Almost forgot the plugs

[AboveTheBest]

We got to the lake yesterday afternoon around 3 and my whole routine was just a little off.

My Dad was with me so I had him in the boat when I backed down the ramp (I usually do the whole operation myself) and there was a cool wakeboat getting set up that I was oogling.

The second the boat launched I remembered the plugs, so I threw the truck in park (on the ramp), ran to the end of the courtesy dock while taking my shirt off, jumped in while telling my Dad to kill the engine, swam to the stern and screwed both plugs in...

When I got back to my truck the guy in the wakeboat shot me an inquisitive look, so I said “What? Don’t you put your plugs in after you launch?”

The moral of the story: stick to your routine!

 

[bronze_10]

My family all have jobs each time the we go out... When everyone is there it is a well oiled machine. But when one is missing it takes a little thought but we make it up... When they all are missing and I do it alone. .. I feel like I am a newbie trying to manage all.

Oddly enough when we get to the ramp and I don't do my part and I wonder off to go talk to someone about what color the grass is or some other bs my wife picks up on my jobs and covers what I was suppose to be doing instantly! Ain't that right @Qhorse572..

 

[swatski]

My family all have jobs each time the we go out...

My family has just one job whenever we launch:
Stay the heck out of the way.
It works pretty good (almost) every time.


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[bronze_10]

My family has just one job whenever we launch:
Stay the heck out of the way.
It works pretty good (almost) every time.


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oh no... they wanna play? they gotta work!! They gonna learn everything so if something happens they know what to do.. besides it isnt fair for one person to put the work in... My wife even drives the truck and trailer and backs the trailer in for lunch and recovery..

 

[AboveTheBest]

My 9-year old daughter is the line tender and bumper hanger when pulling into the dock, besides that it’s pretty much a solo operation.

 

[Seadeals]

I taught my wife to back the trailer the last 10 feet of the launch. I have learned each additional foot of trailer driving is exponentially inversely proportional to the amount of enjoyment I will have that day. I love her for trying. If it makes her nervous as hell every time time for over eight years (and she has given it a fair shot), I am happy to handle that “stress” myself. She also knows what to do when trouble happens; like when she tried to park my truck after launching once and got it pinned in the car only section of the lot where she thought she could pull through to avoid backing in. She can just pull the whole damsel in distress routine and pick from a bunch of willing guys which one gets to park my truck! If I am lucky, she runs back to the dock and picks me.

 

[bronze_10]

Yeah I have said this before But when my wife is backing up the boat.... I just sit quietly in the boat and wait. If its a new ramp most of the time I'll get it inpositiona for her so all she has to do is back up.. If its a ramp we have been to a lot then I just keep my mouth shut and wait for the splash!

 

[2kwik4u]

You guys have it all wrong. My wife drives the boat. I back/park the truck trailer. Basically we show up, I prep the boat for launch, she hops in with the boys. I drive down (never prep ON the ramp), back in, she fires up the boat, and I send her on her way. I park the truck/trailer then head back to the courtesy dock. It's the least amount of stress on her, and she still contributes to a fast/accurate/safe launch/retrieval process.

TO the OP's story of leaving the plugs out. I did that once in my last boat (well more than once, this is just one of those times )........Anyway, did the wife in the boat routine, had some friends with us so I might have been off my game a little. As I'm walking back down the ramp towards the dock, I notice the boat has the bilge pump running. I'm thinking "That's weird, this boat doesn't leak a drop". As I step into the boat I realize the ski locker "cover" is just above the surface of the floor because the life vests under it are pushing it up....Without asking I turn off the motor and strip 2-layers of shirts/shorts off (it was cooler than normal), grab the plug from the glove box, dive in and get it installed. Had so much water in the bilge that we had to pull the boat back out, drain it, and then change the plugs/wires/cap/rotor to get the little 3.0L to run right again. The belt had slung water all over the engine compartment and soaked everything......Ended up being a really nice day on the water, minus the hour long delay at the ramp.

We have a checklist now

 

[Scott E]

I did it last year at our place in the Adirondacks. Used my cousins place to launch and they were there by the the campfire. So we walked over and chatted for awhile and then launched the boat. I didn't go thru the normal routine, (Wife drives the boat, I handle everything else) and the wife was heading to our dock when I realized I forgot the plug. Luckily I got her attention, and waded out and screwed in the plug.... The cousins got a good laugh out of it. I was surprise how little water actually got in, I'm assuming the pressure held the plug against the threads as she was just idling out.