Listen to the old guys!

[jarhead75]

Two weeks ago me and a buddy set out to catch some fish. I went through my normal routine before leaving the house. I check EVERYTHING in the driveway and run the motor with the muffs. Everything was good and we proceeded to the ramp. Well just so happens that two older gentlemen were at the dock giving free safety inspections (not mandatory) But since I knew I would pass I agreed. Well to make a short story long, my blowers would not come on. I (4 launch experience) insisted they worked and the inspector (probably 30 years experience) begged to differ. So he had me check fuses, wires, battery, and everything else I didnt think was the problem. Sure enough it turned out to be a loose wire connection next to the blower. Easy fix, but could have been bad. Lesson learned...always listen to experience and a boat in the driveway is not necessarily the same boat at the ramp.

 

[Scaaty]

Re: Listen to the old guys!

Experience is the best teacher, and its the littlest things, that get ya in the biggest trouble.
And so many people (not you) seem to treat a boat like a car..get in turn the key, and go.
Boats are WAY more complex than that.

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Listen to the old guys!

The old guy may have saved your life too...

 

[bhammer]

Re: Listen to the old guys!

There is a reason they are "old" and still at the lake. Becasue they haven't killed themselves yet doing something stupid. You bet ya, that I always like to listen / talk to the wiser folks. It's just figuring out which are wiser and which ones are there to casue trouble.

 

[SS MAYFLOAT]

Re: Listen to the old guys!

Usually it is volunters that are members of the Coast Guard Power Squadrons. These "Old Guys" also give excellent safe boating courses. With these courses, it also makes a difference in your boat insurance premium to.

My first encounter with those old guys was a one of the Muskingum Watershed Convservation Departments lakes. Its been so long and so many lakes ago,,,,,I can't remember which lake it was. It was a holiday weekend and a line at the ramp a 1/4 mile long. We got to be about 5th in line when they came over to inspect my boat. They asked first and said it wasn't mandatory for the inspection. Okay, go ahead I said. The first thing was opening the cooler and making sure we had ice. He joked about it and noted that we had Pepsi and Mountain Dew.,,,,,,(on top ). Checked the registration, anchor and rope, life vests, lights, and NO HORN! or whistle. They would not accept my buds cat call whistle he makes.

By this time there has been two boats that has launched. We now are holding the line up,,,but its the Old Guys doing it. So they wave two people behind me to go. WHat? The one guy says "You have got to have a horn, they have them at the marina right over there". $8 later we have an air horn (last they had BTW) and they let us go on. I didn't complain (much) cause two of them wanted us to go back to the end of the line.

The horn was non repairable. It was one of those pressed together ones. The wires was broke off where they entered the horn.

They put two stickers on my boat. One that said it passed a safety inspection, and the other was a "Sober Skipper" sticker.......As always, I didn't drink, that soda pop was for me

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Listen to the old guys!

most of the things, that have ruined my day on the water, were things i have said to myself, 'o will get to it, know i need to do it'. one example, i always start on muffs, at home, got launched, no tale tell stream. i knew i need to do the impeller. the impeller failed at the ramp, was fine at home.