Hit and Run at Wolfeboro Town Dock

[wynndog]

As someone that just took the class , I was very suprised I wasn't even IN A BOAT! Don't you think a little docking skill would be taught?

[Rusty]

If you aren't an honest person, there isn't any class that you can take that will make you any different.
I think that is what this thread is all about.

[Rangervx]

#2...are you high??? when my daughter was 2...she made more sense...

[ursa minor]

To the OP, so sorry that a nice day trip ended up this way. Sadly, we've had the same thing happen in Wolfeboro. I'm not sure why someone would think it's OK to hit a boat and leave, if they did the same thing in a car they would probably think twice and at least leave a note. I've learned to go way in where the less experienced are unlikely to try to tie up. Can't even tell you how many times we've watched people in very expensive boats playing "bumper cars" while attempting to dock, you would think if they can afford an expensive boat they would get some instructions on how to handle it as well.

[4 for Boating]

Sorry to hear about your hit and run > the offender should have left some contact into.

To digress:
Wolfboro, given the spacing, is sometimes a tough place docking even for the experienced boater I think. Go all the way in and you’re safe from most bumping but have to back all the way out and if the wind is kicking, it’s tricky. Grab a spot on the end of the dock and it’s easy in and out but it’s right where all boats coming and going need to pass by.

We have a relatively smaller boat so we don’t have too much difficulty but we have visited a few times where two larger/wider boats occupied the outer slips across from each other and it almost looked impossible to squeeze past to get to the slips closer in.

Sans the crowd, hard to beat the Meredith docks, they are so wide in-between that you can spin the whole boat around 360 degrees if need be.

[brk-lnt]

Originally Posted by wynndog

As someone that just took the class , I was very suprised I wasn't even IN A BOAT! Don't you think a little docking skill would be taught?

Yes and no.
You could say that the purpose of the class is to teach you the regulations and the "rules of the road". The logical conclusion would be to understand that knowing the basics doesn't mean you're ready to just dive directly into boating on a high traffic weekend. You should spent some time on a quiet day getting familiar with handling your boat in different conditions and scenarios. Basically build up, just the same way you (hopefully) didn't get your drivers license and then attempt to drive cross-country in a snow storm pulling a trailer.

Of course it seems that people (not necessarily referring to you) think that a plastic card earned after a few hours of instruction and not flunking a simple multiple-choice test makes them ready for heavy action.