Power loading - why it is a no-no

[Catigale]

Couple of threads ago this came up...video from the Land of 10,000 Lakes with nice depiction of why this practice should be avoided..

http://www.boat-ed.com/mn/course/p2-4_trailering.htm

[arknoah]

Couple of threads ago this came up...video from the Land of 10,000 Lakes with nice depiction of why this practice should be avoided..

http://www.boat-ed.com/mn/course/p2-4_trailering.htm

Very informative. Thank you.

[pokerrick1]

I wanna be driving the second tow vehicle or the second boat

Rick

[capncarp]

I ran into this last summer while loading my Mac. In Minnesota by the way and loading alone. I backed the trailer in and attached the boat . The trailer was not deep enough so I back up some more. One side of the trailer dropped in and twisted. Now I got the boat partially on the a twisted trailer. Just great. I cranked the boat on somemore and slowly pulled the trailer out of the hole. I'm lucky I didn't snap the trailer. I see people power on all the time and I just don't get how people can not think about what they are doing. I've seen guy's say"watch this" and get a kick out of digging a hole. Sailors definetly think more than power boaters. They have to.
capncarp, 99

[bartmac]

Same problem in Australia....lazyness....nearly every ramp we inspect has this problem which for us means the tide has to be right for us to retrieve our 26X....there's no way we can pull our trailer and Mac up some of the dropoffs....But if you say anything to the S@#theads who ruin these ramps....you get abused.I guess with non tidal water bodies you're stuck with the water level

[pokerrick1]

All of the concrete or ashphalt ramps from which I ever launched or retreived any boat in Southern California seem to be longer lengthwise, which seems to alleviate the problem, so I never had a problem there. In Nevada the concrete ramps are unbelievable long at Lake Mead to allow for varying water levels, so here the potential problem is alleviated also.

Rick

[csm]

Most everyone in Texas powers up, so I think most ramps are designed with that in mind. I had one incident, with a smaller boat, when my trailer dropped into a hole. It was an unimproved ramp, and luckily I was able to ratchet strap the back of the trailer to the transom and "float" the trailer out of the hole. I think this would be much more difficult with the short Mac trailer.

[K9Kampers]

Not powerloading...
Twice, due to incredibly tight manuevering at my lake ramp, I dropped one wheel of my empty Mac trailer off the side of the ramp.
The first time, with the steel Mac trailer, I was able to lift it up & over by getting in the water and deadlifting it. 2nd time with new AL 2 axle trailer, too heavy to lift by hand. I postitioned Mac on the dock so the bow was just over the rear of the trailer and used my ratcheting cargo strap from a bridle on the bow cleats to float the trailer back into position.

[GaryMayo]

One word of caution. Some vehicles do not have parking brakes, they have emergency brakes. Most stick shift manual transmission vehicles today have parking brakes. Some automatic transmission vehicles have emergency brakes. Check your owners manual to see which kind you have. If you have emergency brakes, they are not very effective at maintaining the stopped vehicle from rolling backwards down a sharp hill. Most vehicles today have parking brakes that work well for parking as well as for emergency braking. Also, if you have not used the secondary braking system in some time, it very possibly no longer works like it should. Testing these secondary brakes for the first time on a local boat ramp could mean you will be the next viral you tube video.

[seacatcapt]

Interesting that the offending operator in the training video was female. Surely not intentional!

[GaryMayo]

Link not comparable with iStuff

[mrbillfll]

Most everyone in Texas powers up, so I think most ramps are designed with that in mind. I had one incident, with a smaller boat, when my trailer dropped into a hole. It was an unimproved ramp, and luckily I was able to ratchet strap the back of the trailer to the transom and "float" the trailer out of the hole. I think this would be much more difficult with the short Mac trailer.

pretty much the same is true at all salt water ramps... in Fla.

most ramps I see have a 'stop' at the end of the paved part of the ramp to keep the trailer on the ramp....

but I've also backed a trl too far and had it drop off the end. pulling it back up UNLOADED has not been too difficult, but if you load it then try, you have little chance. (ON the flip side, I've been to ramps, where I couldn't get the boat into the water because the tide was too low, or the ramp too short....)

-float-on (brand) trailer is very popular are are other knock off types where you pretty much drive the boat on the trailer.

-The other problem with powering the boat on is you kick up sand or mud that is sucked into the water jacket of the engine...

raising the trim will help the 'walloing out' of the bed too. (but creates a bigger wake).

-But in all Honestly, there's no way to put a 30'+ express or go fast (15,000# +) without driving it on the trailer.
fwiw, I had a 29' go fast for a short time, and there was no way I could crank that boat 3"... it had to be driven on or lifted.

ie:



or

[arknoah]

Interesting that the offending operator in the training video was female. Surely not intentional!

Oh. Didn't notice. I was looking at the ground under the prop. Does that make me more "liberated?"

[Catigale]

At the several ramps Ive frequented in NY and MA, power loading is explicitly banned with signage, and the DEC guys will happily cite you for same...

Definitely seek out local customs if you are in a new place.