Advice for solo launching?

Launching can often be the easiest part. Recovery can be a killer on a hot
Sunday, with lots of people launching and recovering. I've made a couple of
additions to the trailers for my two Carolina Skiffs. ( 16 and a 17 footer).

1. I added PVC poles in the stern. Nothing like their assistance when trying
to position a boat on a trailer.
2. I cut up and added PVC lattice onto my carpeted bunks. Now.... the boats
slide on and off easily. Rollers are not recommended for foam-filled CS
skiffs, so the sliders, made of lattice, are a good alternative.
3. I bought an extendable boat hook.

With the assistance of the PVC uprights and the PVC lattice on the bunks...,
I point her at the trailer, power her in and she slides in, right up to the
bow stop. If I am on a "no power loading" ramp, I use the same procedure
but kill the engine far away from the dock. The boat still moves forward on
her own momentum, and partially slides up the PVC lattice-covered bunks. I
have a boat -hook extended and ready at all times.

For launching...

I added a very long "launching rope, and I wrapped a couple of bungee cords
around the top of the PVC poles I thread the launching rope from the
forward cleat, back the length of the boat; into and out of the bungees
(with just a free-loop) and then tie the launching line onto a cleat on the
dock. Back her in; stop; pop the boat off; let her drag line out past the
bungee loop ( which pulls off freely by itself) and go park the vehicle,
......or I get out quickly and pull the boat up and re-tie it on the backside
of the dock if necessary.

harder to describe, than to do..
--
RichG manager, Carolina Skiff Owners Group on MSN
http://groups.msn.com/CarolinaSkiffOwners
..