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Being called out by a wally...is just wrong.


malibu_flyer

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Here’s the story, sorry it’s long winded and talked about in general to death, but I had to post because the more I think about it the more it frustrates me because it happens all the time to us…

So the wife and I had a nice afternoon/evening on the river: hanging out, sunning and listening to the stereo yesterday and as we approach the single lane dock/ramp the wife and I do the usual, “do you want to get the trailer or drive the boat on?” So she says she will get the trailer. My wife is equally adept at running the boat or truck/trailer and we waste no time at the ramp. The dock is maybe 60 feet long and a single lane at that.

As we approach the ramp there were 4 or 5 boats in the “pointed at the dock drift dance watching every thing going on at the ramp”, well back from the dock. There is a big older cabin cruiser bayliner at the dock , bumpers out, being walked to the trailer, the rest of his group just watching the skill- you know the rest. Also at the ramp were two jet skis just motoring around with people getting on and off them and it was hard to tell if they are coming or going. We approach slow and see an opening, nose in perfect 6” away, wife walks off as I start backing and I back away, no one else near me, do a perfect spin, and putt out to join the rest of the boats waiting to pull out. As I nosed in there was one gal with an annoyed look on her face looking out at the other boats with her arms folded across her chest doing a “ honey- no one seems to see me here "look with her palms pointing up.

I float around watching the bayliner leave and as they pull out an older aluminum Duckworth style boat with a fabric cabin enclosure, radar dome /wakeboard rack pull up to the dock and they throw out the bumpers to dock- guess what, it’s the hubby of the lady at the dock, and they pull their boat halfway up the dock. Around here any time some one pulls out the bumpers, it’s gonna be a while. Well, the next trailer was for the jetskies and they do a decent job getting their stuff loaded and out, around this guy blocking the lane, all the while I’m thinking we should have stayed out longer because of the line of boats.

But as soon as the jetskies leave I see my wife backing down, cool! Everyone else must be waiting for bumper space because the other boats were there floating well away from the dock as we pulled up initially and I had been thinking this was going to take a while. As my wife is backing down I am approaching and within 20 seconds of the fenders hitting the water I’m in the pocket, slide in perfect to the bunks and bump forward, wife hooks the strap up, and we motor on for the last 4 inches as she cranks the winch and attaches the safety chain. Total time from backing down to driving out, less that 3 min, tops.

We pull at least 300 feet up the road away from the ramp to wipe down. We ready the boat for the ride home,~ 15 min away, and as we are finishing up wiping down the boat the wally and his wife in the Duckworth slows down and rolls his window down, and I am expecting a “ nice boat” comment. Instead he says “you have terrible boating etiquette” as he gasses away, and my jaw just dropped! It was one of those comments that catches you so off guard it makes you stammer and get angry after the fact.

This Wally says I have poor etiquette on a single lane ramp that he blocked with his boat and is pissed that my wife can actually handle the backing of a trailer into the water. I wish boaters would realize that the trailer at the ramp determines who is next, not the boat! If you don’t have anyone who can operate the boat or back a trailer- dock your boat on the other side of the dock , out of the lane, while you go get trailer and get in line! Get a clue wally.

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Man, I hear ya. Feels good to get it off your chest, huh. Thumbup.gif

Rest assured, your not alone. We had something similar happen late last year..... same situation, I drop off the truck driver, then back the boat out to give everyone room. My truck shows up first & so I pull forward to slide the boat on to the trailer. Some guy in a boat next to me says to me, "Hey buddy, thats not how we do it around here. I was here first."

So I look at my wife & say to the meathead, "OK, sorry about that. Go ahead." Of course my truck & trailer are sitting on the ramp & his is no where to be seen. He gets all bent out of shape & tells me to go ahead.

WTF? Guess he was having a stupid moment or something.

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Thanks- does feel better. The thing that gets me is that a lot of people don't realise it is a saftey issue. 1 person is not a safe number to operate a boat and back a trailer. There are so many boaters we see where the dad/bf/ who-ever does everything. If dad gets hurt on the water, who drives the boat to the dock, who loads the boat? Who drives home? I also just get tired of boaters thinking they own the dock as soon as they touch it and everyone esle needs to keep away.

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It is utterly amazing how many inconsiderate people there are at launch ramps. The weekend before last I got to watch one guy drive past me while I was getting ready (removing the straps), back his COVERED boat down the launch ramp and start getting it ready right in front of the water. He had a matching idiot on the other side of the who took two spots while trying to get his boat running. 30 minutes later my patience ran out and I leaned on the horn and they got moving. This last weekend we went to get off the lake and there were probably 10 boats waiting for trailers...I was worried, but wow less than ten minutes and we were out of the water!

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We have one of those wally's over at Crescent Bar. He drives a Lowered Chevy Dually painted to match his 34 ft offshore (male compensation) boat.

He blocked one lane of the launch while we waited for him to run back up to his condo, and drive the truck/trailer back down. We must have waited for at least 10 minutes. Finally after about 7 other boats loaded on the only other ramp we got to go. Backed in, she drove up the trailer, I jumped out and clipped the wench strap. We were done ready to go in 60 seconds.

My wife said to the guy on the way that's how you load a boat and he just let her have it. F this and f u and f that f your boat, dog, and husband etc. My two year old was in the boat looking over the windshield as this guy was cussing her out.

She just had one comment which I thought was priceless. Sorry about your Pen*s.

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...30 minutes later my patience ran out and I leaned on the horn...

Shocking.gif 30 minutes? I'm nominating you for sainthood. Notworthy.gif

I'm lucky if I can wait 5 minutes for some inconsiderate dolt. Bash.gif

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We have one of those wally's over at Crescent Bar. He drives a Lowered Chevy Dually painted to match his 34 ft offshore (male compensation) boat.

He blocked one lane of the launch while we waited for him to run back up to his condo, and drive the truck/trailer back down. We must have waited for at least 10 minutes. Finally after about 7 other boats loaded on the only other ramp we got to go. Backed in, she drove up the trailer, I jumped out and clipped the wench strap. We were done ready to go in 60 seconds.

My wife said to the guy on the way that's how you load a boat and he just let her have it. F this and f u and f that f your boat, dog, and husband etc. My two year old was in the boat looking over the windshield as this guy was cussing her out.

She just had one comment which I thought was priceless. Sorry about your Pen*s.

Ha ha your wife rocks!

Sadly I've gone from expert ramp person to near wally status with my inboard. I've been loading/unloading and driving a jetboat for the past 16 years and it's painful to relearn slow maneuvering. I realize with practice you can get very proficient with an inboard but nothing beats the slow speed maneuvering of a jet boat. I can already do just about everything as well except for some crazy docking I could do with the old boat and loading a trailer quickly. Having learned to drive a boat before I could legally drive a car I can say now owning my own inboard has given me much more patience with other boaters. The story above would of made me really upset too but I no longer have quite the same superior feeling and lack of patience to those who don't load in under 60 seconds.

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We have one of those wally's over at Crescent Bar. He drives a Lowered Chevy Dually painted to match his 34 ft offshore (male compensation) boat.

He blocked one lane of the launch while we waited for him to run back up to his condo, and drive the truck/trailer back down. We must have waited for at least 10 minutes. Finally after about 7 other boats loaded on the only other ramp we got to go. Backed in, she drove up the trailer, I jumped out and clipped the wench strap. We were done ready to go in 60 seconds.

My wife said to the guy on the way that's how you load a boat and he just let her have it. F this and f u and f that f your boat, dog, and husband etc. My two year old was in the boat looking over the windshield as this guy was cussing her out.

She just had one comment which I thought was priceless. Sorry about your Pen*s.

That's one of the best things I've ever heard & am going to remember that one. I think that I'd like your wife. :)

I am new to boating and especially with the new LSV it takes me about 5 mins to get it right. I sure hope I dont piss anyone off.

Back up a second, I think that some clarification is needed here. One of the big things on this site along with others is boating etiquette around the ramp. What does that mean? It means that you don't block the ramp with menial things like getting the boat ready by undoing the transom straps, putting the plug in, taking the cover off, loading your gear....do you see where I'm going with this? Most ramps have a staging/prep area away from the ramp that is specifically for that & the idea is that you have everything ready to go (except for the bow strap & safety chain) when you back down the ramp. That goes for loading as well. It can be difficult if your loading & retrieving by yourself, & if you're doing that then you better be good. What's even worse is when the person that's practicing bad etiquette cops an attitude when called on it or asked to move or whatever. Whether or not you can back the trailer down at 30 mph in a straight line has nothing to do with it, at least for most.

Over the years I've seen a lot of things happen on ramps & IMO the one thing that is the single biggest catalyst to making things a lot worse is the male ego. Men get so much of their pride mixed up in this particular skill (or lack thereof) that once things start to go wrong, it's very very hard to recover from it. That's when the fun really starts. ;)

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Here’s the story, sorry it’s long winded and talked about in general to death, but I had to post because the more I think about it the more it frustrates me because it happens all the time to us…

So the wife and I had a nice afternoon/evening on the river: hanging out, sunning and listening to the stereo yesterday and as we approach the single lane dock/ramp the wife and I do the usual, “do you want to get the trailer or drive the boat on?” So she says she will get the trailer. My wife is equally adept at running the boat or truck/trailer and we waste no time at the ramp. The dock is maybe 60 feet long and a single lane at that.

As we approach the ramp there were 4 or 5 boats in the “pointed at the dock drift dance watching every thing going on at the ramp”, well back from the dock. There is a big older cabin cruiser bayliner at the dock , bumpers out, being walked to the trailer, the rest of his group just watching the skill- you know the rest. Also at the ramp were two jet skis just motoring around with people getting on and off them and it was hard to tell if they are coming or going. We approach slow and see an opening, nose in perfect 6” away, wife walks off as I start backing and I back away, no one else near me, do a perfect spin, and putt out to join the rest of the boats waiting to pull out. As I nosed in there was one gal with an annoyed look on her face looking out at the other boats with her arms folded across her chest doing a “ honey- no one seems to see me here "look with her palms pointing up.

I float around watching the bayliner leave and as they pull out an older aluminum Duckworth style boat with a fabric cabin enclosure, radar dome /wakeboard rack pull up to the dock and they throw out the bumpers to dock- guess what, it’s the hubby of the lady at the dock, and they pull their boat halfway up the dock. Around here any time some one pulls out the bumpers, it’s gonna be a while. Well, the next trailer was for the jetskies and they do a decent job getting their stuff loaded and out, around this guy blocking the lane, all the while I’m thinking we should have stayed out longer because of the line of boats.

But as soon as the jetskies leave I see my wife backing down, cool! Everyone else must be waiting for bumper space because the other boats were there floating well away from the dock as we pulled up initially and I had been thinking this was going to take a while. As my wife is backing down I am approaching and within 20 seconds of the fenders hitting the water I’m in the pocket, slide in perfect to the bunks and bump forward, wife hooks the strap up, and we motor on for the last 4 inches as she cranks the winch and attaches the safety chain. Total time from backing down to driving out, less that 3 min, tops.

We pull at least 300 feet up the road away from the ramp to wipe down. We ready the boat for the ride home,~ 15 min away, and as we are finishing up wiping down the boat the wally and his wife in the Duckworth slows down and rolls his window down, and I am expecting a “ nice boat” comment. Instead he says “you have terrible boating etiquette” as he gasses away, and my jaw just dropped! It was one of those comments that catches you so off guard it makes you stammer and get angry after the fact.

This Wally says I have poor etiquette on a single lane ramp that he blocked with his boat and is pissed that my wife can actually handle the backing of a trailer into the water. I wish boaters would realize that the trailer at the ramp determines who is next, not the boat! If you don’t have anyone who can operate the boat or back a trailer- dock your boat on the other side of the dock , out of the lane, while you go get trailer and get in line! Get a clue wally.

I wouldn't consider that called out, just forget about it. It's not even worth a second thought, I don't know how many people I pass going the wrong direction on the water or coming straight at you flipping you off for doing the same thing they are doing (skiing or wakeboarding) I usually just laugh and drive away or just finish what I'm doing and don't give it another second for a mental breakdown :)

Edited by 68Slalom
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I am new to boating and especially with the new LSV it takes me about 5 mins to get it right. I sure hope I dont piss anyone off.

Go practice on a not so nice day when no one else is at the ramp and you'll be glad you did the next time it is crowded.

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I seriously wish there was a nice boat etiquette hand out that I could print out and take with me to the lake, I would hand them out and post some around the ramp.

This hand out would also need to be printed in Spanish on one side.

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Instead he says “you have terrible boating etiquette”

No worries. Where I come from it is who has the ramp, not who is tied up at the dock, although this concept admittedly escapes alot of people that think they somehow own the ramp once their boat is tied up any where near it. He was probably ticked Baby.gif because his ego was bruised about looking like an incompetent dufus in front of his wife, so he had to make up for it by publicly making a fool of himself.

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I seriously wish there was a nice boat etiquette hand out that I could print out and take with me to the lake, I would hand them out and post some around the ramp.

This hand out would also need to be printed in Spanish on one side.

I've given it serious consideration. But I think that if they're cognizant enough to actually read it, then they probably already know it. Not worth the time, some people are just unconscious.

Yesterday I was pulling someone & kept getting followed very closely by a runabout, even when I swerved over to hug the shoreline in an attempt to protect our rider. So I did a u-turn & went back the other way, & shook my fist while yelling at him as we went by (the mom in me just won't flip anyone off when there are kids present on either side). He just waved back at us, moron. They're everywhere.

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I seriously wish there was a nice boat etiquette hand out that I could print out and take with me to the lake, I would hand them out and post some around the ramp.

This hand out would also need to be printed in Spanish on one side.

It would be good to put on a 8x8' sign in the launch lane! Maybe TMC gang should come up with two versions, the serious one, and the sarcastic one, depending on your mood that day you could decide which one to hand out!

Examples, I'll let you decide which are the serious versions... (I think this could be a lot of fun coming up with sarcastic versions)

Remove your tie downs, cover and prep your boat before you back to the ramp so others may continue to launch and retrieve until you are ready.

Always be sure to back your boat to the ramp, ideally crooked to block two lanes so no one else can launch, so you can remove your tie downs, remove your cover and load your gear. This way everyone else will realize how important you are, what a cool boat you have and how much stuff you bring and that you know exactly what you are doing, and are not a clueless nit.

While you are busy trying to back your trailer in straight, make sure to find another ramp for your kids to play on, that way you won't need to worry about backing over them yourself.

Remember to keep kids off all ramps and always supervised. It is extremely difficult to see directly behind you while backing a trailer or boat and extremely dangerous for anyone standing on a ramp.

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#1 Funny, just today at chinook landing (I am from Portland area too) we entered the no wake zone and slowed down to "no wake". This guy on a waverunner comes up behind us, proceeds around us at a high rate of speed. Well my 5 yr old son was in the bow of the boat wrapped in a blanket and the spray from the waverunner (you know the one that sprays straight up about 10ft) sprays my son. This guy ends up at the dock right in front of us.

#2 Now I am in my truck waiting for the same idiot.......why? because he pulls his waverunner out of the water and then PARKS on the ramp. Gets out to wipe and strap it down and whatever else. There is a very large ready area and a HUGE parking lot where everyone else does this kind of thing.

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I can add to this rant...

last year, I was dropping off a friend to go get the trailer, and some guy with a small (approx 17ft) Glastron wouldnt let us get close to the dock...

I went on one side, and he literally pulled his boat to the side i was going to go in on, then as i manuevered around to the end of the dock to let my buddy off from the bow, he pulled his boat forward to block the end of the dock (he was pulling it by a rope) Finally, I got tired and told another friend to go sit on the bow, and when we get near his boat, just put his feet on it, and push it away a bit- just enough to give my other buddy space to jump off the bow onto the dock... the guy with the glastron got pissed and started yelling at us... we just ignored him and did the float dance waiting for the trailer..

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We have one of those wally's over at Crescent Bar. He drives a Lowered Chevy Dually painted to match his 34 ft offshore (male compensation) boat.

He blocked one lane of the launch while we waited for him to run back up to his condo, and drive the truck/trailer back down. We must have waited for at least 10 minutes. Finally after about 7 other boats loaded on the only other ramp we got to go. Backed in, she drove up the trailer, I jumped out and clipped the wench strap. We were done ready to go in 60 seconds.

My wife said to the guy on the way that's how you load a boat and he just let her have it. F this and f u and f that f your boat, dog, and husband etc. My two year old was in the boat looking over the windshield as this guy was cussing her out.

She just had one comment which I thought was priceless. Sorry about your Pen*s.

Ha ha your wife rocks!

Sadly I've gone from expert ramp person to near wally status with my inboard. I've been loading/unloading and driving a jetboat for the past 16 years and it's painful to relearn slow maneuvering. I realize with practice you can get very proficient with an inboard but nothing beats the slow speed maneuvering of a jet boat. I can already do just about everything as well except for some crazy docking I could do with the old boat and loading a trailer quickly. Having learned to drive a boat before I could legally drive a car I can say now owning my own inboard has given me much more patience with other boaters. The story above would of made me really upset too but I no longer have quite the same superior feeling and lack of patience to those who don't load in under 60 seconds.

I am in the same situation. I came from a jet boat that I had complete control of. Now I got a much much much nicer boat, that I cant load nearly as well. But I plan on practicing all day when no one is there with my brother asap.

I have valet service at my dock, so they put me in and pull me out of the water. I just have to drive it onto the trailer correctly!!

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This is why I enjoy keeping my boat moored, and also why I don't spend too much time on the water during busy times. I thought it might have gotten busy out on the river yesterday.

I agree, you just need to laugh these things off.

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This is why I enjoy keeping my boat moored, and also why I don't spend too much time on the water during busy times. I thought it might have gotten busy out on the river yesterday.

I agree, you just need to laugh these things off.

Ditto. Was a large factor in us buying a lake house with a boat dock/lift.

Talk about rude though, my neighbor was pulling his son knee boarding (has a 23lsv) the other morning and a bass boat was near our cove. Fisherman got mad we assume about all the wakes and followed my neighbor for a while. As the kid fell, the bass fisherman picked up the knee board and took off. The LSV could not catch the bass boat going 80mph. Boat was gone before he could get the kid in the boat and write down any information.

I know that is not a ramp story, but people can be aholes for the pettiest reasons. Not to mentioned putting the kids life at danger. For what, to catch a fish??

I can only imagine what this dude would have done if you cut him off at the boat ramp. Probably pull out a gun, which is not far fetched any more.

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This is why I enjoy keeping my boat moored, and also why I don't spend too much time on the water during busy times. I thought it might have gotten busy out on the river yesterday.

I agree, you just need to laugh these things off.

Ditto. Was a large factor in us buying a lake house with a boat dock/lift.

Talk about rude though, my neighbor was pulling his son knee boarding (has a 23lsv) the other morning and a bass boat was near our cove. Fisherman got mad we assume about all the wakes and followed my neighbor for a while. As the kid fell, the bass fisherman picked up the knee board and took off. The LSV could not catch the bass boat going 80mph. Boat was gone before he could get the kid in the boat and write down any information.

I know that is not a ramp story, but people can be aholes for the pettiest reasons. Not to mentioned putting the kids life at danger. For what, to catch a fish??

I can only imagine what this dude would have done if you cut him off at the boat ramp. Probably pull out a gun, which is not far fetched any more.

Man, what lake in NC was that?

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fishermen are creatures of habit. Keep a lookout in the area, get the info, and contact the authorities. Water toys are not cheap. If that was a kneeboard or slalom ski, he could have easily taken over $1000 worth of property.

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fishermen are creatures of habit. Keep a lookout in the area, get the info, and contact the authorities. Water toys are not cheap. If that was a kneeboard or slalom ski, he could have easily taken over $1000 worth of property.

Agreed, he may be stupid enough to come back to his favorite spot.

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fishermen are creatures of habit. Keep a lookout in the area, get the info, and contact the authorities. Water toys are not cheap. If that was a kneeboard or slalom ski, he could have easily taken over $1000 worth of property.

Agreed, he may be stupid enough to come back to his favorite spot.

Most of those things have really low freeboard. I think next time you see him out there would be a great time to do some surfin... in circles... around him... :)

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This is why I enjoy keeping my boat moored, and also why I don't spend too much time on the water during busy times. I thought it might have gotten busy out on the river yesterday.

I agree, you just need to laugh these things off.

Ditto. Was a large factor in us buying a lake house with a boat dock/lift.

Talk about rude though, my neighbor was pulling his son knee boarding (has a 23lsv) the other morning and a bass boat was near our cove. Fisherman got mad we assume about all the wakes and followed my neighbor for a while. As the kid fell, the bass fisherman picked up the knee board and took off. The LSV could not catch the bass boat going 80mph. Boat was gone before he could get the kid in the boat and write down any information.

I know that is not a ramp story, but people can be aholes for the pettiest reasons. Not to mentioned putting the kids life at danger. For what, to catch a fish??

I can only imagine what this dude would have done if you cut him off at the boat ramp. Probably pull out a gun, which is not far fetched any more.

Man, what lake in NC was that?

Lake Gaston. Generally a great place, but that was the first I had heard of something like that.

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