You Ever Feel Dumber Than Dirt ?

[OBT]

Boat Launch fail:

Early in the year and first trip out. Backed the boat down the ramp watching for where the water reaches the 'magic spot' on the wheel wells so the boat will come off nice and easy.

I kept watching and kept backing and nothing was changing. I'm thinking, "maybe the water levels lower than I thought" and "Maybe somebody dumped a load of rock and gravel onto the ramp preventing me from getting the boat and trailer in deep enough to launch.

Then I thought, "Maybe I ought to pull the trailer back out and take a look at the ramp" I did just that and noticed nothing was in the water and the water level was fine.

Then I turned toward the boat..... Oops! There's the problem! I'd forgotten to release the back straps on the trailer and it had just been hanging under the floating boat making it look like the water had been shallow. After a momentary feeling of "Dumber than Dirt" I went fishing and had a great "first day" of the season.

[RangrSkipr]

I can honestly say I've never forgotten the plug, the kill switch or left the trailer straps on. I do have an incurable talent for forgetting to remove the steering lock blocks though. Buddy backs me off the trailer, put the boat in reverse and no steering as I'm usually headed to the dock in a way I don't want.

I can tell you that if you have a remote plug and your buddy says he closed it, double check it. Ya gotta click it! Yeah it results in a slow leak, but by the time you notice it you'll have water coming up from the floor drain. Ask me how I know this. Bilge pump check good

[ScottCook]

It was a bad day fishing. everything just piled on to piss me off.

Loaded the boat, told the wife to pull up and heard an awful grind as she did. Forgot to tilt the motor up and the ramp ate a bit of the skeg.

[dbs1]

I've done almost all of these. Maybe the best was forgetting the drain plug on a solo trip to Powell and a 60 mile drive up lake. After fishing for a few hours and the auto bilge starts I figured it out. Water was 65 degrees and air temp 60 and dropping. Just before dark I decided to cure it and stripped down naked and hand backed the boat up as far as I could and still couldn't reach that darn plug and gave up.
While trying to sleep I listened to the auto bilge going about every 1/2 hour and around midnight stripped down and tried it again, being concerned about dead batteries the next morning. Ooohhh yeah. Cold bathtub water. Still couldn't convince myself to go all the way under in 6' of water and had to admit defeat. The impetus to a remote plug!
Boat started the next day and I got back safely, which was better then several years prior in the same area finding a 75 year old guy in a 14' tin boat and a new 15hp engine sitting down in 8' of water and him in his nothings and beer cans scattered everywhere.

I retrieved the engine and the rangers towed him back to his very upset wife who he promised to not run up the lake. Yikes!

[RangrSkipr]

I've done almost all of these. Maybe the best was forgetting the drain plug on a solo trip to Powell and a 60 mile drive up lake. After fishing for a few hours and the auto bilge starts I figured it out.

How did you fish for a few hours before the bilge pump started pumping? It doesn't take long to fill a boat when the plug is not installed and should have been quite obvious before you left the dock.

[Lil Mo]

Motor wouldn’t even click-nothing when I turned the key. Thinking it was the battery and I tried jumper cables from the troll batteries-still nothing. I sat behind the console and realized it was still IN GEAR! Damn it!

[geodebasser]

I just smashed my Ultrex head on the dock. I have a new plastic bottom coming in so I can repair the mess I just made. Never have done that before. The dock had metal posts that stuck up five feet on each side of the end. It grabbed the trolling motor.

[ChooChooSnakeMan]

Trying not to wake my wife in the dark hours of the early morning, I dress for work in the dim light of our closet. Not once, but twice, I’ve driven 45 minutes to my downtown office only to discover I was wearing one black shoe and one brown shoe. Talk about feeling dumb as dirt, I was wearing proof for all the world to see.

Your post brought back a memory from 10 years ago. I am a pilot and I was flying myself and another guy to Ft. Worth Texas. I had to get up really, really early to check the weather on our course and file a flight plan and get to airport to pre-flight so I was trying to not disturb my wife. I dressed and headed to the airport. We blasted off on schedule and had a great flight. I landed and since it was for an airshow and pilot's convention we had to park the plane in the grass. A guy came out with a van to pick us up. As soon as he walked up to me he smiled and smirked, "you know you have a brown shoe and a black one". I just shook my head and thankfully I had brought another pair so all was good.

[FishinBuck07]

Yep Sunday morning for sure, launched the boat tried to start the motor and it wouldn't start. It would start to turn over and then would stop. Brand new boat and motor. Was a little hot, then looked down and realized my kill switch tether had popped out and flip the kill switch. Amazing how fast she started up once I flipped the switch back to run! Haha

[Sheperd80]

Tried to get on pad with the trolling motor down. A big V of water jetted over the bow nailing me and my wife and soaking the deck.

My buddy was in his boat a few feet away and said he couldnt believe that fortex shaft didnt snap the way it bent.

[SoonerFan]

Your post brought back a memory from 10 years ago. I am a pilot and I was flying myself and another guy to Ft. Worth Texas. I had to get up really, really early to check the weather on our course and file a flight plan and get to airport to pre-flight so I was trying to not disturb my wife. I dressed and headed to the airport. We blasted off on schedule and had a great flight. I landed and since it was for an airshow and pilot's convention we had to park the plane in the grass. A guy came out with a van to pick us up. As soon as he walked up to me he smiled and smirked, "you know you have a brown shoe and a black one". I just shook my head and thankfully I had brought another pair so all was good.

Well, that brings back a funny memory of mine… When I was in college, I had the dream job working at a record store. It was run by an old couple who had run it for decades. One day the famous OU defensive back, LeRoy Selmon, came into the store. Mrs. Wilcox was helping him find something when she noticed that he was wearing one black shoe and one brown shoe of a completely different style. So here’s this little old 4 foot 10 Jewish lady that Selmon could grab up and eat for a snack says, “Look at you….you have two different color shoes on”. I think everyone that heard her was afraid for her life. He just gave out a big laugh that got everyone in the store in on the laugh.

[BMCD]

if your married, you understand the OPs comment, or if you have teenage kids. Then there is the actually doing dumb stuff.

[Optimax225]

Years ago i had my first boat at the lake all excited to go fishing. It was a 1985 tracker with a 9.9 Johnny. Just had it serviced and the mechanic (very well trusted in our area) said it ran like a champ now that he looked at it and tuned it up. Get boat off the trailer and tied to the dock. boat wont start. turns over great but will not fire. I'm trying the choke, pump primer ball and so on. Will not start. and old man comes along and says "it sounds like that thing isn't getting any gas. Maybe check the fuel line and make sure its connected." Sure enough the damn fuel line was disconnected from the engine and i didn't notice. Connected it, pumped primer ball, and she fired right up and it did run like a champ. My dumber than dirt moment.

[Fish Whisperer]

Lets see,
Kill switch.
Back straps.
Plug.
Dead battery.
Trolling motor down.
Hit a rock under water.
Etc... Done them all.
I haven't seen anyone say they launched their boat and not tell the friend who went fishing for the first time to hold the rope. Launched, pulled forward. And realized I never actually told the person with me to hold the rope. Watching the boat drift away in October. Start stripping down to go after the rope. At least I didn't have to swim for it. Only chest deep. October water is COLD in CT.

[bass rats]

My latest. Fishing on a time limit. Came flying home. Back the trailer in the drive. Grab the cover. Go to step over the trailer tongue. Front foot catches and do a face plant onto the concrete. Get the front part of the cover hooked up on one side. Going back over the tongue to the other side and my front foot catches and do another face plant onto the concrete. I hear someone laughing. I look over and my neighbors sitting on the front porch just rolling in laughter. I felt pretty clumsy.

[bpicinc]

I guess I'm only half dummer than dirt! I only left 1 boat buckle hooked to the boat!

[wmitch2]

I rebuilt a 1987 Ranger 372 in the late 80's. Removed everything inside, windshields, trolling motor, gas tanks, dash, helm, anything that would come off. Sanded and repainted and clear coat, new seats, new carpet, repaint trailer, and new bunks. Looked fantastic !! Got it all done, looked great, finishing touches the night before a tournament. Partner starts to back me down, has to stop suddenly due to some fool pulling out not watching where he is going. Boat slides back on the NEW carpet and NEW paint !! Luckily, the Skagg stopped it from coming all the way off !! Bunch of guys help push/lift it back on enough to get the wench strap on and on the bunks enough to get the skagg off the ground !! WHEW !! So, we idle around with the trolling motor until blast off. I take off, jumps right up on plane, shoot straight across the lake, turn the wheel to the LEFT to go to our first stop, the Boat TURNS TO THE RIGHT !!! WTF ???? Seems, I had put the Rack and Pinion steering on the helm UPSIDE DOWN !!! Tried to just turn opposite directions for a couple of hours, but my OCD wasn't allowing that, lol !! Ended up spending 30 min re-installing the Rack and Pinion !! Well, the rest of the day went pretty well. We had a pretty good sack. (Oh yeah, there's more !!) We'd run quite a ways on one tank, so I switched over to the other not wanting to run out, gave it the gas to go on plane, and Spit, Sputter, Cough, Gag, DIE !!! CRAP !!! It just would not run on that tank !! Time was short, so switched back, hit it, up on plane !! We came thru the 5 mph bouy's and it DIED. Got our fish weighed, (4th Place) loaded the boat with the trolling motor, and headed home. SO, next day started checking things. Hose, Switch, Valve, every thing was working right, then on a whim (HA HA ) I drained some of the gas from that tank into a glass jar and lo and behold, WATER in the gas !!! Apparently, the guy who steamed the tanks for me hadn't drained that tank completely !!! SHEESH !!! Well, I got everything fixed and back together and ran the rest of the season with no more mishaps !!!

[dbs1]

A the Lone Ranger that day it probably pumped out whilst I was parking the truck. Then on the ride for an hour up the lake it wasn't noticed. Then a few times before dark I thought it was the ice melting. It took laying in that sleeping bag listening to it firing off every 20 minutes for my mind to realize I'd never put the plug in. Dang.

[pavi69]

I cranked my boat for the first time this spring . It cranked right up so I sat to let it warm up . Then it stop running went dead . Motor would then turn over but not crank . I looked for primer blub but could not find it . So I took boat to shop . Shop called next day said your boat is ready . The primer blub needed squeezing This is how I feel dumber than Dirt !

Next time you find the primer blub, use a zip tie to tie it so the arrow points up. Pump it up and you will never have to pump it again until it goes bad.

[375VTROCKET]

How did you fish for a few hours before the bilge pump started pumping? It doesn't take long to fill a boat when the plug is not installed and should have been quite obvious before you left the dock.

I agree my bilge came on once even before the boat even cleared the trailer. I had left the plug out.