At my finest

Talking with buddy today about dumbest things I've done on the water, or more specifically most embarrassing. I'll share my two finest first. Growing up in Arkansas Guido was always my idol fishing. At my fitrst Bassmaster tournament back in 94 I realized Guido was in the line to launch behind me. I guess I got a little excited and dumped it in the water. Cranked the big motor and when I put it in reverse i heard this awful metal on metal sound. Guido had just floated off beside me and looks over and says "son I believe that's your transom saver"...totally destroyed the arm, what's worse part of it that was bungee'd to the lower unit stayed connected and I had to get wet to get it off.... My second one was at Rayburn, dumped it in the water and ran up to Buck, dropped the trolling motor, wouldn't work, screwed with it for about 20 minutes, took front panel off to check wiring, finally just lost it and turned the air blue cursing, dog cussing the guys that had serviced the boat earlier in the week and what the &$??9 they had done to screw up my trolling motor. Then i realized there was a boat just behind me, it was Bryan Landers with his teenage daughter in the boat. He suggested maybe they had flipped off the trolling motor breaker....

We've all had those days when it's just not going our way. Seems like for me it usually involves the trolling motor or the trailer.
Then other times everything falls into place and you catch that big one and those issues were just small annoyances

Was in a draw tourney, my non asked if I would like some sunscreen. Was when the spray first came out. Put a real nice coat on my Costa's.

I launched my boat in February solo,( water temps around 46-47 degrees ), and for some reason I decided that was a good day to unstrap the bow hook prior to launching. And of course I was the only one at the ramp, at the time.

That was a cold 40 yard swim

Couple of years ago, I decided I was going to start wearing my life jacket while the motor was running. I also decided I would connect the kill switch to the life jacket so I would be Mr. Safety on the water. I fished all day putting my life jacket on and taking it off off each time I started/stopped the motor. I roll up to the dock at the end of the day, go and back my truck down the ramp, jump back in the boat to load it up and my motor wouldn't start. I cranked on that sucker for awhile and knew something was wrong because it always starts in about .5 seconds.

Sure enough, a guy had to ask me of my kill switch was attached. [censored]!!! Felt like an idiot. I've owned boats since 1992 and that was the second time a kill switch got me. The other time it looked like it was attached, but it wasn't pushed all the way in.

I did the same at fork one day except I cleaned my battery connections, got jumpers out and put it on trailer using the trolling motor.....

My dad's friend bought a boat a few weeks ago and couldn't get it to start the first time he tried to take it out. Spent 3 weekends working on it and couldn't figure out what was wrong with it. I suggested he check the kill switch and sure enough it fired right up lol.

I did the same thing with the breaker for the trolling motor batteries... except I was a new boat owner and didn't know that they had breakers on the terminals... I was at Amistad and put the boat on the trailer and went to see Jerry the trolling motor guy and he "educated" me.

Kill switch, has gotten me twice.
Ran one tank out of gas, couldn't get it started back up for over an hour, then realized not only did I have to flip the electrical tank switch but also the manual valve switch.
And then there is the dreaded - forgot to put the plug in. That one has gotten me about 3 times.

Several years ago I was going crappie fishin on a really cold day, it was about 30 degrees. I went through my routine making sure I put the plug in and everything and put the boat in the water. When I gassed it and tried to get on plane the nose would go up an wouldn’t come back down. I tried several times with the same result. I kept thinking, “I know I put the plug in” I was 100% sure of it. Then I looked down and saw the water in the drain hole in the floor. I don’t know why but I thought it would be a good idea but I stripped down to my underwear and jumped in with a plug. I got to feeling around and sure enough I felt the plug in it. I climbed back in and went to the ramp as fast as I could and backed the trailer in and got the boat pulled out. I had put the plug in the livewell drain. I had a lot of years fishin out of the boat and not once had that ever happened. I went home and dried off and changed clothes and went back out and caught a limit of crappie in a couple hours.

I tried to put the boat on the trailer with the trolling motor deployed. I couldn't figure out why the boat wouldn't slide up onto the trailer like always. So I backed up 10 feet and come in with some throttle.

You know how Minn Kota says their shafts are unbreakable? Well, I've give them credit for that. But they sure as heck aren't unbendable!

I finally realized what was going on, but the trolling motor was wedged into the trailer. I had to jump out in knee deep water, lift the bow up to get the bent trolling motor unhooked and deployed and load the boat on the trailer.

Meanwhile, a guy and his wife were just watching from the courtesy dock 30 yards away. At least they weren't laughing. But I was awfully embarrassed.

Had the up fuze block on the trim go out at the ramp and was working with it to manually tilt it up when another fisherman switched out the down block for the up block in front of about 50 people. Lesson learned.

See, if you'd attended WAWI's School of Quick Launch, you'd have known you can't do that unless there's another boat in the water willing to take you there.

Putting the boat on the trailer at Otay Lake in San Diego not long after we bought it. I backed the truck down and my partner was driving up to the trailer when I saw the trolling motor still down. I started honking the horn and waving my arm. He cocked his head looking at me like a dog but never slowed up and bent that shaft like a big dog when it hit the trailer. That was ugly...

Day 3 of a huge 3 day team tournament, we are sitting pretty and just have that feeling today is our day. My partner meets me at my house, loads all his stuff in the boat, hop in the truck and head to the ramp. Talking strategy, feeling like we are brilliant with a 6 pound lead and had been saving fish for 2 days. Make it about 6 miles down the road in pitch dark and I realize my trailer lights aren't working, pull over to check the connection. Before I ever get out of the truck my partner says, "Maybe we should have brought the boat." Followed by, " You know, we have fished pretty well for 2 days but you're doing it wrong now." That was 15 years ago and he never, ever fails to bring it up -every- freakin' -single -time we start heading to the lake.

Bwahahahahaha.....now I coulda expected that out of a Texan, but Okie? Come on, now.....there's got to be more to this story.

lol I love this post... launched my buddy's boat where his dad was already on the water. Start fishing next to him as the boat slowly takes on water. He just looked at us like the idiots we were and asked if we put the plug in... also went duck hunting one day and forgot my shotgun... ducks were happy

Cracking up visualizing someone trying to force their boat on the trailer with the trolling motor down. We all have our moments

Winner!

You know how old I am bro, I have had time to pull every stupid move there is at one time or another.

Dang that's a rough story...

As for the kill switch, I don't think you've been fishing long enough if you haven't pulled the boat out of the water and started diagnosing your motor without a kill switch engaged at least once.

I "accidently on purpose" handed my wife's friend Crawfish Bang spray thinking it was Off.

Either way it was genius and I plan to use it.

I've done so many bone headed things I'll have to pick one.

One morning me & a buddy rush to Twok to try to get on the water before daybreak. I had this old 15' Duckhawk with stick steering. My transom savers were two pieces of 1/2" rope. We get to the ramp and I tell him to get his side of the transom ties off and I start unhooking the bow. I run back there and untie my side of the transom and jump in the boat. I throw a few things from the car into the boat. I jump in the boat and yell for him to start backing me down.

He gets me in the water and bumps the brakes. The boat starts to slide off and I motion for him to pull out. Motor starts right up. He jumps in my hotrod El Camino with the stereo blaring and hits the gas. He literally drags the boat by the starboard side rope up onto the ramp... Backwards... Halfway up onto the ramp! I can still hear the sound of crunching metal and scraping fiberglass.

The lower unit on my 55 Sea King snaps off even with the bottom of the boat and the driveshaft is bent in an L-shape.

We are at Cedar Cove Landing and of course now we are blocking the entire ramp with my boat half out of the water sideways on the ramp.

Of course its a Saturday morning and several other boaters show up wanting to launch. Me & my buddy are standing there scratching our heads trying to figure out what to do next. It takes six of us to push the rig off the ramp into the water. We back the trailer in again and get the boat floated up onto the trailer.

Not long after I graduated from college I was working for a big real estate firm. Strategically kept my Tuesday afternoon clear for a sneak off trip to super hot Gibbons Creek that afternoon. That morning one of the partners asked if we could meet that afternoon at 3:00. Me and my secretary scrambled moving Wednesday afternoon meetings up to that afternoon. Got it done, and I'm going tomorrow! Next day, blew out at noon, hooked the Skeeter to the old Blazer and hauled tail. Hour and a half later I skidded up to the gate to read the sign that basically said: Gibbon's Creek is not open on Wednesday, never has been, and never will. You knew it, and you, sir, are an idiot"!!!!

Not me, but a friend of mine who borrowed my boat backed into the driveway, hooked up, shut the garage and hit the gas... I couldn't go fishing because I had to work, so I let him take the boat. Next thing I know I wake up to the loudest bang I've ever heard at 4 am. Rattled my house, I jump out of bed and can't figure out what the heck I had heard. I'm ninja stealthing around my house trying to see if someone kicked in my door or something, but never could find the source. Oh well, back to bed. Wake up later and walk out into the garage and there it is, the electrical socket was a little sideways, my buddy forgot to unplug the boat and dragged the extension cord out of the wall and under the garage. He said it wasn't a very long cord anymore when he realized what had happened at the boat ramp.

I was fishing up north, gin clear water in a jon boat at night.. I had paddled out a bit and realized I forgot the rods.. (first dumb thing). As we got close to shore, I looked in the water with a head lamp and it looked shallow enough to hop over and walk the boat to the ramp. Well, my depth perception was wayyy off... I jumped over the side and bloop... way over my head. lol.

Second dumb thing, had a bunch of spinnerbaits on top of the rod locker. Went to get a new rod and flung all of them into the lake ouch...

And this one I do a lot... put the live well on fill and forget it and it overflows and I end up having to bilge water out for 20 minutes lol

I thought the winner thus far was the TM down tying to put it on the trailer...but did you really head to the lake without the boat??

Oh and Dude I drug my cord at Grand Costa just a month ago!

I’ll share another that was not me, but I witnessed. Several years ago at BFL regional we were in Arkansas. Made the top 12 cut and partner is putting his stuff in my boat that morning. Another of the top 12 comes hauling into the parking lot, going significantly too fast as I guess he thought he was late. Cuts a corner too tight and jerks the trailer over a squared off curb. Bounces everything into the air blows both tires on port side of trailer and ruins front wheel on trailer. Was awful sight and sound

Had the Beater Skeeter skinned back one day all of sudden engine dies , crank no start , continues , boats are flying by waving pointing back , I’m ignoring , still cranking no start , pissed , finally look back , life jacket inflated, lanyard w / kill key attached about 50 yards back , bouncing in water , did not have jacket on but had kill switch hooked up , bout ran battery down .

At the TTT event at Ray Roberts the other day when we idled in to weigh our fish I saw a guy wearing an inflatable life jacket idling in with us.... and it was inflated. Anybody know who that was or the story?