"Short Wave Sportfishing" wrote in message
...

I've hit things at speed with my outboards and, well to put it
plainly, F'd 'em up pretty bad, but I've never ripped a lower unit off
at speed. Broke a casting once, lost a skeg once and seriously
mangled a prop shaft and prop once.

Then again, neither of my boats weigh 15,000 lbs either.

Later,

Tom

When a youngster with a Sears 12' aluminum boat and 7 hp outboard, I seem to
remember leaving the motor unlocked, so if I hit something the motor would
just flip up. (It was embarrassing when you forgot and revved it up in
reverse). Anyway, it just seems to me that a heavy boat at speed isn't
going to stop in time=zero if it hits a rock higher up than the nosecone and
the energy of the impact has to go somewhere. Maybe the leg will stay
together, but the transom will get ripped off.

Eisboch