Boating and Sailing.pdf - Moja ladja

Chapter 4: It Follows You Anywhere—Trailering Your Boat
better to drop down to third gear or even lower on a long mountain grade. (Some other
companies do advise against towing in overdrive—it’s best to follow the manual for your
specific rig. With manual transmissions, the advice is accurate—it’s tough on the engine to
tow in fifth gear.)
Watch Where You Tow
There are some places that even the most experienced trailer-boater will not take his rig.
There’s no sense causing yourself problems by trying to fit the rig into a tight, 90-degree
parking spot when you can pull straight ahead into several empty slots. Watch out for
these potentially hazardous situations:
◆ Using a drive-thru. Never go through the drive-thru of a fast-food restaurant or
store unless you’re sure the boat is not much wider or taller than your towing vehicle.
The overheads are particularly hazardous because we tend to forget about them.
◆ Making a U-turn. If you need to make a U-turn in heavy traffic, the best advice is
don’t make the U-turn. Choose a light with a turning lane if possible, turn left into
the cross street, make another left into the alley, and then another to bring you back
to the highway—and now you’ve got an easy right to get back where you need to go.
That’s better than risking an accident—or these days, a gunshot—by pulling across
traffic.
Secure It All
Sargeant’s Law says that anything that can blow out of a boat will blow out of a boat when
it is being trailered. The last step before you head down the driveway should be to climb
aboard the boat and look things over.
Hatch lids are notorious for disappearing if they’re not hinged in place. Loose cushions
also take wing, never to be seen again. Life jackets and cooler tops, or even whole coolers
if empty, also disappear regularly.
Tie everything down or stow it in a secured box to avoid any problems. (Bungee cords are
great for this—buy a dozen of them and keep them on board your boat.) Even heavy
objects like anchors can leap right out of the boat on a rough road. Don’t give things a
chance to go wrong—make sure everything is secure before starting out.
Maneuvering Your Trailer
Backing a trailer is a challenge almost equivalent to docking a boat. The way to learn it is
to practice—at home, not at a crowded boat ramp late on a Sunday afternoon.
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