First time boater

[n33d45p33d]

@Bennie no I had not seen that. Sounds like a cool feature. I will add that to my profile now.

The instructor relayed the same messages as you guys, the slower the better and safest!

Thanks for the comments

 

[Bennie]

Another suggestion is floating dock lines. I purchased ones like these after I swallowed up an aft dock line that was dropped into the water. Sucking up a rope is never fun - make sure you have a decent knife on board in case you do wrap a line around your propeller.

Floating dock line - https://www.amazon.com/MFP-Floating...1492087909&sr=8-3&keywords=floating+dock+line

 

[blacksapphirez]

Floating Dock lines will usually be single braided and have lesser working load, just FYI

I like the quality of the double braided lines

 

[n33d45p33d]

Good to know, I will look into these when I get the boat.

 

[Bennie]

Floating Dock lines will usually be single braided and have lesser working load, just FYI

I like the quality of the double braided lines

Good point - they are available. I purchased mine from West Marine.
Here are double braided floating lines 3/8 - 15'

https://www.walmart.com/ip/32739645...online&wl12=32739645&wl13=&veh=sem#about-item

 

[Murf'n'surf]

There should be a jet boat rental place between Miami and Lauderdale. Try one out for the day.

 

[tdonoughue]

Welcome and congratulations!

2x what everyone said, but especially the bit about going out with one buddy (preferably one who you are used to having laugh at you a bit). I would not recommend the first trip or two with a finger-tapping wife and crying kid waiting for you to figure out how to get the boat back onto the trailer. Just will not end well. That is that 'audience' pressure you want to avoid the first time out at least.

That said, do relax and have fun with it. Remember there is no hurry--this is supposed to be fun.

 

[LeeFlan7]

welcome and congrats on the future boat....
I would x2 what you've already seen posted here, what I found is this, after coming to a jet boat from a standard i/o the first thing I noticed was driving a jet boat actually felt more intuitive, maybe that had much to do with my experience on ski's but the horror stories id heard just have not rung true..sure, like anything there is a learning curve, somethings will come easier than others but the limited experience i have on my 210 is a thrill...look forward to the summer, the memories you'll make with your family are worth every penny (I have 3 boys, 10, 6 and 4 months)...so again, welcome!

 

[Beachbummer]

I will say there is a psychological/relationship factor when docking... It's a great test of communication within the romantic couple. It's a prime opportunity for the best and worst in us to come out. Be patient and have a good communication plan. It can be tense at times, specially at the beginning. It's a prime time to shine with good relationship skills, or crash and burn with a sour time, depending on attitude,actions and mood of all involved.

Maybe I'm over representing this factor, but being aware of it is half of the work needed to successfully navigate it. (Pun intended)

Abbreviated version: be sure to be nice even when it gets tense, and it will make everything go better.

 

[n33d45p33d]

Yup I totally understand what you guys mean. That was my plan, to go out a few times and get comfortable with the boat before taking the wife and newborn son out. I don't think I will be able to keep my daughter away for too long. She wants the boat more than I do!

 

[n33d45p33d]

Couple of pictures from the Miami boat show a couple of months ago.

Can't wait!

 

[buckbuck]

Yep, you guys look good on that 212X. That's the one for you.

 

[tdonoughue]

Awesome! Looks like you guys really fit that boat.

On the 'going out alone' bit--you will likely be surprised. Once or twice and you will have the confidence and know a couple of things. So your family can be out there quickly with you. Heck, after the sea trial on the boat, I took my boys out the first time. Just a little more stress on things like docking and putting the boat on the trailer because 'everyone is watching!'

And I will offer this one more thing I do: at docking, everyone sits down, the music goes off, and everyone is quiet (except for boat operations) with hands and arms in the boat. That lets me focus on the navigation for that 15-20 seconds, then we can tie up/winch up and life gets back to normal.

 

[Bennie]

at docking, everyone sits down, the music goes off, and everyone is quiet (except for boat operations) with hands and arms in the boat

AMEN! There is insurance on the boat, it can be fixed/ replaced. Keep those arms in the boat!
Little ones especially, they aren't able to identify those pinch points.

 

[Beachbummer]

I usually get the point across the opposite way..."Put your limb in there to save the boat, because if it scratches, I have to buff it out, but your limb will heal naturally..." That usually scares the crap out of those helping and they stay away from the dock.

 

[n33d45p33d]

Hahaha I guess I can tell them the only reason your arms or legs should be outside the boat is if your going to save the boat from scratching!

 

[tdonoughue]

Actually, that is seriously the problem. People think they need to 'save' the boat and do not realize the force that can develop between boat and dock. Especially kids. And then <crunch>. That will ruin a day.