By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
As we all know, the best place to launch your boat is at a good ramp. However, we know from experience that some boats get launched unintentionally, and that is never a good thing. Most of the time this problem occurs due to improperly securing the boat on the trailer. This column will address those issues.

The Station Galveston Flotilla of the US Coast Guard Auxiliary operates out of the USCG Station Galveston base on Galveston Island. They aid the Coast Guard by providing maritime observation patrols in Galveston Bay; by providing recreational boating vessel safety checks; and by working alongside Coast Guard members in maritime accident investigation, small boat training, providing a safety zone, Aids to Navigation verification, in the galley, on the Coast Guard Drone Team and watch standing.

Pay Attention to Winch Strap Problems
Some people I know think the winch is just for pulling the boat up onto the trailer and it really doesn’t serve as a securing mechanism. If you google “boat fails” you are sure to run into pictures and videos of boats sitting on the interstate next to their trailers. That is what I mean by “unintentional launch.”

If you look at the picture above, there are two main issues. First, the eye hook locking mechanism is frozen in the open position due to rust. A rough road and a loose winch strap would allow the hook to become disengaged and allow the boat to back off the trailer. Secondly, the winch strap is worn, and that weakens the strap to the point where it could easily break in two. The rusty hook appears to be accelerating the demise of the winch strap due to the abrasive rust.

A third invisible cause of weakened winch straps is the good old sun. Ultraviolet radiation, the cause of sunburn, also has a deteriorating effect on winch straps. Salt crystals from salt water also are known to accelerate the wear of winch straps, so keep your winch strap out of the salt water and rinse the strap well with salt water if it does get immersed in salt water (this also applies to your boat lines).

Use a Safety Chain
Although the purpose of the winch strap is to hold the bow of the boat firmly on the front roller, sometimes winch straps break. You can add another level of security by using a safety chain. The safety chain is attached to the trailer and has a hook or D-ring that attaches to the bow eye on your boat. Like the trailer safety chains, it isn’t designed to be fully tightened. It just secures the bow in case the winch strap breaks.

Do the Tighten Up
One of my favorite R&B songs from the sixties was “Tighten Up” by Archie Bell and the Drells (from Houston, Texas, as Archie would say when introducing the band). It’s a catchy toon- google it if you haven’t heard it. The song title is some good advice. You may cinch that winch strap up so tight that the strap is tuned to A sharp and still find it loose once you pulled the boat out of the water. I have seen many boats bouncing up and down on their trailers going down the highway because the operator didn’t make that final tighten up once the boat was on level ground. If you need another analogy, remember the old westerns when a cowboy was seen putting his saddle on his horse. He would tighten up the saddle strap, wait for the horse to exhale, then make that final tighten up move. Do the same for your boat or you may look in your rear view mirror and see the boat sliding down the freeway on its keel, pulled by the rear straps.

Use Rear Straps
If you live a mile from the ramp down a smooth road, you might get lucky and be able to pull your boat back and forth without using the rear straps. But the winch strap and the rear straps are a system, and you can’t always get away with leaving out part of the system by not using the rear straps. The unintentional launch above could have been prevented if the rear of the boat had been properly strapped to the trailer. You cannot depend on the weight of your boat to hold it on the trailer.

Summary
An important part of recreational boating safety is getting your boat to and from the ramp without having an unintentional launch onto the freeway. Use good winch and rear straps always, and tighten up those straps after you pull the boat from the water.

For more information on boating safety, please visit the Official Website of the U.S. Coast Guard’s Boating Safety Division at www.uscgboating.org. Questions about the US Coast Guard Auxiliary or our free Vessel Safety Check program may be directed to me at [email protected]. SAFE BOATING!

[August-31-2021]