New to boating

[Brad460]

I used my bucket to throw up in after my wife hit the dock with our last boat and put a gouge in it, right after we bought it. lol.

My dad "over-throttled" our Moomba one time after launching on Okauchee and ran the side of the boat into a barge (I was parking the truck).....Tore a hole right through to the inside of the boat... Scratched from front to back...lol

$4000 later it was like new.

Now only my wife or myself are authorized to launch the boat..lol

 

[2kwik4u]

That’s exactly what I’m scared of with this brand new (expensive to us) boat!

It's just a boat. Ours was the most expensive item we had ever purchased (besides our house). It's tiny to some, but a big deal to us.

We didn't buy it to look at though, we bought it to use, and enjoy. Along with that comes some bonks and bruises along the way.

Tow-mater explains the concept great in Cars2. His dents and dings are all reminders of great times with friends. That approach has served us well boating.

 

[biglar155]

I came from a lifetime of boating with outboards. There is DEFINITELY a difference when you move to jet, but take your time and you'll do fine.

I strongly recommend taking the time to PRACTICE. As a father of 4 I understand full well how boring this is for the kids: "Dad - why are we putzing around this marker? Why do you keep turning us around in circles? Why....????" It has to be done though. You have to build the skills - and everyone who will pilot the boat should learn to do this.

One of the "self defense" guys I follow on YouTube has a great saying that applies to a lot of things in life: "You can't learn new s**t in the middle of a fight."

Applied to this situation: You don't want to learn to dock in a crosswind with and actual DOCK present. You want to have an imaginary dock attached to a stationary object that you can practice approaching but easily avoid hitting when things go wrong.

I drive my kids nuts for the first half-hour of our boating season because I insist on "messing around" to refresh my "feel" of how the boat reacts to control in puts. I'll be installing JetboatPilot Lateral Thrusters before this year's launch so I'm going to need extra play time to get used to them.

I concur with the masses regarding Memorial Day as a bad idea for your first trip out. In fact, I simply refuse to bring my boat anywhere near a lake on Memorial Day or July 4th. That's "Amateur Hour" taken to a whole new level: Amateur Boaters, Amateur Drinkers, Amateur Drinkers Boating and Amateur Boaters Drinking. I'll pass.

 

[ToddW850]

Congrats and welcome!

 

[Rushfan67]

Welcome and Congratulations. Like all of the others have said take some time to practice. I came from owning several I/O’s and it took a bit with the Jet. Docking is a little different and one of the best things I invested in was trailer guides. Good luck with the new boat and congratulations again!

 

[Gym]

The first time we went out was a week day when nobody was around. We launched and did some practice maneuvers. One thing you can try is pulling up to an empty mooring ball as if it were a dock. That will get you used to slow maneuverability and using short bursts of power to help with the steering. You should also practice a few launches and retrievals. I would go out without friends or family the first time. Fewer distractions. Have fun.

 

[J-RAD]

Congratulations! My advice is to take every part that's new to you slow. Besides that, just have fun!