Fell off bow and hit by prop

tc410 said:
My wife is on the bow every time we approach a dock. But to answer this question, no, I NEVER let my wife throw a line. Driving the boat is my job. And if I can’t get the boat up to the dock, under complete control, so she can HAND the line to the dock attendant, then I have no business driving a boat.

As for the OP’s thread, I’m with the others here that suggest there’s more to the story. This is not the outcome of a slow speed dock maneuver.
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I agree. Best way to dock the boat is slow and easy. I can nudge the boat up to the dock and only then is anyone allowed to hand or grab a line.
 
Woody said:
You never let your wife throw a line?
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Absolutely NOT! If she can't hand someone a line from INSIDE the boat, then my docking job was not done right. If wind or current is strong enough where throwing a line is the only way, then I throw the line, NO ONE ELSE!
I really don't understand the captain that sits back and drives the boat and has the wife do all the work in docking.
 
When I dock, the only time I need any help whatsoever us when there is a current or significant wind. Typically, the wind/current are negligible, and the boat just doesn’t move fast enough for me not to have enough time to tie off stern and bow while everyone just sits around and enjoys the day. Before I get to the marina, I put it in N, grab 2 dock lines. Drive to the slip, Put it in, kill any momentum, then disembark, tie up. Done. With current/wind, someone else will disembark and tie up, I will use the engines/thruster to maintain position. I never need bow access until after the mid and stern cleats are tied. Once that happens, boat isn’t going anywhere. I never set up spring lines and stuff like that until after we have secured the boat. Basically, I redo all the dock lines to take into account tides, etc, after we are all tied up, engines off, etc. granted, a boat with single engine is another story. It was much, much harder to dock my 23’ deck boat than it is to dock my 32’ cruiser.
 
Well ya'll must be in calmer waters than we are. My wife steps off the front with the bow line. I'll grab the dock with a pole and pull the stern in, then step off and put the dock lines on. 75% of the time the wind is a pushing us away from our slip. If it isn't my wife it's a friend helping. Definitely a 2 person operation.
 
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Black Valkyrie said:
Well ya'll must be in calmer waters than we are. My wife steps off the front with the bow line. I'll grab the dock with a pole and pull the stern in, then step off and put the dock lines on. 75% of the time the wind is a pushing us away from our slip.
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That's how we dock. When approaching the dock, my wife or daughter scoots on their butts to flip the fender (s) & attach the line. I use the rule; 'never approach the dock faster than you want to hit it'. So I'm really slow. 2mph or slower.

However, while under way, no one is ever allowed on the bow....ever

good thread
 
A lot of the posts are from people with relatively smaller boats. My 400 Sedan Bridge (with a fly bridge) is a 2 person boat for docking. There simply is no way I can get from the bridge to hop off and tie ropes quick enough.
I brief a "mate" before we depart on how to secure a line on the mid and rear cleat and have them hand the lines to someone on the dock. I don't have thrusters so I stay at the helm and remain in control until the boat is secured. After that I will add spring lines and retie the boat as necessary.
 
Most marinas will send staff to your slip to catch lines and help you in (if you ask). No need for your crew to do anything dangerous. I can solo dock my 330 unless the wind is really cooking (we are lucky to not have current) so I just ask guests to stay seated and out of my way while docking. My wife has MS so no climbing on the bow for her, and no need to.

There is an exception though. When we are rafting up, you do need someone on the bow to toss/catch lines between boats.
 
Creekwood said:
Most marinas will send staff to your slip to catch lines and help you in (if you ask). No need for your crew to do anything dangerous. I can solo dock my 330 unless the wind is really cooking (we are lucky to not have current) so I just ask guests to stay seated and out of my way while docking. My wife has MS so no climbing on the bow for her, and no need to.

There is an exception though. When we are rafting up, you do need someone on the bow to toss/catch lines between boats.
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That's laughable. Definitely NOT at my marina and none that I can think of anywhere near me. You're on your own, baby! Just be happy you have a slip. Slips are at negative vacancy here. Slips are worth more than the boat lol.
 
Same here. No dockhands anywhere around us but if others are on the dock they come to help but no hired help to call into. Wife waits until I am next to the dock stopped and in neutral then jumps off to grab the dockline and attach the rear. I back into a finger slip so we are good after that
 
We had something happen a couple weeks ago that has changed my feelings on being on the swim platform. We were docking and as my wife stepped off onto the dock her foot caught in the loop of a PFD that was hanging off a cleat on the back of the boat. She ended up swinging around forward and her face slammed into the boat then she dropped on the dock. I knew something was wrong because the sound was not right. No one else on the boat had any idea that something had gone wrong. We were still in motion, but very slow and the motors were still running. This was around midnight and could have been a lot worse. she said she feels like she cracked a rib. No alcohol, was not a factor. She normally puts things away before we dock but we had company and thought she would do it later.
 
Seevee said:
Absolutely NOT! If she can't hand someone a line from INSIDE the boat, then my docking job was not done right. If wind or current is strong enough where throwing a line is the only way, then I throw the line, NO ONE ELSE!
I really don't understand the captain that sits back and drives the boat and has the wife do all the work in docking.
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This reminds me of a time I was sitting on my boat when a transient came in alongside. Being a little windy that day he was having some trouble. He was being blown off the dock, stern against a piling, and bow bumping on my boat. He was a manly man no doubt, because his woman was sitting in the cockpit where she belonged.

I had to set my beer down, go up on my bow to hold off his boat. He was at such an angle I suggested he work the stern toward the dock and have her flip a line over a cleat. Apparently that was an affront to his manly captaining skills because he didn't do it. Another boater came on the dock and hollered to him to throw a line, he did, and it was soon over.

The thing is none of this had to happen at all. I watched him coming in, I thought he was doing fine, it looked like he knew what he was doing and for a second or two that boat was right aside the dock. There was time for his wife to get a line on a dock cleat if a line and herself would have been ready. There was not enough time for him to do it.
 
Manly Man . Love it. My wife’s is not afraid of anything and helps when needed. Including lines.
 
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Todd320 said:
When I dock, the only time I need any help whatsoever us when there is a current or significant wind. Typically, the wind/current are negligible, and the boat just doesn’t move fast enough for me not to have enough time to tie off stern and bow while everyone just sits around and enjoys the day. Before I get to the marina, I put it in N, grab 2 dock lines. Drive to the slip, Put it in, kill any momentum, then disembark, tie up. Done. With current/wind, someone else will disembark and tie up, I will use the engines/thruster to maintain position. I never need bow access until after the mid and stern cleats are tied. Once that happens, boat isn’t going anywhere. I never set up spring lines and stuff like that until after we have secured the boat. Basically, I redo all the dock lines to take into account tides, etc, after we are all tied up, engines off, etc. granted, a boat with single engine is another story. It was much, much harder to dock my 23’ deck boat than it is to dock my 32’ cruiser.
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Our 268 with a single 7.4 can be a challenge our wind is typically blowing us away drink the dock and my neighbor has an expensive boat that I don't want to touch lol. We manage and hadn't touched yet . One thing illbdo is take off canvas to let the wind out off the sail if it us at all significant
 
I had my wife give the center pylon a little extra push just yesterday as we came in. She then hopped off to toss a bow line on. I'd consider myself "competent" at docking these days and still prefer having an extra set of hands....always.

I guess the flip side of this whole argument could be that you must be "really, really" bad at docking if you're so out of control that you worry about having your first mate up on the bow? :) Only kidding...mostly.

Some folks show a training video each time they push off and have their passengers sign liability waivers upon embarkation. Nothing wrong with that. But that's not my style...
 
Creekwood said:
Most marinas will send staff to your slip to catch lines and help you in (if you ask). No need for your crew to do anything dangerous. I can solo dock my 330 unless the wind is really cooking (we are lucky to not have current) so I just ask guests to stay seated and out of my way while docking. My wife has MS so no climbing on the bow for her, and no need to.

There is an exception though. When we are rafting up, you do need someone on the bow to toss/catch lines between boats.
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This is the kind of post that I have been pointing out, I doubt if "most" marinas have staff 24/7 and in my part of the world few have even day staff catching lines. Much of the time we don't even have help at the gas docks.

I would never presume to tell folks that deal with tides the way I tie my boat is the right way, I don't have that experience. The same applies to the on the bow while docking. If your situation doesn't require a person up front good for you but blanket statements fail to actually cover...

MM
 
MonacoMike said:
This is the kind of post that I have been pointing out, I doubt if "most" marinas have staff 24/7 and in my part of the world few have even day staff catching lines. Much of the time we don't even have help at the gas docks.

I would never presume to tell folks that deal with tides the way I tie my boat is the right way, I don't have that experience. The same applies to the on the bow while docking. If your situation doesn't require a person up front good for you but blanket statements fail to actually cover...

MM
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Wow. For some reason this post is hitting a nerve with you guys. No point adding to it so I’ll leave you to it.
 
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