First time taking my boat out without my boat buddys

JohnN

JohnN

New Member
Hi everyone i just bought my first boat in my life which is a Double Eagle 16.5 ft about a month ago and I have taken it out 2 times already with a couple of my buddys who have alot of boating experience and I would say I learn a ton in the course of those 2 days. They took me prawning and jigging out in the sannich inlet their. So my question is, they have been busy lately with there familys making me feel like I depend on them, so I am seeing what your guys input or recommendation from your first personal exspirences. I want to try and take the boat out with my wife jigging and prawning but alittle nervous, it's the feeling you get when you first hitch, unhitch, backup your trailer ect. I was completely clueless untill i cought on from seeing my friend do it and show me, however when the time came I forgot and it was surely another story and thank god for YouTube along with LTE for helping me. I am trying to figure out a good newbie boat ramp i can go to . What do you guys think? Should I go out and give it a try or should I wait around for these guy to be available agian? I really hate just seeing it sit in my driveway and totally out of seafood for my family. Thanks for taking the time to read this.
 
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Practice backing the boat. When backing the boat remember you turn the bottom of the steering wheel in the direction you want the trailer to go. If using a truck, lower the tailgate so you can see it. Go to a ramp at a time when it is not crowded. If backing alongside a finger with 2 ramps, pick the side where the current pushes the boat into the finger not away from the finger. If the current is strong and your wife is holding the lines ask other people if they can help her. Make a list of what needs to be done: Is drain plug in? Are the straps removed before backing down? Are bumpers attached? Are you in 4 wheel drive? Did you start the motor or motors at home before going to the ramp to make sure they run? Is the battery switch turned on. Are the keys in the ignition? Do you have all required safety gear especially life jackets? Are the lines attached and ready to grab as you back down.

Lots more others can add but a list that you religiously check off will alleviate a lot of the stress.
 
Good advice, CIVANO. Panic is always your "enemy". Stay calm - think things through. Take the time you need to do that. Try not letting people or anxiety trigger you into rushing things. Sometimes - it helps to produce a check list for the 1st few times doing things until you make it a habit - as CIVANO suggested. Only one way to get experience. Sounds like you are already taking the steps you need to become more confident. You'll get it done for sure. Keep it up. You're doing great! :)
 
JohnN said:
What do you guys think? Should I go out and give it a try or should I wait around for these guy to be available agian?
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If you don't try on your own, you'll never gain the confidence you need.
practice hitching and backing up on your street if not too busy.
you will get a feeling of accomplishment once capable.
also if you drive a truck, leave your tail gate down.
 
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Maybe practise driving the trailer in a high school parking lot. You need to know the size of the turning radius to do a Uturn at the top of a ramp sometimes. Plus backing up just takes practise and reps. Undercorrecting, overcorrecting, not having good enough mirrors to see right away that she's getting offline are the mistakes I've made.

Make yourself checklist for all the things you need to do until you have it down.
- hitch safely attached, lights, trailer chains, boat to trailer chain, safety straps, plug in boat at home
- are the trailer lights working?

-plug in check
- boat key in
-get your gear and traps etc. loaded nearby, but never on the ramp where people get impatient waiting for others to stop screwing around.
-eyeball the ramp for slime and see if there is a drop off the end of the concrete that you wouldn't want to go over with you trailer tires.
-You'll need to figure out how far in to go to get your boat off. No one likes to get their back vehicle tires in the saltwater.
- when everything is ready, figure out where and when is the best time to take off the safety straps. I usually do it above the ramp when I'm loading gear.
- Never take the safety chain off the bow until the boat is in the water.
- Use your emergency brake and be mindful of what gear your vehicle is in.
- Get the boat off, tie it up quickly, ideally leaving room for another boat to come in or go out while you are parking. Your bumpers and tie up lines easily accessed and ready.
- get back to your vehicle and get it out of the way.
- Hurry back to the boat and get it out of the way.
Lock your car and bring the keys.
Hurry, but stay calm.
 
Yes, make a check list, including make sure drain plug is in! Not a good feeling seeing water coming in after you thought the launch went well!
 
I'd have two lists. One for the things to remember before you leave the driveway, and another list for launching. Nothing more annoying than driving all the way to the ramp and realizing you forgot life jackets!
 
CIVANO said:
also make sure any new ones on board know how to use the radio to call for help on 16
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I keep these instructions laminated and posted in my boat near the VHF radio. Every time I have anyone come on board my boat I go over all of the safety equipment, where they are and how to use them including making radio calls in case I am incapacitated and they have to make a call. It can be intimidating for people unfamiliar with radio talk protocol to do so especially in the time of an emergency.

I also keep the list of phonetic alphabet posted by my vhf in case someone needs to spell something out for rescue/emergency response.

I also show them how to quickly check our location GPS on my chart and on my AIS transponder. A thing to note about that is that you should show the guests on your boat whether or not your chart shows the boats GPS location live, or if it is showing the cursor's GPS location. This can be a time saving very important factor while giving your location to emergency services. I come across this discrepancy time and time again when fishing with others on their boats or in my own. You may be able to set your chart to do one or the other, ie GPS location for boat, or for the cursor. If it is set to the cursor then show your guests how to put the cursor on your boat's location to immediately show the GPS coordinate on the screen or how to select "your location" on the chart menu. I find it faster to use the cursor on a touch screen myself.

Screen Shot 2020-06-30 at 10.35.24 AM.png
 
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Captain PartyMarty said:
Thanks For posting up your VHF prints, Very good and useful going to print the same for my boat! One thing I have never done is do a Coast Guard Radio Check. What is the official procedure?
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You aren't supposed to use the distress channel 16 to do a radio check with the Coast Guard. Instead use their non emergency working channel 83A.. You don't have to be very formal when calling them on that channel for a radio check. Simply say "Victoria Coast Guard Radio, this is Captain Party Marty, requesting a radio check, channel 83Alpha, over." They will respond with details on how well they are receiving you.
 
I always start the motor and get it warm at home before I go to the launch. I just like knowing it was running before I left.
 
Thanks so much for the reassurance everyone who took the time to help me get organized and be prepared for my first solo outing. I went to big open parking lot this evening and gave it a good hour reversing and parking and boy oh boy does my neck muscles hurt rn looking back as I reverse. I feel more confident now for sure. I appreciate all the help and tips. Happy fishing!
 
Chasin' Dreams said:
You aren't supposed to use the distress channel 16 to do a radio check with the Coast Guard. Instead use their non emergency working channel 83A.. You don't have to be very formal when calling them on that channel for a radio check. Simply say "Victoria Coast Guard Radio, this is Captain Party Marty, requesting a radio check, channel 83Alpha, over." They will respond with details on how well they are receiving you.
Click to expand...

Also a good idea to tell them your location when asking for a radio check. The coast guard can then use the correct tower to communicate with you and assess your signal strength.
 
Backing up the trailer with mirrors is worth learning too. Sometimes there is too much crap in the back of the vehicle to see out by turning your head.
 
tubber said:
Backing up the trailer with mirrors is worth learning too. Sometimes there is too much crap in the back of the vehicle to see out by turning your head.
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Backing up with the mirror is the only way I did it. Unless I was trying to parrallel park with the boat on, which I'm amazing at :cool:
 
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