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HK

wrote:
On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 07:29:43 -0400, John H.
wrote:

do you add extra lines to the bow ring and another to the stern ring, or do
you use the bow and stern dock lines on the boat?

I generally launch and retrieve alone
I have a fairly long utility line on my boat for various uses. Snap on
one end, eye spliced in the other.When launching I put the eye over a
cleat on the boat, coil the line loosely on the deck and snap the
other end on the winch crossbar. Then when the boat rolls off I can
swing the snapped end over to a couple dock posts and tie it off to
the stern cleat.
You never "lose" the boat that way.
Even if the stern gets away from you, you still have a line on the
boat. If I see the wind is going to fight me I will attach a long
stern line and tie it off to the dock "down ramp" a ways before I roll
off the boat so I can pull it in after launching.
I assume the rules are different at a busy public ramp but we have a
private ramp in our neighborhood and most of the time I never see
another soul when I launch or recover. Even so this still goes pretty
fast.

What you are doing isn't much different from what I do, except I tie off
the bow and stern. The long lines help where I launch because the finger
pier next to the ramp is long, and I can tie off the boat where I want
it to be for launch and retrieval. The ramp is about 20' wide, and I
always launch and retrieve in its center.