Accident today at boat ramp!

[CaptOchs]

I'm a little behind this summer with boating. I needed some work done to my Mercruiser outdrive and it's taken me awhile to get fixed. It was 99 degrees in Rochester today, so I decided to take it out. Anyhow after waiting 20 minutes for a totally inept person trying to RETRIEVE their boat (in the LAUNCH-ONLY ramp) I finally got my turn. I started backing up and wham! Some guy in a car tried to zip past me and hit my outdrive. I stopped but he decided it would probably be a good idea to free himself of the situation so he drove forward and carved a 6ft long deep gash in his car with MY outdrive. Cars zip through that boat launch because it's the end of a dead-end street. The boat ramp and parking lot offer a means of turning around. Signs posted for "boat trailers only" are pretty much ignored.

The damage to his car was pretty ugly. In addition to the gash, he also lost a hub cap. As far as my outdrive, the exhaust ring on the end of the prop was crumpled. Amazingly it didn't seem seem to suffer any damage. I pulled to a safe spot and inspected it. The prop itself wasn't bent, chipped, or broken. The upper and lower drives were still in one piece. I had no fluid leaks. I checked the gears F,N,R and the drive responded as it should. My boat was pushed a couple inches off the bunks, but the underside looks OK. I checked with a friend that's Mercruiser certified and we both came to the conclusion the only way to tell if there is damage is to run it in the water. I took it for a 4 mile round trip around the lake and everything was smooth. No shuttering and again, no leaks. The boat ran perfect. At this point, I'm going to check the oil and make sure it looks OK. If I don't see any shavings or signs of water intrusion, I think I'm good. I'll probably need to get another exhaust ring. Attached picture better shows how it all went down. I have the guys name and insurance in case there is more damage that pops up.

Questions: Who is technically at fault? Besides checking the L/E oil, can anyone think of anything else?

 

[jestor68]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

You didn't call the police to complete an accident report?

 

[Chip Chester]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

Are the signs you mention at the entrance from Culver? Or somewhere in the parking lot that the car hadn't passed yet?
His defense will be: guy was leaving the parking lot with his boat, and I pulled in and went around him. Next thing I know, he's backing into me with his boat!

Is there an "exit only" sign where he entered? Doesn't look like a great design, but they have to work around limitations.

 

[haulnazz15]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

I'd be concerned about cracks around the pivot points of the gimbal ring and bell housing, as well as prop shaft damage.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

boats are tough; yours is probably OK. He deserves the gash in his car. His fault. That should be the end of it. Enjoy your boat.

 

[CaptOchs]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

No police report, but I have a couple of witnesses.

It is both an entrance and exit. When you retrieve, you're supposed to drive down to the end of the parking lot (one-way), turn onto Culver towards the dead end. Then you pull into the entrance by the ramp area and turn around your rig to get your boat. When you pull the boat out of the water, you can go down the parking lot again or leave from that entrance. There is a small 2ft wide sign that says "for boat trailers only." People ignore it and just pull into the area anyway. It's easier than trying to do a U-turn at the end of the dead end. Bottom line, if they follow the rules they are not supposed to be there.

You got me thinking it might be worth it to pull the outdrive again. I didn't get any wobble out of the prop shaft, so it might be good.

 

[froggy6916]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

outdrives are very strong, if you dont see leaks or cracks, its probably fine. nothing on the inside could easily break without the outdrive breaking

 

[CaptOchs]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

boats are tough; yours is probably OK. He deserves the gash in his car. His fault. That should be the end of it. Enjoy your boat.

I think you're right. If I had a nicer newer boat I'd really be upset. I've got a '91 Glastron that isn't the prettiest, but she sure flies!

 

[Maclin]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

Was he pulling a boat trailer?

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

I'm confused - it looks like you were backing up from the main road there? Isn't that road along the water where you are supposed to pull through hand left and then back down the ramp?

 

[marauder11]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

What the sign says and what the police or a judge would rule might be not be the same. Alot of the signs around where i live will have a local bylaw number below. Unless there is a bylaw stating only boat trailers in that area i would think the police would find you at fault. I know it sound stupid but he was driving the forward on the right side of the road and you backed into him. Also if your position was where you show on the pic maybe he thought you where leaving not backing up .

 

[CaptOchs]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

I'm confused - it looks like you were backing up from the main road there? Isn't that road along the water where you are supposed to pull through hand left and then back down the ramp?

View attachment 159065

No, he was not pulling a trailer. He was driving a Malibu and cutting through the boat ramp area.

Jeep, see those rocks on the shore line? There is a road that runs parallel right next to it. The little black square near the white stripe on the road is the toll booth. After you pay, you're supposed to pull towards Culver rd and back into the ramp. The problem is cars reach the dead-end at Culver (far right) and drive into the ramp area. This is extremely hazardous because they come flying through the entrance and you can't always see them when you back up. I was trailering with my Dodge Charger which sits a lot lower than my Ford Expedition. I did not see him because the angle I was at the boat was blocking most of the view from that side. Several witnesses said it probably wouldn't have mattered. He was going too fast through the area. He rounded that corner quickly and was too close to the trailer. My wife was guiding me back, but it happened too quickly. Fortunately she and the baby were not in the way.

 

[CaptOchs]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

What the sign says and what the police or a judge would rule might be not be the same. Alot of the signs around where i live will have a local bylaw number below. Unless there is a bylaw stating only boat trailers in that area i would think the police would find you at fault. I know it sound stupid but he was driving the forward on the right side of the road and you backed into him. Also if your position was where you show on the pic maybe he thought you where leaving not backing up .

That's exactly why I didn't call the cops. He knew he was in the wrong. He had admitted it was his fault. If the cops showed up they might have flipped it on me.

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

That's exactly why I didn't call the cops. He knew he was in the wrong. He had admitted it was his fault. If the cops showed up they might have flipped it on me.

first of all, you have zero chance of recovering any cost at this point. You didn't call the cops, so no accident report, so no accident, in a legal sense.

Next, you were backing up. 99.999% of the time, the person backing up is at fault. Doesn't really matter that the car shouldn't have been there, you backed into someone. Had he ran into the side of your boat, it would be a different story, but that isn't what happened.

All said, the other driver was probably dumb for not pushing for a police report. Its very likely you would be paying for his car if he had.

 

[Trooper583]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

I have had quite a bit of experience in investigating "unique" collisions such as this one over the years. I will first say that you should have called the police for an accident report should you find more damamge to your outdrive. At this point, if the operator of the car refuses to pay for the additional damages, you'll have to sue him in civil or small claims court. That means you get to hire an attorney.

I'm not familiar with how the local law enforcement operates in your area. Based on what you said, and your drawing, I don't believe you would have been listed as the party initiating the collision. This is why: You were using the area it was intended for, i.e. launching your boat. You were backing your boat in a manner that is consistent with how the ramp was meant to be used. Your vehicle was in motion, (I assume) and the passenger car traveled into the path of your already moving vehicle which indicates a "right of way" (in my opinion) situation. Lastly, whether or not there actually is a city code enforcing the boat trailers only sign, the sign is still posted. The ramp/launch area is intended to be used by boaters, not as a through street. Just my two cents.

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

No, he was not pulling a trailer. He was driving a Malibu and cutting through the boat ramp area.

Jeep, see those rocks on the shore line? There is a road that runs parallel right next to it. The little black square near the white stripe on the road is the toll booth. After you pay, you're supposed to pull towards Culver rd and back into the ramp. The problem is cars reach the dead-end at Culver (far right) and drive into the ramp area. This is extremely hazardous because they come flying through the entrance and you can't always see them when you back up. I was trailering with my Dodge Charger which sits a lot lower than my Ford Expedition. I did not see him because the angle I was at the boat was blocking most of the view from that side. Several witnesses said it probably wouldn't have mattered. He was going too fast through the area. He rounded that corner quickly and was too close to the trailer. My wife was guiding me back, but it happened too quickly. Fortunately she and the baby were not in the way.

Thats what I was saying, the path it looks like you should have been taking is the Blue line I drew in - so why were you all the way up by Culver to back up the boat? From where you drew your vehicle (red box) it looks like you would have been leaving the area.

 

[CaptOchs]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

Thats what I was saying, the path it looks like you should have been taking is the Blue line I drew in - so why were you all the way up by Culver to back up the boat? From where you drew your vehicle (red box) it looks like you would have been leaving the area.

View attachment 159114

I was directed to that spot by the guys in the booth. All three boat ramps were being used to retrieve boats. The guy behind me waiting in line had an empty trailer. He was supposed to go to the main road and turn into the ramp area from that entrance. Instead he was behind me, waiting in the launch line. I had to move so he could get his boat, so I got lined up. I was up far enough to keep my trailer out of the way from the two guys trying to retrieve. I only backed up 3-4 ft before we hit. It was a very slow impact.

 

[CaptOchs]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

You are correct. Normally you would wait at the white stripe in the road until you have a free ramp and drive the path you drew in blue. The rangers in the booth wanted me to go to the Sheriff's parking spot. Doing so would require cutting across two lanes (retrieve & middle.) It would also require a hard turn at the ramp and some straightening. It's not to say I couldn't do it if I wanted to. It's just easier to pull towards the entrance keep to the side and back up straight. See new map.

Yellow star=booth, with two useless rangers.
Red arrow=where I first waited for either of the two ramps to clear.
Blue arrow=Sheriff's spot they wanted me to go to.
Blue lines=how you normally launch the boat.
Green box=where I lined up after being asked to move by ranger.
L = Launch, R = Retreive. Middle lane is either depending on which line is longer.

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

Ah, sounds like a cluster if that is what they were having you do.

Edit - actually I guess what they told you to do wasn't that bad, what you decided to do was not the greatest idea

 

[CaptOchs]

Re: Accident today at boat ramp!

Ah, sounds like a cluster if that is what they were having you do.

Edit - actually I guess what they told you to do wasn't that bad, what you decided to do was not the greatest idea

How so? I wasn't going to pull out and get back in the end of the launch line again. I was asked three times to move. As Trooper mentioned above, I was "using the area it was intended for, launching my boat." Using the ramps and boat trailer parking lot to turn around at a dead end isn't what the area was built for. Trooper's post makes the most sense.