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Sigh... No, the trailer doesn't float...

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kbq
1st Mate

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USA
99 Posts

Initially Posted - 02/01/2005 : 14:11:53

Just getting 'round to posting this cautionary tale!

The wife and I went sailing in the San Francisco Bay for New Years. 250 Wing Keel, trailer tounge extension. Launched the 30th at the Richmond marina - all went as usual. Sailed all day New Years, and outside of showers, it was grand.

Then came the 2nd...

Raining most of the day, but our new foulies (Christmas presents for ourselves) kept us nice and dry. Backed the trailer in, secured the boat, and began the haul out. Suddenly, the wife was beating on the truck window, pointing back.

Looked over my shoulder, and had the decidedly unpleasant experience of seeing the boat move *back* into the water, while the truck was standing still! Shouted at the wife to run back down the dock and grab a line, slammed on the parking brake, and got out and simply stared...

Well, at least we were next to the dock! The boat sat nice and pretty, with the trailer underwater, except for the top of the ladder at the bow. Looking at it, I was *not* a happy camper, with thoughts of stripping and diving in 50 degree water tripping through my mind.

So, jumped back on the boat, tied on all the dock lines knotted end-to-end to the ladder, and unhooked the trailer winch line. Tied off the lines to the hitch, and sloooowly moved forward. Got lucky - we were able to pull the trailer out, rehook it to the hitch, load the boat up, and go home.

The hitch fastener was still in the locked position. Seems that it was never fully locked on, but stayed in place through launch and parking, only to pop off when hauling out.

The moral of the story? First: when the tounge extension is in place, tie a good long length of line from the truck to the trailer to keep the sucker from rolling all the way back. Next, start saving some boat units to get a spare tire dolly and switch to rope/winch launch. Until then, check, check, and recheck the hitch when it *looks* like it's locked on the ball!

Anyone beat *that* story? 8D

Kevin
"wait for me"
250wk #751

Edited by - on

Oscar
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
2030 Posts

Response Posted - 02/01/2005 : 14:54:49

When all ends well it is permissible to snicker, and then dutifully recall ones own "epsiode". And my excuse wasn't even that I thought the coupler was on, I had just lowered it on to the ball to move it a few feet in the driveway without further securing it.

"It" being a 24 foot enclosed car hauler. When I got to where I wanted it, I lowered the ramp door and proceeded to drive my Jeep up the ramp, for storage in the "Movable Garage".....halfway up the ramp the front of the trailer suddenly went skyward.....about 20 degrees "nose up" (airplane talk).....I was able to see the expression on my buddies face, who was in a position to see the coupler that had rammed the rear door of the Suburban.........4 (small) bu's.........ouch.

The morale of my story? Think, Stupid!

Oscar
C42 # 76 "Lady Kay" (Ex. C250 WB #618 )
Georgetown MD/Fort Lauderdale FL

Edited by - Oscar on 02/01/2005 14:56:24

Ed Montague
Captain

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USA
499 Posts

Response Posted - 02/01/2005 : 16:15:19

Kevin, You win the prize for honesty and I truly appreciate your situation. Please don't have the same problem the next time you come to Don Pedro. That ramp is at least 450 feet long and right now most of it is under water. It would be along time before the trailer would be visible. Or hire a diver.

Edited by - on

kbq
1st Mate

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USA
99 Posts

Response Posted - 02/01/2005 : 16:57:12

Ed -

Yeah, deep - but the trailer was still attached to the boat. Remeber the fins on the wing keel - they stick out under the "guides", and keep the trailer and boat together. Otherwise, I'm sure the trailer would have kept rolling deeper at Richmond!

Kevin
"wait for me"
250wk #751

Edited by - on

Bay Tripper
1st Mate

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USA
56 Posts

Response Posted - 02/01/2005 : 22:23:58

I really do not like the trailer. Putting the boat on in a cross wind last year I broke the guide board for the swing keel and damaged the keel. But that is a whole other story.

My trailer has a chain welded to the tung. I connect the chain to the car hitch just in case the coupler comes undone. My coupler does not work properly and the chain is an extra added safety feature.

Edited by - on

sweetcraft
Admiral

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USA
816 Posts

Response Posted - 02/01/2005 : 22:57:41

Appreciate the tales as it reminds me to think and recheck. Have been helping members launch for years and one member came unhitched four times. Yes the hitch came loose with no safety chain but I didn't discover the problem until after the third time was that John had a 1 and 7/8" ball for a 2 5/16" boat trailer. I was guiding the pickup back to the extension when I saw the problem and we changed the ball, no problem and the boat launched safely. I then shared the story at the next meeting and told anyone helping John had to check his balls before launching. No one has had that situation since except John when the trailer came loose, #4, and hit the float at the ramp, no one was hurt and the boat could still be pulled out. John is no longer with us but his stories will be here for us, a great guy except when launching.

Edited by - on

lcharlot
Master Marine Consultant

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Antigua and Barbuda
1301 Posts

Response Posted - 02/01/2005 : 23:18:31

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by kbq
 
Anyone beat *that* story? 8D
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

I can beat that story, you betcha:

A member of our sailing club lost his '84 Catalina 25 S/W (swing to wing conversion) on the ramp at Browns's Ravine Marina (Folsom Lake) on his first put-in day, April 2003. This ramp has a 15% gradient, and unfortunately on that day it was about 300' from the top of the ramp to the water since the lake was still low. This ramp also has a rather pronounced curve to it as it follows the contours of a hillside. As he was starting to back down the ramp, the trailer coupler popped off the ball - it was apparently not locked down properly - and the rig took off down the ramp, completely out of control. As it neared the bottom, it swerved to the side (remember I said the ramp is curved, not straight

), hit two parked vehicles (one of which was the Marina's service truck), and slewed completely sideways, spitting the boat off the trailer and smashing it down onto the port side of the hull and giving the keel a huge wallop. The repair estimate for just the boat was in the neighborhood of $14,000, so of course the insurance company totalled it. I heard that the manager of the repair shop actually didn't even want to attempt this repair, out of concern that the tremendous impact to the keel could have caused extensive structural damage to the hull in a large area around the keel root. Remember this boat was a swing-to-wing conversion, which added to the uncertainty of the extent of structural damage. The last I heard, someone actually bought the boat for $1400 from the insurance company and did the repairs himself (I assume he knows something about fiberglass repair), and she is now being sailed on San Francisco Bay.

That isn't quite the end of the story: One month later, on the first Saturday in May 2003, I was retreiving my own boat (C-25 #1205, since sold), on the same ramp, and had the same thing happen with the coupler popping off the ball. The difference was that I had hooked up the safety chains, and most of the trailer was still in the water, so even if it had come loose, it wouldn't have been a catastrophe. There was a "bang" noise and a jerk backward on my truck as the chains pulled tight, but no panic. We chocked all four trailer wheels, then carefully got the coupler reconnected. I've been trailering boats all over the place since 1985, including that 6100 mile round trip to Virginia last year, and two 1800 mile round trips to the San Juans, and have only that one time had a coupler pop apart. But if I hadn't hooked up the chains, that one time might have been all it took. If the coupler had popped up at the TOP of the ramp, instead of at the bottom, I would have "re-enacted" the smash-up that had taken place only the previous month!

Edited by - on

tmhansen
Captain

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USA
397 Posts

Response Posted - 02/02/2005 : 01:40:00

Kevin, thanks for the cautionary tale. I use an extension also and have been nagged by the fear that something like that could happen to me too. I have not come up with a good design for a safety chain but I have not put the gray cells to it in earnest.

Edited by - on

MattL
Admiral

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USA
990 Posts

Response Posted - 02/02/2005 : 01:42:33

OK I don't think my story is quite as spectacular as a few of the above, but it did happen.
When we first got our boat we needed to get a trailer to remove it from our seasonal lake. I had it made and was going to do a trial fit of the supports. I tied it off with a rope to the truck and a friend proceded to back into the water while I guided it. Right quick my knot came loose and the trailer headed to the water. I was holding the saftey chain of this 3k pound trailer thinking "Your not going to let go of this brand new trailer".
As my body started to go under water, plans changed.
Walking out onto the dock I could see the bubbles coming up from the brand new pristene never been used trailer and my $5500 fading fast. Jumping in I was able to stand on the top of the winch stand with my mouth just above the water. Taking a long rope I tried to swim down and tie it off. You know how cold water makes you tire fast, especially if you are mid 40's over weight etc. I found some young kid to dive down and tie it off and then pulled it out and next time tied it on to stay. Now I use a tow strap with a loop on each end that secures to both the truck and tailer before anything is disconnected.
I have another story I can tell, but the culprit was my wife and if she ever saw this my life would be cut short, so I'll just tell you it is a good one and is on par with letting the boat off at the top of the ramp.

Edited by - on

Arlyn Stewart
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
2980 Posts

Response Posted - 02/02/2005 : 07:51:15

Ahhhh....launch ramp rodeo...

There have been reports of different sized couplers on 250 trailers... double check that the combination of ball and coupler are happy together.

Thanks to all for the stories... they serve both to entertain and warn.

Edited by - on

Frank Hopper
Past Commodore

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Pitcairn Island
6776 Posts

Response Posted - 02/02/2005 : 08:55:42

The vast majority of us use a crane to launch and retrieve where I sail. However, last fall I got a Hobie 17. It has introduced me to ramp algae. The first time I stepped below the waterline on the ramp I suddenly found myself instantly "striking a pose" somewhat akin to a surfer hoping he found the sweet spot. For a moment I thought I was not going down... silly me. Those ramps are tricky for people too!

Edited by - on

fredflemming
1st Mate

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USA
29 Posts

Response Posted - 02/02/2005 : 13:51:12

It's both amazing and gratifying to see how other people also forget to check the obvious. Here's my cautionary tale about chocking the wheels of a trailer.

I was parking a Boy Scout equipment trailer in a "flat" grassy parking area which overlooked a pond (wait for it!). I did not chock the trailer wheels prior to jacking it up off my hitch ball. The trailer jackpost had a small plastic wheel on its end. As the coupler cleared the ball, the trailer began to slowly move backwards away from my Jeep. I grabbed the front beam and dug in my heels to stop it. Quicker than the blink of an eye, my feet slipped on the wet grass and I slid completely under the moving trailer while still hanging from its front beam.

A very clear picture flashed through my mind of me being dragged along under the trailer as it accelerated down the hill into the pond. Then the trailer wheels hit a log fortuitously located at the edge of the parking lot and we all came to a halt.

Needless to say, I have never again forgotten to chock the wheels before unhitching any trailer.

Edited by - on

kbq
1st Mate

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USA
99 Posts

Response Posted - 02/02/2005 : 14:11:18

C'mon, Matt - you *know* wives never read this!!!

Arlyn - I'm using a 2" ball on the truck (well, two and whatever). I suspect - but can't prove - that the hitch was just resting on top of the ball. In any case, I'll be using a tow strap looped 'round the upright/ladder and back to the safety cable slots on the hitch to ensure the sucker can't get far in the future.

Kevin
"wait for me"
250wk #751

Edited by - on

Ben - FL
Admiral

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880 Posts

Response Posted - 02/02/2005 : 16:31:53

Two years ago (has it been that long?) when I hauled Chick-a-pea out for the Bahamas trip I had to refloat her at a different boat ramp to get her all the way into the rubber bow chock on the trailer. So I backed down to where the ramp began, set the parking brake and got out and pulled the 3/4 in. pin for the tongue extention. The extention used to be a bear to pull out so earlier in the week I had greased it. Well the pavement was slightly sloped and the trailer started down towards the ramp slowly. As the extention continued to protrude I tried to stab the pin back into the next hole in the tongue with no luck. The trailer continued sliding and two of us could not stop it. But the hydrolic brake line finally did after being stretch like a rubber band.

We found a piece of drift wood to chock the wheel and got the pin back in. I almost had two seperate pieces to my trailer. One attached to the hitch and the other still strapped to the boat floating down the river!

Edited by - Ben - FL on 02/02/2005 16:40:43

JB
Navigator

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USA
114 Posts

Response Posted - 02/02/2005 : 18:36:33

One year the water level was low and I used a tow strap to put-in. When I pulled the trailer out of the water and up the ramp, it kept going.

The the lot had quite a bit of slope the other way and the trailer began moving faster than my tow vehicle. After I cleared the hump, I realized what was happing, but I couldn't do anything about it.

The trailer began to move faster than the truck and I stopped, it kept going (I had a 25 ft strap) and it kind of sling shot itself around my truck.

The damage was minor, but luckily the lot was empty and my wife was with the boat, because it swung with enough force to really hurt someone.

Edited by - on

MattL
Admiral

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USA
990 Posts

Response Posted - 02/03/2005 : 01:43:12

Kevin,
What i *know* about my wife after 12 years of marrage. If she says don't you ever tell this to anyone, especially with the inflections and facial ticks going on at the time, live would be short if I did.

Edited by - on

Charlie Vick
Captain

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USA
423 Posts

Response Posted - 02/03/2005 : 21:05:16

These tales almost sounds like stories from "And you think that was Dumb" from Lats and Atts!

Since I've never had Panacea on a trailer I don't have a story to tell about launching or retrieving.

I know this isn't much, but the first time I sailed Panacea, which was solo, I was cruising along the lake, with my bungee on the tiller, thinking "This is what I was looking for, isn't this great!" hauling sails thinking how cool everything was until I got the jib up... upside down. Then reality kicks in and says "Ok how much do you know about what you're doing?"
I knew the basics of sailing from my childhood but this was a new boat with new challenges that I didn't know.
It's all a learning experience, and as soon as you quit learning, you should give it up. IMHO

Edited by - on

Lightnup
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1016 Posts

Response Posted - 02/03/2005 : 22:14:19

A friend offered to use his Suburban to tow an old runabout to my house from our marina. We were almost to the top of a steep hill leaving the marina parking lot when I noticed there was no longer a boat bow following behind us. Not only did we not use chains but my friend had forgotten to put the pin in the trailer hitch. The ball assembly slid out of the hitch receptacle as we were heading uphill. The trailer/boat combination rolled past about 7 cars, gouging the asphalt as it did, before curving into the back of another friend's Explorer, bending the bumper, smashing a tail light and denting the tailgate. Fortunately it was a rainy weekend so not many people were walking in the usually crowded parking lot.

The insurance companies had a field day trying to avoid covering the damage. "Well, it was Bob's Suburban." "Yes, but it was Steve's boat that did the damage." "Yes, but Bob was towing it." "Yes, but Steve's responsible for damage caused by his boat" Etc., etc. His insurance ended up paying and I eventually just gave the boat away.

Steve

Edited by - on

tmhansen
Captain

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USA
397 Posts

Response Posted - 02/04/2005 : 00:51:31

Matt you can not tell the story of your wife's mistake. She has to do it. If she reads this she may decide to share. Problem is you may have already said too much.

Edited by - on

Jeff McK
Captain

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USA
389 Posts

Response Posted - 02/04/2005 : 09:09:51

I really admire the honesty of all who "fessed up" to having bad luck. I have not had to deal with trailer launching since I sold my daysailer a number of years ago. I was fortunate to avoid similar events, but I'm sure something would have eventually happened.

While there was obviously much embarrassment & damage, it sounds like nobody got hurt.

Mr. Murphy is ALWAYS out there, and he has a nasty sense of humor.

Best wishes for less eventful launches & recoveries in the future.

Edited by - on

MattL
Admiral

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USA
990 Posts

Response Posted - 02/04/2005 : 09:15:54

Yes, but I can go and edit it right now.....

Edited by - on

kbq
1st Mate

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USA
99 Posts

Response Posted - 02/04/2005 : 14:36:18

Matt -

If facial tics were involved in the warning, follow your instincts and heed said warning! 8D (from an old married man)

Kevin
"wait for me"
250wk #751

Edited by - on

MattL
Admiral

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USA
990 Posts

Response Posted - 02/04/2005 : 14:39:57

Except for the part about my wife I think this thread would be a good one to have printed in the mainsheet.

Edited by - on

kbq
1st Mate

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USA
99 Posts

Response Posted - 02/04/2005 : 17:18:09

Matt - agreed. Especially about judicious deletion... we'd hate to hear about your untimely passing!

Kevin
"wait for me"
250wk #751

Edited by - on

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