over in time to watch it bounce right in front of a group of kids walking out to their car parked on the other side, it went between them and their car (barely) and then missed a tree, a fence, and a camper in the guy's yard and splashed into a river. I was able to run and grab it from the river and the guy whose kids were almost pummeled by my tire lent me a jack and tire iron. We found 4 of the 5 lugs in the road not far away and I was on my way in 10 minutes! Could have been a lot worse...

[SNobsessed]

My brother had a big wooden houseboat. It had a steel cable for an anchor line. It was somewhat hi water level on the river. We went skiing upstream & saw a full tree, leaves & all, floating. Stupid is as stupid does, forgot about it. An hour of partying later someone on the houseboat yells - look at that tree! - just as it wraps into the steel cable. The houseboat is seriously listing at this point. So the owner of the new Rinker throws the keys to me & I had to nose into this jungle from upstream (fast current) with his $20,000 boat (20+ years ago).

Well, we were able to get a line on it & roll it off to the side. I was shaking after we were done.

[Kevin_B]

Not so much a story of stupidity but more of a testament to nautique quality. Two summers ago I was with a boat load of people on the cumberland river in a 236 and i was wakeboarding and my friend was driving and As I landed and cut out for my next jump I looked up the lake and because the river was absolutly glass i could barely see a log floating so I tried to signal the driver that he was heading straight for it. So I waved my hands to get their attention and tried pointing it out and I could not get the point across so I started getting frantic and thought if i let go he would slow down in time and see it well my reaction was too late and he smoked the log, (which that got his attention). He idled back to me and I had to check out the underwater gear and everything seemed fine and intact. After we inspected the boat we went back to the log and hits thing was barely out of the water but it was about 20 feet long and 2.5 feet in diameter. It Had the cleanest slash mark through where the tracking fin sliced right though it. It was the most impressive cut I have ever seen so clean and we were so lucky that it bounced deep enough to miss the prop and rutter, (gelcoat was fine too).

Moral of the story Nautique boats exude quality from top to bottom, and pointing and waving does not get your driver to look forward, (havent solved that yet haha)

[Erik]

In an act of ultra macho stupidity, I was launching my Ski Nautique from a public ramp, by myself, and heard the rudder bump the ramp as I swam it off the trailer. The words I just used to describe this can not possibly illustrate how dumb this was - both in concept and execution. And it was a dumb thing to do the three times I successfully pulled off this same maneuver before. Broken down into parts, the "Solo-Jackass Boat Launch Swim Meet" (which can only happen at a vacant ramp by the way, so please don't get the idea I was doing this at 9am on a sunny Saturday in July) consists of backing the boat into the water, swimming it off the trailer, swimming her out 30 feet and putting her at anchor (or not depending on your instincts), swimming back to the tow vehicle, entering the tow vehicle (which has already been prepped with towels. Important!) parking the tow vehicle, swimming back to the boat, and then later jogging back to the ramp to pick up the tow vehicle. Stupid. I know. But you'll be happy to know that this incident marked the last time I ever attempted a solo boat launch at a public ramp without a temporary dock.

[01skinautiqueGT40]

2 weeks ago we were out on Lake Conroe and had our boats beached. I had my big sand anchor tied to the stern and anchored out on a 35 lead rope behind the boat to keep the boat from being slid sidways by the waves. When we decided to leave I pulled it in and set it on the platform and then the people in the water next to me said something and I forgot to bring it into the boat. So my friends take off and I jump in the driver's seat and haul *** after them. I accelerate up into their wake about 150 feet back and the PP sets the speed at 34 and I see my friends in the boat ahead of me pointing. That's when I look over my shoulder and see that big *** sand anchor 35 feet up in the air swinging on the downward side of a big arc. darn thing lands in the water about 3 feet to the side of me and before I can pull power off, the rope tightens and it shoots out of the water again and is 35 feet above my head coming back down. I yank the power back and steer hard left and it fell harmlessly in front and to the right of the boat this time. But darn, that was close!

same thing happened to me!! left a 06 210 team in the middle of the lake in about 20 ft of water. came back hopped on and he wanted to go for a set, so he gets in, HIT IT! i jam er' down and all the sudden, SHOOSH! huge *** anchor comes flying up infront of the boat, comes SLAMMIN down on the tower ( which saved my life ) and shot back into the water, and before we had time to stop it shot back up hit the tower again and stuck right in the back of the boat. and were so stupid we laughed about it and the anchor is now a part of the back of the boat

[Chris4x4Gill2]

and the anchor is now a part of the back of the boat

I want pics!

[Kevin_B]

and the anchor is now a part of the back of the boat

I want pics!

I second that

[01skinautiqueGT40]

and the anchor is now a part of the back of the boat

I want pics!

I second that

k i will post em up this weekend

[SquamInboards]

How could I forget?! I kicked the wheel chock out from under a trailer this summer with the boat on a very slight incline... it didn't go anywhere at first, then I shook it to be sure, and it started to roll... straight down the incline and through the wall of a boathouse. It was only stopped by the left front guidepost hitting the door jamb (after shattering the custom cedar door) about 4" short of landing the tongue jack on the bow of the boat in that slip... though it did displace the wall about 6" and make a spectacular crunch... I was in such a hurry to grab a tractor and pull the boat out of the wall that I forgot to take a picture though...