ok, had an oops moment.... well i didnt but the old man did

[symondo]

Woke up, sunny day, yep lets do some boating....

The parents stayed on the boat last night so we were meeting them at the marina

Got there, just as they were coming from the swinging line to the pontoon where another boat was moored.

1st approach went a bit squint so tried again however a slight breeze caught the side and in short i had to stand on a pontoon and watch another boats anchor place itself through our stanchions and window.

Ouch.

Luckily no one was hurt. Lost a portable vhf over the side with the impact. The moored boat obviously wasnt best pleased but after sorting thier ropes and getting our boat moored, got everyone to talk and inspect the damage.

Sadly we put a small scuff and scrapes on the guys nice hull, so shall be footing the bill to sort.
My dad seemed a bit in shock so i tried to take control of the situation and got the relevant details to sort out costs and started checking our boat.

So...

Hull has a few scuff marks from the pontoon, should polish out, 1 mark where it looks like the top coat has been scraped off. Is that best to fill with epoxy, sand and re gel? Or just re apply gel coat to protect the material? Its not through to mat but im not sure how waterproof it would be to stop water ingress.

1 stanchion is loose, i can get access to the underside so hopefully and re fix and re strengthen.

1 perspex window needed

Alloy window frame, 1 part is bent. Would this pull out or is it 1 of these things that is just going to break upon trying to fix it? Can you buy sections of this frame stuff? I assume its generic? The fibreglass has a bend in it but only 1small crack which is about 1cm and looks only to be surface related, so hoping a sand and re application of a top coat may suffice. And looking at it the frame is the reason the fibreglass is bowed.

Needless to say, our 'grand day out' was spent discussing with the other boat owner, locating materials to seal the broken window and applying.

And to top it off hes bent 1 of the new oars on the tender.

But as ive said to him, from reading other posts (richmond bridge.... thanks....) it happens, no one was hurt, things can be fixed but i think it shook him up a fair bit

 

[AndieMac]

Bad luck mate, did you get any photos to post so folks could assess more accurately?

 

[powerskipper]

It does shake your confidence, knee quacking, dry sweats the lot, but its like falling of a bike, just get back out there and take it slow ,choose your time with little wind and tide . if really shaken take an experienced friend or get an instructor to come with you but do get out there.

 

[FalconSteve]

Glad to hear no one was injured. As you say the things happen to us all,mostly we get away with a close shave, but occasionally damage results. It can really shake you up I often find a large single malt helps put things in perspective ;-)

 

[symondo]

Bad luck mate, did you get any photos to post so folks could assess more accurately?

I didnt actually, was in 'fix it' mode.

Im fairly ok with the perspex and fibreglass. The metal window frame id assume should bend to put it back to how it should be with a bit of force, however if its cheap enough or accessible enough i'd maybe look to get a new length to ensure all lips and edges are straight.


Plus points i took away from today,

I didnt panic.
After sorting both boats, i seem to be able to manage ropes like i know what im supposed to be doing

It was sunny... if that counts as a plus?

 

[symondo]

The parents are staying on her again tonight, have been out down the loch since to try and chill out a bit.

I think my mrs isnt keen to go back on board until theres more confidence and handling lessons are undertaken, im waiting on my dad to took a tutor for a weekend for some lessons in handling, mooring etc... as im quite positive i dont have the skills.

 

[AndieMac]

Nobody becomes an experienced boat handler without a few bumps and bangs under their belt, there are too many anomalies involved.
As frustrating/upsetting as they are, it goes towards gaining experience. In saying this of course, having proper instruction will help to minimise future issues.

Not commenting on your own accident of course, but generally in a boat to boat scenario, if you can see an accident about to happen (especially transverse movements driven by wind or tide) often the best course is to just simply slow the impact down as much as possible without putting any part of the human anatomy in the way, rather than applying more power in an attempt to "drive" out of the situation, which can cause serious damage to the whole side of the boat rather than just one location.

 

[Murv]

Sorry to hear that, could have been far worse I guess, but still unfortunate.
I had some terrible mishaps trying to berth the first few times, luckily didn't damage anyone else's boat though, that was always my biggest fear.
After the last, particularly humiliating crash (long story) I simply didn't take the thing out any more until I'd done some training.
I did two, three hour sessions with the instructor at the marina and it was, and still is, the best money I've ever spent on the boat. Not only have I avoided any mishaps ever since, but the best thing was the huge boost in confidence. I can now take the boat out with some confidence (although I'm always nervous) compared to before when I'd seriously started to thing it wasn't for me.
I know that I will have plenty more bumps and scrapes, as above, I think there are too many variables but I have lots of fenders out and just takes things slowly.

Re your deeper mark, I'm currently in the middle of a deep repair job on mine after the bow roller was torn off in a storm. That gelcoat runs deep, personally I'd be looking to just fill with some gelcoat filler if not through to the matting. But, I have no idea what I'm talking about so see what the experts say. Good luck!

 

[symondo]

Sorry to hear that, could have been far worse I guess, but still unfortunate.
I had some terrible mishaps trying to berth the first few times, luckily didn't damage anyone else's boat though, that was always my biggest fear.
After the last, particularly humiliating crash (long story) I simply didn't take the thing out any more until I'd done some training.
I did two, three hour sessions with the instructor at the marina and it was, and still is, the best money I've ever spent on the boat. Not only have I avoided any mishaps ever since, but the best thing was the huge boost in confidence. I can now take the boat out with some confidence (although I'm always nervous) compared to before when I'd seriously started to thing it wasn't for me.
I know that I will have plenty more bumps and scrapes, as above, I think there are too many variables but I have lots of fenders out and just takes things slowly.

Re your deeper mark, I'm currently in the middle of a deep repair job on mine after the bow roller was torn off in a storm. That gelcoat runs deep, personally I'd be looking to just fill with some gelcoat filler if not through to the matting. But, I have no idea what I'm talking about so see what the experts say. Good luck!

After a bit of a talking to today, i think our plan is to fix the window and get an engineer to look at the throttle cables as he says they arent easy to get in reverse. Then book some lessons.

Before all of this, he had finally got the heater working properly by replacing the copper pipe for new along the entire length so 1 step forward, 2 steps back...

 

[Murv]

After a bit of a talking to today, i think our plan is to fix the window and get an engineer to look at the throttle cables as he says they arent easy to get in reverse. Then book some lessons.

Before all of this, he had finally got the heater working properly by replacing the copper pipe for new along the entire length so 1 step forward, 2 steps back...

That was exactly my progress for all of last Year, one step forward, two back.
But, this Year, it's been two forward, one back, so it does get better! That may sound a little negative, but it's not intended to. I've come to realise when running an older boat, that it will never actually be finished, it's just an ongoing process of maintenance and learning. And. it's an ever improving picture.
My morse controller is also misaligned, when the lever clicks into the neutral position, the drive doesn't, which has caused some embarrassment as it's not easy to tell when it's in drive or not, as a newcomer to boating.
However, I only have a small boat with single engine so I've learned to get used to it. Mostly. (I'll leave out the story from a couple of weeks back with a couple of helping hands frantically trying to fend me off the pontoon whilst I swore blind it was in neutral. It wasn't...)

The lessons i had were also very enjoyable, it was great to be able to take the boat out and practise some tricky manoeuvres with that level of expertise on board ready to jump in if things went wrong.

 

[symondo]

Now e veryone has calmed down

Yesterday - a new set of tender oars were purchased along with a new handheld radio - this time with the floating case.

Got hold of some gelcoat to sort the scuffs and maybe a few other nicks that catch the eye.

Had a chat about the frame and been told it'll definately bend back out if i take my time with no issue. So just need a window...

Should of measured it before i left but i forgot so another trip with a tape measure is required.