On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 12:57:55 -0400, wrote:

On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 12:10:53 -0400, HK wrote:

wrote:
On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 10:33:36 -0400, HK wrote:

I suppose it doesn't matter much what happens when one launches a
beat-up, clapped-out, old redneck boat as you claim to own. I like to
keep my boats in "as new" condition.

Hey, what's wrong with a beat up, clapped out old redneck boat?
I'm a beat up clapped out old redneck, what other kind of boat would I
have?

It sure does keep my cost of boating down to a reasonable number so I
actually get to use my boat. My ratio of use to maintenance is about
98%


There's nothing wrong with any boat that works for its owner.

I can't argue with that. A boat's central purpose is to get out on the
water and get back safely. All the status symbol and penis enlarging
aspects are options some can live without.

gfretwell, is your name 'John', or do you just get random assinine posts
from trolls occasionally. I notice you had the sense to disregard it.

On Jun 27, 5:17*pm, John H. wrote:
On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 12:57:55 -0400, wrote:
On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 12:10:53 -0400, HK wrote:

wrote:
On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 10:33:36 -0400, HK wrote:

I suppose it doesn't matter much what happens when one launches a
beat-up, clapped-out, old redneck boat as you claim to own. I like to
keep my boats in "as new" condition.

Hey, what's wrong with a beat up, clapped out old redneck boat?
I'm a beat up clapped out old redneck, what other kind of boat would I
have?

It sure does keep my cost of boating down to a reasonable number so I
actually get to use my boat. My ratio of use to maintenance is about
98%

There's nothing wrong with any boat that works for its owner.

I can't argue with that. A boat's central purpose is to get out on the
water and get back safely. All the status symbol and penis enlarging
aspects are options some can live without.

gfretwell, is your name 'John', or do you just get random assinine posts
from trolls occasionally. I notice you had the sense to disregard it.

You forgot to address your post to Loogy and FLA Jim. ;-)

"John H." wrote in message
...
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?

One person launches like this:
*************************************************
"I use the knot to attach a stainless steel carabiner to the line. When I
launch or retrieve the boat, I attach one carabiner and line to the bow
ring and another carabiner and line to a stern ring. I tie the end of the
stern line to the dock and then push the boat off the trailer into the
water while holding the bow ring line, which I walk over to the dock. That
way, it makes it easy for me to tie the boat to the dock while I move and
park the truck and trailer.

For retrieval, I tie the boat to the dock, back the trailer down into the
water, and pull the boat onto the trailer by hand with the bow line.

I use carabiners because they snap on better and a bit more elegantly than
snaps."
************************************************

This is an elegant sounding method, but it leaves me wondering what
happens
to the line attached to the bow ring. Removing that while kneeling on the
bow could get pretty *hairy*.

As I'm always open to good ideas, I thought I'd present this and see if
anyone has a better way.


What you do depends on your situation. I am not a big fan of using tiedown
fittings as cleats. At your own slip you might use eye splices on one end of
your dock lines to go over your cleats and the bitter end to tie to the
dock. Leave the lines on the dock and its a snap to get set up again when
you return. You will need a second set of lines if you plan to dock
somewhere else during your outing. Carry a minimum of 3 lines with eye
splices on one end. On a 20 foot boat, I would keep 20 foot lines.
If you are a trailer boater, 3 lines the length of your boat with eyes on
one end is probably sufficient. When in doubt keep the lines rigged and
ready. Not good if you need to reach for a line and there is nothing there.
The caveat: Whatever you do. Do not allow lines to be in the water behind
your boat.
Be wary of dock walkers offering to help you tie up.

On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 08:29:47 -0400, "Jim" wrote:


"John H." wrote in message
.. .
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?

One person launches like this:
*************************************************
"I use the knot to attach a stainless steel carabiner to the line. When I
launch or retrieve the boat, I attach one carabiner and line to the bow
ring and another carabiner and line to a stern ring. I tie the end of the
stern line to the dock and then push the boat off the trailer into the
water while holding the bow ring line, which I walk over to the dock. That
way, it makes it easy for me to tie the boat to the dock while I move and
park the truck and trailer.

For retrieval, I tie the boat to the dock, back the trailer down into the
water, and pull the boat onto the trailer by hand with the bow line.

I use carabiners because they snap on better and a bit more elegantly than
snaps."
************************************************

This is an elegant sounding method, but it leaves me wondering what
happens
to the line attached to the bow ring. Removing that while kneeling on the
bow could get pretty *hairy*.

As I'm always open to good ideas, I thought I'd present this and see if
anyone has a better way.


What you do depends on your situation. I am not a big fan of using tiedown
fittings as cleats. At your own slip you might use eye splices on one end of
your dock lines to go over your cleats and the bitter end to tie to the
dock. Leave the lines on the dock and its a snap to get set up again when
you return. You will need a second set of lines if you plan to dock
somewhere else during your outing. Carry a minimum of 3 lines with eye
splices on one end. On a 20 foot boat, I would keep 20 foot lines.
If you are a trailer boater, 3 lines the length of your boat with eyes on
one end is probably sufficient. When in doubt keep the lines rigged and
ready. Not good if you need to reach for a line and there is nothing there.
The caveat: Whatever you do. Do not allow lines to be in the water behind
your boat.
Be wary of dock walkers offering to help you tie up.

My own slip...right!

The only dock walker that helps me tie up is my wife. She's gotten very
good at helping launch and retrieve. She would get really ****ed if I asked
her to stay out of the way!

"John H." wrote in message
...
On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 08:29:47 -0400, "Jim" wrote:


"John H." wrote in message
. ..
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?

One person launches like this:
*************************************************
"I use the knot to attach a stainless steel carabiner to the line. When
I
launch or retrieve the boat, I attach one carabiner and line to the bow
ring and another carabiner and line to a stern ring. I tie the end of
the
stern line to the dock and then push the boat off the trailer into the
water while holding the bow ring line, which I walk over to the dock.
That
way, it makes it easy for me to tie the boat to the dock while I move
and
park the truck and trailer.

For retrieval, I tie the boat to the dock, back the trailer down into
the
water, and pull the boat onto the trailer by hand with the bow line.

I use carabiners because they snap on better and a bit more elegantly
than
snaps."
************************************************

This is an elegant sounding method, but it leaves me wondering what
happens
to the line attached to the bow ring. Removing that while kneeling on
the
bow could get pretty *hairy*.

As I'm always open to good ideas, I thought I'd present this and see if
anyone has a better way.


What you do depends on your situation. I am not a big fan of using tiedown
fittings as cleats. At your own slip you might use eye splices on one end
of
your dock lines to go over your cleats and the bitter end to tie to the
dock. Leave the lines on the dock and its a snap to get set up again when
you return. You will need a second set of lines if you plan to dock
somewhere else during your outing. Carry a minimum of 3 lines with eye
splices on one end. On a 20 foot boat, I would keep 20 foot lines.
If you are a trailer boater, 3 lines the length of your boat with eyes on
one end is probably sufficient. When in doubt keep the lines rigged and
ready. Not good if you need to reach for a line and there is nothing
there.
The caveat: Whatever you do. Do not allow lines to be in the water behind
your boat.
Be wary of dock walkers offering to help you tie up.

My own slip...right!

The only dock walker that helps me tie up is my wife. She's gotten very
good at helping launch and retrieve. She would get really ****ed if I
asked
her to stay out of the way!

If the Admiral wants to
help.............................................W ell you'd be a fool to say
no.

John H. wrote:
On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 08:29:47 -0400, "Jim" wrote:

"John H." wrote in message
...
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?

One person launches like this:
*************************************************
"I use the knot to attach a stainless steel carabiner to the line. When I
launch or retrieve the boat, I attach one carabiner and line to the bow
ring and another carabiner and line to a stern ring. I tie the end of the
stern line to the dock and then push the boat off the trailer into the
water while holding the bow ring line, which I walk over to the dock. That
way, it makes it easy for me to tie the boat to the dock while I move and
park the truck and trailer.

For retrieval, I tie the boat to the dock, back the trailer down into the
water, and pull the boat onto the trailer by hand with the bow line.

I use carabiners because they snap on better and a bit more elegantly than
snaps."
************************************************

This is an elegant sounding method, but it leaves me wondering what
happens
to the line attached to the bow ring. Removing that while kneeling on the
bow could get pretty *hairy*.

As I'm always open to good ideas, I thought I'd present this and see if
anyone has a better way.


What you do depends on your situation. I am not a big fan of using tiedown
fittings as cleats. At your own slip you might use eye splices on one end of
your dock lines to go over your cleats and the bitter end to tie to the
dock. Leave the lines on the dock and its a snap to get set up again when
you return. You will need a second set of lines if you plan to dock
somewhere else during your outing. Carry a minimum of 3 lines with eye
splices on one end. On a 20 foot boat, I would keep 20 foot lines.
If you are a trailer boater, 3 lines the length of your boat with eyes on
one end is probably sufficient. When in doubt keep the lines rigged and
ready. Not good if you need to reach for a line and there is nothing there.
The caveat: Whatever you do. Do not allow lines to be in the water behind
your boat.
Be wary of dock walkers offering to help you tie up.

My own slip...right!

The only dock walker that helps me tie up is my wife. She's gotten very
good at helping launch and retrieve. She would get really ****ed if I asked
her to stay out of the way!


Harry doesn't have that option. Zero friends and his own family can't
stand the poor *******.

On Jun 27, 8:29*am, "Jim" wrote:
"John H." wrote in message

...



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?

One person launches like this:
*************************************************
"I use the knot to attach a stainless steel carabiner to the line. When I
launch or retrieve the boat, I attach one carabiner and line to the bow
ring and another carabiner and line to a stern ring. I tie the end of the
stern line to the dock and then push the boat off the trailer into the
water while holding the bow ring line, which I walk over to the dock. That
way, it makes it easy for me to tie the boat to the dock while I move and
park the truck and trailer.

For retrieval, I tie the boat to the dock, back the trailer down into the
water, and pull the boat onto the trailer by hand with the bow line.

I use carabiners because they snap on better and a bit more elegantly than
snaps."
************************************************

This is an elegant sounding method, but it leaves me wondering what
happens
to the line attached to the bow ring. Removing that while kneeling on the
bow could get pretty *hairy*.

As I'm always open to good ideas, I thought I'd present this and see if
anyone has a better way.

What you do depends on your situation. I am not a big fan of using tiedown
fittings as cleats. At your own slip you might use eye splices on one end of
your dock lines to go over your cleats and the bitter end to tie to the
dock. Leave the lines on the dock and its a snap to get set up again when
you return. You will need a second set of lines if you plan to dock
somewhere else during your outing. Carry a minimum of 3 lines with eye
splices on one end. On a 20 foot boat, I would keep 20 foot lines.
If you are a trailer boater, 3 lines the length of your boat with eyes on
one end is probably sufficient. When in doubt keep the lines rigged and
ready. Not good if you need to reach for a line and there is nothing there.
The caveat: Whatever you do. Do not allow lines to be in the water behind
your boat.
Be wary of dock walkers offering to help you tie up.-

YaImKool has cleats and ropes all over. My 3/8 bow line is usually
bent to a forward cleat under the front deck. It can be removed
quickly if necessary, and is not quite long enough to reach the prop.
I have smaller cleats (3 on each side) with various lengths of 1/4
inch from say, 1-2 feet long. I use these to tie down equipment, rods,
gear etc. while towing, as well as underway or fishing. I like to
keep the stern ropes short, but a quick sheetbend makes them as long
as you want. The shorter ropes along the sides are what catches the
eye of most fishermen, well aside from Shortpants favorite paint job
The stern cleats all carry a combination of a short rope and a small
bungee chord. I wrap the bungees around the rods while towing or
cruising, and being a lazy anchor fisherman, I tie off the rods with a
quick slipknot while I am not paying attention or even trolling. A
quick tug and the rod slips out of the holder. As well, I sling a
quick loop around poles hanging over the sides, those short ropes also
meet requirements for boats under 20 foot long to have "handles" or
steps along the sides in case of capsize.

I also carry a crate with several extra lengths of rope, mostly 1/4
and 3/8... I do have a length of 3/4 inch hemp too. The same crate
carries the extra anchor and chain, some ratcheting tie downs,
bungees, rain gear, first aid, and lantern... Somehow I always
thought these things all belonged together

Personally, I feel there is no more important tool on a small boat
than ropes and cleats.

Phewww.

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.

The dock is not adjacent to the launch ramps I use; you have to drive the
boat from the trailer to the dock to park your tow vehicle or pick up your
crew.
If I have crew, I get to board the boat while trailered and turn on the vent
blower. When the trailer is backed down the ramp, I start the engine and
lower the drive. When the engine's idling and I'm reasonably sure it won't
stall, I release the winch safety chain and strap and back off the trailer
and over to the dock. While the crew turns on and checks all the electronics
I park the tow vehicle.
If I'm alone, I have to get my feet wet to get into the boat once the
trailer's backed up. Once at the dock, I have to run back and park the tow
vehicle.
I normally only use a bow and stern line as the boat is seldom tied up for
more more than 45 minutes when unattended. I normally only use two fenders.
I have three more lines available for tieing up or alongside towing, 200' of
tow line for stern towing, a pair of fenders on a three foot line to use as
walking fenders -usually to protect other boats from my ski tower, and five
more fenders to protect hulls.
All of my lines have an eye at one end. When tieing up at a dock, the eye
goes on my cleat. If tieing up with another boat, they get the eye and I
keep the bitter end so that I can untie if necessary.
I don't use any caribiners because I consider them a danger to fingers.


"HK" wrote in message
. ..
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.

On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 21:33:33 -0400, "William Andersen"
wrote:

The dock is not adjacent to the launch ramps I use; you have to drive the
boat from the trailer to the dock to park your tow vehicle or pick up your
crew.
If I have crew, I get to board the boat while trailered and turn on the vent
blower. When the trailer is backed down the ramp, I start the engine and
lower the drive. When the engine's idling and I'm reasonably sure it won't
stall, I release the winch safety chain and strap and back off the trailer
and over to the dock. While the crew turns on and checks all the electronics
I park the tow vehicle.
If I'm alone, I have to get my feet wet to get into the boat once the
trailer's backed up. Once at the dock, I have to run back and park the tow
vehicle.
I normally only use a bow and stern line as the boat is seldom tied up for
more more than 45 minutes when unattended. I normally only use two fenders.
I have three more lines available for tieing up or alongside towing, 200' of
tow line for stern towing, a pair of fenders on a three foot line to use as
walking fenders -usually to protect other boats from my ski tower, and five
more fenders to protect hulls.
All of my lines have an eye at one end. When tieing up at a dock, the eye
goes on my cleat. If tieing up with another boat, they get the eye and I
keep the bitter end so that I can untie if necessary.
I don't use any caribiners because I consider them a danger to fingers.


"HK" wrote in message
...
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.


I think being unafraid to get your feet wet is a key to efficient launching
and retrieval operations. A pair of beat up sandals are great for both
operations.