Close Call Over The Weekend, How do you remind yourself?

[props2you]

I will preface this with my wife and I are extremely proficient at launching and retrieving our boat, as many bystanders comment how "military precision like" we are. With that said.... This was purely a captain error. It was a normal day 15-20 knot winds, nothing unusual for our area and have launched MANY times in inclement weather.

Most of us have pre-launch routines and apparently mine was disrupted somehow, I'll find out soon enough what I forgot...

As my wife is launching me I start both engines and when deep enough I start to back off the trailer, but it seems like it's not powering up enough to get me off the trailer. Hmmm, maybe the 20 knot winds at my stern are stronger than I thought. So I power up again and no movement (I'm sure you can guess at this point what was forgotten). So as all of this is happening, I'm running through my pre-launch checklist in my head trying to figure out what I'm missing. At the same time, the boat is blowing towards the rocky shore since I was off the trailer at this point. I jump out into the 62 degree water and push/swim the boat to the dock so the dock master can hold it, luckily I caught it in time and the boat didn't touch anything. In the mean time I realized I FORGOT TO INSTALL MY CLEAN-OUT PLUGS!!!! With 20 knot winds my 2 additional female passengers and dock master are holding on to the boat for dear life as I install my clean out plugs and start up and shove off.

I ended up using my label maker and creating a label that says "3-HOLE CHECK?" and stuck it on the dash where I see it every time.

So, the learning lesson is aside from your pre-launch checklist, how do you remind yourself to engage your clean out plugs? Why isn't there an alarm letting the captain know the clean out plugs are not installed?

 

[bronze_10]

I have a rope hanging out of the clean out hatch so when i get on the boat i see it to remind me.

 

[scokill]

I have not forgotten cleanout plugs, but my brother in law called me one day and told me there was something wrong and I immediately knew he did. We were ready to go this weekend and was about to tell my wife to back down and I stopped down, jumped off the boat and checked the drain plug and rear straps with people waiting. We are in and out in 15 seconds so no big deal.

My big forget was to install the swing away tongue pin and I pulled out of my driveway only to be rear ended by the trailer that swung around and dented my Tahoe lift gate when I went to turn. Also broke a taillight. Other than that the only thing I've forgotten is to undo the rear straps or safety cable. Knock on wood!

 

[props2you]

I have not forgotten cleanout plugs, but my brother in law called me one day and told me there was something wrong and I immediately knew he did. We were ready to go this weekend and was about to tell my wife to back down and I stopped down, jumped off the boat and checked the drain plug and rear straps with people waiting. We are in and out in 15 seconds so no big deal.

My big forget was to install the swing away tongue pin and I pulled out of my driveway only to be rear ended by the trailer that swung around and dented my Tahoe lift gate when I went to turn. Also broke a taillight. Other than that the only thing I've forgotten is to undo the rear straps or safety cable. Knock on wood!

Ugh, tough luck on the swing pin on the trailer, I'll take my clean-out plugs any day over that. Yikes!

 

[buckbuck]

I found that the best way to remind myself is to have done it once...or twice...
I am pretty good at not forgetting now.

 

[Scuba_ref]

As I was launching by myself on Saturday (taking it out to finish the oil change and check the throttle cable adjustment after some maintenance) the local Yamaha dealership (used to sell boats but no longer do) service truck pulls in with a 2006 AR230. There are 2 mechanics (M1 and M2) with the boat and they are putting it in the water to check on an issue for the owner. I tie my boat to the dock and pull the truck and trailer to the parking area as M1 takes the boat off the trailer and slowly backs out into the river away from the dock (we are still in the thick of run off so there is quite a bit of current). M2 goes and parks the truck and trailer. I'm going through my checklist when M2 gets back to the dock and beckons M1 to pick him up. M1 throttles up and goes no where and is now drifting into the swimming area and it's assorted pylons and poles. I tell M2 that M1 needs to install the plugs if he want to go anywhere. After M2 shouts those instructions to M1 he then asks me if I can go rescue his buddy because he is drifting fast. Lessons learned; 1) anyone can forget plugs and 2) hope I never need those guys to work on my boat!

 

[Bruce]

In 2015 at the busy ramp in Shelbyville while racing with @Speedling I forgot to put in the drain plug. I backed her down the ramp but could hear the water gurgling in so we had to pull her back out to install the plug and launch again. It happens.

 

[Brent Gaidosh]

I leave the clean out plugin a Tupperware container on the drivers seat so I won't forget it!

 

[Bruce]

I leave the clean out plugin a Tupperware container on the drivers seat so I won't forget it!

Is it not attached to a cable? If not, it should be. If it blows out you could lose it and be stuck on the water.

 

[Noko]

My plugs are sitting on top of the hatch so they are pretty hard to miss when I undo the straps at the back of the trailer.

 

[96Pirate]

When I saw this post I started thinking about my own checklist and how I can prevent something like that from happening. Luckily I have not missed that one but did miss the drain plug once but caught it a little bit after the boat was in the water still hooked to trailer. And boy did it drain quite a bit from that once I pulled her out.

So after thinking of what I can do and what I might implement in my routine is this. This would really only work if you are into water sports. I always remove my ropes from the wet storage so they can dry. So when I am at the house loading up and I throw the ropes in I will load the plugs then. This might hurt me if I ever go out with the ropes for sports. But maybe add your dock lines in there as well.

 

[haknslash]

Wow sounds like a close one! 62° water would make this southerner cry so I cannot imagine

As for the cleanout plugs I have forgotten once myself as well so don't beat yourself over it. Happened when the boat was still pretty new. I'm anal about my routine as well and it just sort of happened because I was rushing. Zero thrust and was drifting towards a very low dock that would have eaten the bow. Thankfully I jumped back there in time to do a half ass plug install without snapping in the EZ lock just so I could get out of the path of the dock. To top it off when I shoved the plug in my flooded tube water just shot back in my face looking like a real genius I'm sure. I think there were people around the dock looking at me from too but I wasn't even registering them while in panic mode . Once I got away to safe waters I reinstalled the plug with the EZ lock and off I went. That image is stuck in my head because I was about to kill my brand new hull so ever since then the cleanout plug has been the last thing I install before removing the transom straps signifying to me the boat is technically ok/safe to launch. My drain plugs still come first

 

[Scuba_ref]

You only have to remember one...some of us have to remember two. How many will confess to installing one of the plugs and forgetting the other?

 

[haknslash]

Hey now, I'd like to have two cleanout plugs to 'deal with' one day

 

[bronze_10]

I leave a wrench and the drain plug on the back swim deck where the table leg goes and a rope hanging out of the clean out tray as a reminder.. the rear tie down straps is another story!

 

[seadude]

What's the 3rd hole?

 

[fireflymedic]

I do it at the house. Take off cover put in drain plug, clean out plugs and start motors. If I forget something at least I have the trip to ramp to remember.

 

[Brent Gaidosh]

Is it not attached to a cable? If not, it should be. If it blows out you could lose it and be stuck on the water.

In the 190 the cable attaches when you put it back in the hole. No room to lay it on its side in the hatch!

 

[4x15mph]

Forgot to remove the rear tie downs on the trailer yesterday at the launch.... Guy on the other ramp screamed over and reminded me since he just did the same thing.

Then went down the Christina river thinking we would empty out into the Delaware river. Came upon a train trestle overpass that we did not fit under with our wake tower. I did not have a hex drive in my boat kit for folding down the tower and I will be adding that; lesson learned! We turned around and went to a boat ramp further down the river and the day was a success. What a great trip that ended at a crab shack with live music. Don't sweat the small stuff

I wanted to get my pilot license and my wife reminded me that detail and attention span are not my thing. She suggests I stay away from airplanes and I have to agree with her on that.

I have checklists and they don't work for me. I forget about them but I am also pretty relaxed. If I had a nicer/expensive boat I would step up my game

Sorry - I don't have good advice other than use a checklist. I have attached the one I am suppose to use which probably came from this site.

 

[McMark]

I put my cleanouts and drain plug in before I pull out of the driveway as part of the load in. Then double check at the dock.