How to install a 21' cruiser in your Surburban

[Winger Ed.]

Used to have a friend who'd was married to a guy for awhile that had a rather short temper, and was prone to hollering fits for what seemed like little or no reason. <br /><br />They'd gotten a 21' fiberglass cruiser once, and had no end to the fits such a person can have with something like that.<br /><br />They normally kept it in the lake, but decided to pull it out for some reason or another.<br /><br />Here's how it went:<br />Husband backed the trailer down with his new Suburban.<br /><br />Wife was a excellent boat driver, so she was tasked with driving it onto the trailer.<br /><br />She got it started onto the trailer perfectly. But it didn't come all the way up because the trailer wasn't down far enough into the water and it stuck several feet from the front end ofthe trailer.<br /><br />Rather than back down any farther, or assist it with the winch--- the yelling starts...<br /><br />"Give it more gas"! This was repeated several times, until she had creeped the throttle all the way up to the stop, and the boat finally came 'un-stuck'.<br /><br />In about a half a second, jumped forward, crushing off the winch post and launched itself into the the back end of their new Surburban, and tried to climb over it, caving in the back half of the roof in the process. <br /><br /><br />They finally had to drive the whole mess straight up the ramp, and pull on the rear of the boat with another truck to drag it back down onto the trailer where it belonged.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: How to install a 21' cruiser in your Surburban

I watched a boater smash in his tailgate and bo significant damage to his boat in the same situation. The main exception was he came in on an angle and missed the winch and just proceeded to smack the truck.<br /><br />Bob

 

[Winger Ed.]

Re: How to install a 21' cruiser in your Surburban

Originally posted by Bob_VT:<br />he came in on an angle and missed the winch <br />Bob

That wouldn't be too bad. These folks ripped a gash in the hull so far back and below the water line with the winch post before it broke off, they didn't dare back the rig down the ramp to try and float the boat back off the truck.

 

[bounder4465]

Re: How to install a 21' cruiser in your Surburban

Great story, i saw a fellow with the opposite problem. He backed the trailer in the water until the winch was the only thing visible. His wife drove the boat up doing a rather nice job, and he hooked the winch and tightened. Then he got into his truck and started up the ramp. The only problem was the current had sweep the boat off the trailer, and he was dragging it on the concrete. You just had to be there when he enlisted the help of other boater to shove this old 19-20' Searay down the ramp to refloat it...it was a hoot!!!!!!!

 

[jtexas]

Re: How to install a 21' cruiser in your Surburban

My problem is that when my trailer unfortunately liberated itself from the truck last fall, the jack stand took the force of the impact instead of the skidplate and torqued the tongue over just a bit. Now the bow stop tilts about 8* to port making it very difficult to hit since I can't see it from the console. I have to enter the (drive-on bunk) trailer straight then make the slightest correction - I get it right about 60% of the time. Otherwise I have to get out and lift the bow & move it over.