Boat Launch idiots!!

[KSmith]

My wife and are a pretty good team. We critique other people's launch and retrieval skills, or lack there of, most are pretty good, some are just abysmal and should be flogged Anyway I'll back the trailer down and then jump in the boat and back off, she'll take the truck and trailer and park it as long as she doesn't have to back up she is gold, and if she gets in a bind she has asked a fisherman for help before, they just picked up the trailer and moved it so the tire wasn't on the line (50$ fine for that). I pick her up at the dock, then when we are done I pull the boat up to the dock so I can jump out and she takes over and backs the boat away from the dock while I get the truck and trailer, once I'm backed in she drives the boat on. There is the occasional bumper car effect when she comes in a bit crooked and bounces around some but overall she does a great job. Just don't get her nervous, then her default escape plan is to throw the boat into a fully power turn, not sure why and it is scary We make it as fast as we can so we aren't one of "those guys".

[mikenehrkorn]

My wife and I have made a pretty good team over the years as well. I usually handle the trailer duty (she never quite got the hang of which way to turn the wheel of the truck to make the trailer go the way that she wants) and she handles the boat. Like David, my wife has actually gotten much better than me at driving the boat onto the trailer!!!

Makes for a pretty quick in-and-out at the launch and we can usually do it in less than 5 minutes.

[Wax]

I moved off the lake about 6 years ago and we moved out to hick country. There was a dirt boat launch by an old abandoned supermarket into a big part of a river north of a relatively popular reservoir. Aside from when I hit a stump one time, it was great because weekdays it would just be me and maybe a few fishermen, and I'd guess about 150 acres of usable watersport area.

Anyway, on the weekends the boat launch was the biggest gathering of idiots I've ever seen. To give you an idea, the average value of a boat being launched there was probably about $400, and same for the vehicle hauling it. Not to mention, again it's a dirt launch. I'd say about 5-6 people per day got stuck, and the biggest mud truck in the parking lot at the time would pull it out - there was always one at least. Also, at all times there were kids swimming and people floating on tubes and stuff at the boat launch, literally I had to yell at people to get out of the way to launch and load. It was always quite the site!

About wives...I just asked my wife yesterday "why don't you ever use the jetski I bought you over the winter, you've ridden it once?" (I bought her a nice 3 seater so she could take the kids out while I'm gone at work or traveling). Her response was "I don't want to try and get it off or back on the lift"...if that gives you any idea as to how much help I have loading/unloading watercraft.

[moombadaze]

got a good first mate here, she will back the boat off the trailer, or park the truck-as long as its a easy simple parking job. she drives the boat onto the trailer 99% of the time and makes it look pretty easy--plays bumper boat with the quide poles sometimes but overall does a damm good job. Gotta get to training my daughter to she can help out too.