[Rhodes22-list] Launch... and the story of an epic failure

[cjlowe at sssnet.com]

One question I have, was the center board cleated in the up position
before launch? Usually, if the boat moves two feet, the boat will float
the rest of the way with just a little push, unless the center board is
not cleated and drops down and contacts the bottom thus stopping all
further travel. What I am saying is, you might have compromised the center
board cap if you didn't have the board cleated in the up position. You
might be able to inspect the cap through the bilge inspection hole.

Jerry Lowe



Hi there,
>
> If you remember my previous email, I was looking at doing something to the
> brake line of my trailer so as to be able to extend the tongue. Since I
> couldn’t find a trailer shop that wasn’t backed up, I decided to head to
> the boat ramp - in Yorktown, VA - open the brake line, cap it, and get it
> fixed up after the launch.
>
> So today, I went to the ramp. This is very nice ramp, and my father in law
> and I thought that, maybe, we could manage to launch the boat without
> extending the trailer’s tongue, and also without breaking open the brake
> line. We gave it a try: the boat was almost afloat but would not come lose
> off the trailer. Stuck on the bunks. I tried to give the boat a good push
> but with no success.
>
> We decided to pull the boat back on the ground and extend the tongue. At
> that point, the boat was not resting completely forward on the trailer,
> but probably 2 feet back from the front. When we released the hitch, the
> trailer swung back, resting on the trailer’s rear end. Ouch...
>
> We extended the tongue, hooked it back up to the car, and launched the
> boat. My stress level was high, but the bilge was dry, so I was thinking
> the boat had not any damage... I motored to the marina where I was going
> to keep the boat, and I tied the boat to the dock.
>
> My father in law drove my car (and now empty trailer) to the marina, and I
> realized one of the bunks was broken. The metal support was sticking out.
> I started thinking the hull might be scratched, but not really more.
>
> Before leaving the boat at its new slip, I checked the bilge one more
> time, only to find it full of water. No good. The decision to haul out
> came immediately. I motored back to the ramp and we pulled the boat out,
> this time pretty smoothly.
>
> Well, I now have a hole in the hull. And not a pretty one. The metal piece
> punctured the hull (attaching a pic), so hauling out was the right
> decision, or the boat would probably have sunk or suffered from bad water
> damage.
>
> I left the boatyard, and I am hoping they can do a repair in the coming
> weeks. I’m a bit scared of the cost. I am anticipating something around
> $2000. What are you thoughts?
>
> In any case, this is totally my fault, and I learned things the hard way.
> Hopefully this story will help other people avoid making the same mistakes
> I made.
>
> Alexis
>
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