docking...

I take a day out or work in the middle of the week at the beginning of every season to do nothing but practice docking. I spend a good 4-6 hours on it. I use my slip, the gas dock, the pumpout dock, other marinas, private docks, nose in, stern to........I make mental and pen and paper notes of my mistakes.

At the end of the day, I'm mentally exhausted.

I for one always have to use my throttles to swing the boat fast enough into my slip. It's a tight fairway. I've seen others with different boats not have to. Both work.

You have I/O's. Your experience is going to be different than straight inboards.

Good luck.

I am not sure what I have... all I knwo is he said there were 2 185 mercruisers in it... I know little more about what that is than what I have read here.
 
Yes they will be I/O's.

Just remember not to panic, you can always abort and try again.
 
The suggestion to practice on a nice, calm, mid-week day is a good one. Spectators only add to the stress level. A couple of things to keep in mind.....

-there's no shame in taking a missed approach. Pilots do it all the time and it's much cheaper than fixing gelcoat.
-don't approach a dock any faster than you're willing to hit it.
-as you approach a dock/slip/fairway, see what the wind/current are doing and picture in your mind what effect they will have on your boat.
-If you plan your approach with the wind/current in mind, they can be your friend and make your docking easier.
-if you have a fairway to go down to get to your slip, use the full width of it....especially if there's a wind or current to contend with.
-as mentioned above, use only your shifters, not the wheel or throttles.
-as you approach your slip/fairway/dock, make sure your wheel is centered, then don't touch it.
-spend 90% of your time in neutral. Give the boat a command (by using the shifters sparingly), then give the boat a chance to respond.
-boats aren't like a car...they take time to respond to a change of direction command. Give them time to react and change direction.
-if you have guests on board, have them sit quietly while you're docking.
-your cell phone will ALWAYS ring at the worst possible time when you're docking....ignore it and questions from passengers. Don't let yourself get distracted.
-nobody jumps off the boat to the dock....people should STEP OFF only after the boat is alongside the dock and has stopped moving.
-take the time to get your lines and fenders set before you start docking.
-if you have a slip for the boat, keep your dock lines on the dock, already preadjusted for your boat.
-PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE.....practice makes perfect.

Just a thought to add to this...

- after you approach the dock and have the wheel straight, never touch the throttle; idle speed only.
- If you absolutely MUST hit the throttle, only in reverse. Reverse reacts more slowly; forward can lurch forward.
- Think STOP after each manuever. This means....pull up to your position in front of the slip - STOP all motion - rotate - STOP all motion - proceed in reverse into your slip. What this means is if you keep the momentum factor out of it, it is a lot easier to get the hang of it (this works).
 
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Just a thought to add to this...

- after you approach the dock and have the wheel straight, never touch the throttle; idle speed only.
- If you absolutely MUST hit the throttle, only in reverse. Reverse reacts more slowly; forward can lurch forward.
- Think STOP after each manuever. This means....pull up to your position in front of the slip - STOP all motion - rotate - STOP all motion - proceed in reverse into your slip. What this means is if you keep the momentum factor out of it, it is a lot easier to get the hang of it (this works).
Jack, that's the first time I have heard that (only in reverse) and I like it!!! This, and all of the advice here is great.
 
This is all great advice. Don't worry about trying. I just switched from twin stern drives to inboards. It's like learning all over again. Great advice on the throttle and taking it slow.

Best advice I ever got was to NOT touch the wheel. In and out of gear with no throttle.

Have fun practicing..,the fun part!


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I have only had twins for 3 seasons now. One thing you may want to add to your rudder wheel is

http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wc...toreNum=50366&subdeptNum=50385&classNum=50389

I added one this year and it will help with setting your wheel straight, especially when times are rough. Having the a piece of tape at the top of the wheel when rudders are straight is good, but you can be off a full turn if do not hard over then count back to center. This gauge eliminates that issue and is visually correct. Quick glance and you know where you are.


  • On approach, I set the engines to 1000 RPM in neutral.
  • I use only the transmissions to get into the slip.
  • Never forget that besides forward and reverse is neutral and it is more important than forward or reverse.
  • When port transmission is in forward, starboard transmission in neutral, rudders straight, the bow of the boat will turn to starboard.
  • When starboard transmission is in forward, port transmission in neutral, rudders straight, the bow of the boat will turn port.
  • Practice using one engine in the open to master direction and speed of the turns to either port or starboard.
  • To spin a boat on a dime, rudders straight, put one transmission forward and one reverse. If port is forward boat will rotate starboard. If starboard is forward, boat will rotate port. Practice this in wide open space and see where your turning radius is on the boat.
  • Each dock has its own set of mother nature rules. Learn the natural flow and use it to your advantage. At my marina, it is on a tidal flow river. So knowing times for low and high tides, plus the wind direction & speed (the river runs from the west to the east at my marina) is important. Most of the time, the river is running west to east and the wind flows the same direction due to the surrounding hills. When I go to dock, I drive east to west, parallel to the docks about one length of my boat out. I also try and let the boat coast with both engines in neutral. The docks are on my starboard side. Once I have moved the pivot point of my boat beyond the center of my slip, depending on current and wind, I will then put the port engine forward and the starboard engine in reverse. One the boat starts turning I will put both engines into neutral then adjust either port or starboard engine to get the bow of the boat into the center of the slip and then use more neutral than forward or reverse since momentum has been created (This saves gelcoat, fiberglass, and pride).

The one thing I have not been able to master is to have the boat go sideways. When I went on the sea trials for this boat, the licensed captain walked the boat sideways to the dock. I was so impressed, I did not watch what he was doing with the controls. I believe he cut the rudder all the way to one side, and then shift between forward- reverse- neutral with port forward and starboard reverse then switched with more time in neutral.

One last thing to remember, in my books, it states never to shift into gears at RPM > 1200. It can blow the transmissions.
 
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Just a thought to add to this...

- after you approach the dock and have the wheel straight, never touch the throttle; idle speed only.
- If you absolutely MUST hit the throttle, only in reverse. Reverse reacts more slowly; forward can lurch forward.
- Think STOP after each manuever. This means....pull up to your position in front of the slip - STOP all motion - rotate - STOP all motion - proceed in reverse into your slip. What this means is if you keep the momentum factor out of it, it is a lot easier to get the hang of it (this works).

GFC advice is excellent and Jack has added some valuble comments particularly about removing momentum from the occassion. I used to think I was pretty cool turning the corner into my slip without coming to a halt and just sliding up to the finger. I got it right sometimes and looked like an ace and recieved some nice comments. But, more often I screwed it up and while I may have been straight the boat simply slipped sideways toward my neighbour because of residual momentum. Prop wash from rapid astern and the first mate fending piles and boats is good entertainment for those safely tied up but it can ruin your day...and your fibreglass. I have got wiser and done as Jack suggests ever since. Stop completly....rotate...stop completly...continue into slip.

Oh and as everyone has said...practice. The penny will suddenly drop and you won't even know when that happens. It'll just seem to not be a problem anymore.

Cheers

Terry
 
You guys humble me with your excellent way of putting this in writing and description! Thanks!

Mark


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Here's one thing I forgot to mention....with twin engines it's important to learn what happens when you "split the shifters" by putting one in forward, the other in reverse. It's the best thing a twin engine boater can learn.

It's a bit tough to visualize, but think of a shopping cart. If you're pushing a shopping cart forward and want to stop you pull back with both hands. If you want to make a gradual turn to the left, you push forward with your right hand while holding the left hand still. If you want to make a very sharp turn (as in doing a 180* turnaround) you would pull back with one hand and push forward with the other. It's the same principle with twin engines. If you can drive a shopping cart you can drive a twin engine boat.
 
I'm in awe of the posts here...wow.


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GFC, the shopping cart is a great visual!
The Admiral is planning her first attempts at docking this week, and I think this will help her tremendously.

And, no.. Not because she has plenty of practice with a shopping cart. That would be callous and sexist....


Laurence
 
As everyone else has said practice, practice, practice and try not to over think what you are doing, just do it.
 
the best bit of advice I have been given since I got mine last year was by a maritime services officer on the marina.

We were discussing handling etc, and he said, you know the shoulder rule don't you?

When you want to turn or spin the boat. Looking in the direction you are travelling, forward or reverse. Do the turn with your body, how your shoulders rotate is how the shifters need to move.

So facing forward. Your left shoulder is Port shifter, Your right shoulder is Starboard.

Do the turn feel your shoulders and imagine positioning the shifters the same.

Also hence why it is easier to face the rear when reversing.

It made the whole process so much easier for me.

Incidentally I have outdrives, twin Volvo Duo Props, I mostly spin using the required shifter in reverse at idle or just above, and then nudge the opposing shifter in and out of forward as required to speed the spin, or to keep the position of where the boat is.


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I think docking a boat that could only turn one direction in a 20MPH crosswind would be easier than that freebie simulator on the web...
 
when docking a single engine stern drive boat knowing wind direction is crucial. sometimes you have to pass a slip, turn around, and approach from the other direction.
 
Crabbing sideways.... with twin engines and rudders you turn the wheel opposite to the direction you want the boat to move and then engage the outside engine ahead and inside engine astern.

For example, to crab to port, put the wheel to starboard and engage the starboard engine ahead and the port engine astern. The rudder is very dominant and like all docking, practice, practice practice. Be gentle.
 
Everyone has given good advice. One thing that helped me the first few times out was practicing in open water. I could not hit anything and I could pick a point on the water and practice rotating the boat in diffrent ways. It helped calm me down when i had to dock since i had practice with how the boat behaved.
 
the best bit of advice I have been given since I got mine last year was by a maritime services officer on the marina.

We were discussing handling etc, and he said, you know the shoulder rule don't you?

When you want to turn or spin the boat. Looking in the direction you are travelling, forward or reverse. Do the turn with your body, how your shoulders rotate is how the shifters need to move.

So facing forward. Your left shoulder is Port shifter, Your right shoulder is Starboard.

Do the turn feel your shoulders and imagine positioning the shifters the same.

Also hence why it is easier to face the rear when reversing.

It made the whole process so much easier for me.

Incidentally I have outdrives, twin Volvo Duo Props, I mostly spin using the required shifter in reverse at idle or just above, and then nudge the opposing shifter in and out of forward as required to speed the spin, or to keep the position of where the boat is.


---
I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?bfcu2f
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Everything I have read was great... but I think this will stick with me the most lol anyone looking in my office window was probably thinking I had a bit of a nip in my coffee this morning lol thanks everyone for the patience with the newbie
 

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