Today's stupid move!!!!......
 

Well I know you guys have all done this..........we took the boat out to the Glen today.......first time this year.....Now you have to know....the Glen is about an hour drive away for me......get everything all done.......food..liquor..snacks ..gas ....and pull up the launching ramp at about 11:45.........Then all hell breaks loose...............:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

I FORGOT THE FORKIN BOAT KEYS AT HOME.........:eek:

Well needless to say.......alot of stuff got thrown around and little kids within earshot were crying for their mommies....:mad:



So we came back got the DAMN keys and went to the Inlet....and got roasted.......:D

Man enough to admit it.
 

I think everybody is afraid to say anything. 30 minutes with no response to this??????? C'mon you wussies!!!!!!!!!!

nope never happened to me:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

I have never forgotten my boat keys. I leave them in the boat (hidden of course). And I keep the spare key on my truck key ring. Just in case.:)

I keep a spare in the glovebox, lucky I haven't needed to use them.

did anyone say DUH !!






am sure i 'll do that soon...... have done most every thing else... i was actaully wondering how the glen was today too... maybe next week....

Yup. buddy we'll be there...........;)

HOMER never left his key home:D :D :D

I left my plug home once. Same effect except it was only a 10 min. drive.

For that reason....I keep the plug in the door pocket of the drivers side door of my truck. And a spare also! Where the boat goes, the truck goes....never without a plug that way!!!

5 and a half hour tow to Havasu. Boat made it to the launch ramp. Can you say Hot Wire. For the rest of tht trip everytimeI wanted to start the boat I got a little shock. Dont sweat it.

Save the drive and hot wire it next time! Although it did give you a good excuse to "calm your nerves" later!! Everybody likes a little liquid relaxation!:D

I did one almost as bad . I had dead batteries in the boat for about a month . Kept meaning to charge them . First time out after winter storage ,didn't even start it . It was my first boat ! Stupid !:( Got the hole family in the boat including my mother . The whole day had been bad to start with and now we are late.
I back down the ramp (in a bad mood) .go to start it and the freakin thing is dead !! :mad: MY mother says ,"I told you to charge that thing the other day !" :mad: :mad: :mad:

I get in the truck and take off with them in the boat !! I go up the road a mile at about 50 mph to the marine store to buy batteries ! Get the batteries and drive back , cut off everyone and put it back in the water and go boating !

NO one said a word to me for hours !!:D You should have seen the looks on their faces going down the road in that boat !!

never happened to me but I've never took my keys out of the ignition, but win trying to load during a sudden storm at a crowded ramp my wife dropped the truck keys in the lake about 40 miles from home., luckily my buudy was there to give me a ride home, needless to say I got tanked on the way home:rolleyes: :mad: :eek: :( :o

Another time I had a 40' Formula . I drive 2 hours ,put it in the water in a big ass hurry , never got in it or started it . Tied it to the dock right off the trailer . Had to go about 3 miles into town to park trailer since it was 48' long , Unhook and come back .

Well as I'm unhooking I see the plug in the door in the truck !!:eek: :eek: I fly through every red light and down these 35mph streets at about 80 mph ! All the while calling the marina . No one answers ! I get back to find the boat fine ........................

Later I find a friend had put other plugs in while I was in marina talking to the guy before launching . And my friend had left and not told me !

That will get the blood pumpin !!:D

thats a good one boot.... i'll bet you were freekin.....i got a little jittery just reading that.....lol.....

Hmm, Maybe thats why I carry a spare ignition switch in the boat.
Ya just never know when something is going to happen.

I did the same thing boot. I launch the boat, have to drive across the street to park. Walk back so i don't sweat and everyone is around the boat. The bilge is running like mad. Water is almost to the batteries. Plug in the truck. I had to run to the truck, drive to the ramp,cut everyone off. There is no time left, i jump in the water clothed, find the plug hole 4 feet under, get it in and have to drain the boat on the trailer. Man water goes out alot slower than in. The water was almost over the batteries. This was a 33 foot boat and it had 50 gallons of water in it.

Been there ....first boat I had dad was trying to start it old DUO with a 50merc outboard. It was the fist day on vacation up north(Michigan) my sister (12 at the time) kept trying to tell the old man about the water comming it ...shut up!!!! Being that he was using the Choke like a primer...needless to say it took 10 minutes to start he figured it out when the water was up to the front of those old back to back style seats.... OH yea forgot the plug!!!!! DOOO

First time out last year --- 2 key boat ---only have one key-other on work bench in garage ,1 hour away. Hard wire the run side of ign. switch and pull the kill switch. Start engine with kill switch installed then remove key and start other engine normally. Pull kill switch to kill engine.

Tinkerboater, Good idea !

Happened only once. I went to the marina and bought another ignition switch. Took 10 minutes and 2 beers to fix. I now have a backup switch if I have another brain lapse. Beats driving back home for two hours.

OK, since we're really showing our asses here...

Last spring I take the boat out on the maiden voyage. On the way back to the ramp I start looking for my car keys and can't find them. I figure I screwed up and locked them in the truck. I get back to the ramp and walk over to the truck getting ready to break in. Well, my keys are in the truck - in the ignition with the truck still running. I'd been so excited I didn't even shut the truck off!! I lucked out that all the doors were unlocked.....

Ok,here is my "stupid boat trick" Yesterday I thought I would do my part for the EPA when dewinterizing boat so I put boat plug in to catch all the antifreeze I drained out of the engines thinking I would then get out and drain it into as many five gallon buckets as needed, well about halfway through second engine the automatic bilge pump cuts on and pumps ten gallons of antifreeze on garage floor. "No good deed goes unpunished"

Forgot the keys ONCE, almost forgot them about 50 times. The time I forgot them I had a 3/4 hr drive ONE WAY :mad: to go get them, luckily itwas a beautiful day so we splashed the boat and the cutie I was seeing spent the time tanning on the back of the boat so I booted back home with the truck only. From that day on through two other boats I have changed my ritual.....Since the boat sits in the driveway on the trailer when not in use I just leave the keys in it. I get up early when we are going out and start the engines on the ears as Im back to having carbs and they can be a bit of a ***** to start after sitting for a week or two, and I give the boat the once over INCLUDING making sure the plug is in........now, alot less stress at the ramp..... have the keys, touch the starter & the engines light right up, plug is IN.......now all I have to worry about is the OTHER people at the ramp.....Doug

We keep a spare, plug and set of keys in the truck just in case.
Only because we forgot to bring a plug once.

Now are plug is on the quick drain hose, it is always there!
Bryan

Nope. Never happened to me. Unh, unh. Now let me think . . . Why did I start carrying an extra set in the glove box of the truck:D :D :D

Yep, we all seem to baring our souls! And the EPA/Anti freeze one plus Steve leaving the truck running all day are the winners thus far in my eyes.

I forgot the plug ONCE last year! (last boat)
Was putting in just to work on the trailer, so launch, drive 10 yards away and tie up.
DAMN this boat is sluggish!
Bilge light!
Panic :eek:
Drive the boat right up onto the ramp, who cares about the gel at this point! (no damage believe it or not!)
Can't find my plug, (it is in the cuddy but panic blurred my mind!)
a guy two doors down saves the day and throws me a plug! RECKLESS's 288 son, no doubt!
I now feel the impending verbal abuse coming when he hears about it! :rolleyes:
MAN, SOMETIMES I LEARN THE HARD WAY!
Of course he said, you should have plugged it with your finger and waited for help! OK.....

Bryan

rearended at light
 

Our first boat was a little bowrider and we towed it with a SS Monte Carlo and a class 2 hitch. The boat and trailer only weighed 2420 lbs so we had plenty of power and plenty of hitch. One Sat in a hurry to get to the ramp I didn't have the receiver in the hitch far enough but didn't notice it when I slid the pin in. Thank God we were only going 2 or 3 miles . There was one light between the house and the ramp and when we stopped I got hit in the ass. I jumped out of the car all pissed off wanting to know who the moron was that hit us only to find out that it was our own damn boat. Moral of the story, always hook your chains up no matter how far you're going. That could have been ugly.

Forgot the plug only yesterday! Luckily, I remembered seeing a pvc plug somewhere in the boat when I bought it. Had to do some searching, but we found it. Yes, I checked before launching the boat. I NEVER take the keys out of the boat.

I usually keep the keys in the boat. Funny thing is that I keep the spare keys for the truck in the boat also. But that is another story.

The best was the running truck:)
How long was it running?

Two things I will admit
Never forgot the keys, but did leave them on the side of one of my old jet boats once. Had a good citizen follow me for over 10 miles to finally get my attention and tell me he thought he seen what looked like a key fob fall off the boat back on the first left turn from my house: (next time someone I honking at you, pay attention. Especially when towing something:)

I only take the plugs out at the end of the season. I leave them in all year. Never understood why people pull them out each time they trailer. Boats in the water never come out. Why do people take them out on the trailer?
Mine stay in!
Last fall after installing my new Teague mufflers I assumed that me friend that was helping me tighten the hose clamps on his side. Well, it did not happen and I should have checked everything over. : (
Went to the ramp, backed in, started both up, went to open hatch and it would not raise, Figured I would take care of that later. It was late in the day and wanted to test the new flame arrestors and mufflers. Well the boat sat there for about 5 minutes running. Got in and took off. Damn, this thing like had NO power? Barely could get on plane?
Come to find out after about 15 minutes and looking back seeing water on the floor I headed back to the dock. Called a friend that lives on the lake and they met me at the launch. Did everything I could to get the boat on the trailer.
Pulled plugs and it drained for over half an hour.
After turning down dinner from them I stayed at the launch. It is already dark out but I was determined to find out why the hatch and bilge pumps did not work. Come to find out that the wires I took out for the old silent choice had the MAIN ground wire. This wire I taped off. Now I had to re-wire in order to get it all right again. Was able to get things to work, opened the hatch and that is when I found the hose clamps loose: (

Moral of the post, keep the keys in the boat, spares in the truck, never take out your plugs, and always check other peoples work:)

Hugh, to help you understand a few reasons some of us take our plugs out every time we take the boat out of the water:

1. Many boats (mine included) are not completely sealed agains leaks. For some reason, no matter what I do, I end up with some water in the boat after a weekend on the water. Some of this is undoubtably from swimming, rain showers that may happen, etc... but not all of it. And my bilge pumps will not get it all. Most, but not all.

2. Some of us store our boats outdoors. Covers are not 100% water proof either. If I left my plug in and it rained for a few days (which it does often in Michigan) I'd have gallons of water in my boat. Most of it from the air vents on the sides of the hulls, which are NOT covered by my cover.

Give you some insight??

51 days till LOTO my friend!!!!! Oh yeah!!

The built in cooler in my Sonic drains into the bilge, and so does the shower. I always take the plug out as I leave the ramp, so it drains on the way home.

I have a little pouch the drain plug goes into, along with my stereo faceplate, my keys, and my cell-phone neoprene case for the boat. As soon as these are all de-installed after the boat goes on the trailer, this pouch goes into the glovebox of the truck. I always stash the keys for the truck, on the truck somewhere when parked at the marina, that way if you have a bad day and lose your boat somehow, you do not have a really bad day, and can't get home.

I have a wrench on the same keychain that has the keys for the trailer hitch. As soon as I hitch up the trailer, I see the wrench for the drain plug, and insert it.

How did I come up with my nice plan?
Ya know that nice walk-rail around all Sonics? Well, it is great for sticking things on at the marina, and driving off, and forgetting they are there. You know how hard it was to find, and replace a Clarion detachable faceplate? Took me 5 weeks to convince someone I did not have a stolen stereo.

The best reason I've heard for removing hull plug is if gas tank leaks you could windup with a tank of fuel in the bilge and the vent blower wouldn't help that much.

MnFast- So you mean to tell us that after a weekend of boating you could take the plug out of your boat and nothing would come out???? Do you store your boat inside?

About 8 hours.

Great, do I get some kind of "Biggest Dumb Ass" award?:D :D

Maybe this comes from my old jet boats and v-drive. They never had drain plugs in them. But I only take mine out at the end ot the year or when I am on a long road trip. Like to Havasu or Loto.
But other then that I let the bilge pump take care of it. When I have taken it out for the road trips I have never had more then several ounces come out. Yes I do store it outside :( 'cept this year will be inside :)
But at leaast the cockpit cover or the full cover is on. Last year I only used the cockpit cover all season.
I have been known to leave the power on from the launch to my storage. I have caught the pump sprouting overside from time to time. But not very much. What is the big deal about leaving water in the bilge? Even if it is a gallon or two. Look at all the in the water boats. They are not dry. I know if it is winter it is not good. But during the summer, who cares if there is an ounce or a gallon.
I feel the chance on forgetting to put it back in is much worse then leaving it plugged all summer.
I do always check it tho'
Have been told about pranksters that will take out plugs that are kept in :( that would not be good.

I went to Circuit City to buy a Kenwood CD player and 4 new speakers for the CV-23. Got to the Mall and found that I left my wallet on the desk at work.....Da, Mike.

OK,

Here is my short story, about 4 yrs ago, I was out in my Dads inboard ski boat. Out with some Fraternity brothers and hot girls. So I am showing off:D Well about 30-40 min into sking and playing, I noticed every time we stopped the bilge ran and battery was going dead, (Ichecked the plug right off, not it) So I keep on starting motor to keep battery charged. Well after a while it became evident that we were sinking, Fearing the WRATH of DAD, I make a straight shot for home(embarassed as chit) back of boat has 4 inches of water in it, rear cushion is floating by this point. Back in lift, after hours of confusion, figure out, mechanic didn't put freeze plugs back in motor. So while boat was running it was dumping water into the hull:p

WILL