I was working on my Motorcycle, then went for a ride. Then realized I'd done like 8 wheelies with the front axle finger-tight.
Can I still be a sailor?
First boat was a runabout...
Put the dog in the boat (tied leash to cleat so he wouldn't follow me back to the truck), launch the boat, park the
trailer and wonder why dog is standing on the bow (bad dog!) oh look, the boat's full of water cuz I forgot the drain
plug. doh, good boy, sorry I almost drowned you there buddy!
Same boat, had a REALLY loud '68 merc 65 on it. Replaced it with a
honda 20.
had a great day amazed at how quiet it was and I swear it had more
power. Back to boat launch got
trailer loaded up dog and didn't bother with the rear straps cus my house is only like 5 blocks from
ramp, and it was busy at
ramp so I didn't want to hold anyone up. At home I put on the straps and realize the engine's been running w/o water for 10 or 15 minutes. Damn thing was quiet
My truck got stolen, couldn't lock the door for like a year and a half I lived with it. Then I finally got it fixed. but I digress...
Same little 14' boat, decide I'm gonna catch me a halibut. Not quite realizing what a 40 or 60# halibut ACTUALLY is.
Anyhow, I wake up at 0-dark thirty and drive three hours from Tacoma to
Point Wilson (Wikipedia)
Get there, launch boat, no dog cuz you know, he's too big with him AND the giant halibut I'm gonna catch.
Load up and no key to boat. Look all over for it. nada. I vaguely remember that the key seemed loose like it didn't really engage, so out of desperation I use my truck key and turn the key from "on" to "start" and walla it fires right up!
So I go fishin, turn the motor from 'run' to "off" AKA "Lock" go to start motor and realize that the lock does in fact
work, and I break my truck ignition key off in the lock.
So I think about my options, I could call vessell assist, but they are gonna charge me like $300 and I'm broke cuz I just fixed my stupid truck. *lightbulb* Oh crap, it's now locked and I have no key. so, *best case* I can't get home. I have a cell and a
radio so first I call my Girlfriend and say "um... After work in Rush hour traffic I sort of need you to ride the
ferry from Seattle" Strangely she was not amused.
So then I consider calling Coast guard on the
radio, but I'm pretty sure they are going to want to know where I am (dunno) and why in the hell I'm in a 14' boat in a notoriously dangerous piece of water. We'll call that "plan B'
SO I call my
honda dealer, and say "yeah, so um... how do you hotwire one of them there honda's you guys sell?"
other end gets real quiet. Clerk says "Um, well, Uh... Why?"
"Well, see, um I'm out on the boat floating around, and dropped the key
overboard and
lost it"
"Sir, how'd you lose a floating key?" stupid honda thinks of everything
I get out my plastic
fishing pliers and take apart the
control box. Get the thing totally apart except ONE damn bolt that I can't budge.
So then I take my fillet knife and I have the control cable in a loop ready to cut, and I pause for a moment to think "This is going to be expensive"
So then I realize there's a
plug in the cable, I yanked out a bit of nav light wire and started poking around. first try ZAP! yeah, that's not it. Second try it fires right up and keeps on running. Yay! I actually considered staying out and
fishing, but eventually thought better of it and decided to head back. The waves were TERRIBLE and I had to go super slow, got to the ramp right at sunset (good thing I didn't need that light I guess)
GF still not amused.
The next day I clean up the boat and find the key in the pocket of the cooler.
A week later I get a bill to renew my vessel assist unlimited towing coverage that I forgot I had.
I still had to spend a hundred bucks or so to fix the lock mechanism I'd broken by hacking and beating on it.
And then right after that someone broke the window out of my truck to steal my
gps, cuz... you know now the locks work.
You'd think that's the end, right? Nope, I fix window and go on road trip, but since I just spent $300 on the window, I was too broke to get another one so I "borrow" (without telling her) the
Garmin I'd bought my girlfriend for her birthday.
Thieves break window out of unlocked truck and steal her
garmin. Girlfriend actually is amused this time, but strangely I think that's much worse.
$300 truck lock
repair
$600 (300x2) broken windows
$100 boat ignition
$300 (150x2) Garmin GPS's
$149 Vessel assist that I never did use but am damned sure never going without again.
$30 for extra keys to zip tie up under the dash & in truck
Oh, and new, way bigger boat, which required a bigger truck and I've still never caught a halibut.
Halibut is WAY cheaper at the store.