How was YOUR boating day??

ClarkGriswold

Well-Known Member
Jul 9, 2016
2,746
Boat Info
Sea Ray 370 Sundancer
Engines
Horizons
I went under contract in Feb on a 1998 370DA and closed on Thursday of this week. At some point the seller had the marina splash the boat and the marina moved it to a slip until the sale closed. I had zero to do with this part of the story. But it’s relevant.

I went down to the boat last night to drop off some things and everything was groovy. Went home excited for todays maiden voyage up to my slip.

Upon arriving this morning, we found a chain across the transom with pad locks attached to the slip on each side. I tracked down the marina manager via phone and he had no clue as to what was going on. Called my broker to see if he could help clear it up and he headed over as well. Once I got on the boat, I went below and in the cabinet where the ignition keys should be, I found the note below…

Yeah, someone had locked up my boat, boarded it and stole my keys. It turns out this person owns the slip and the marina put my boat in there(before I owned it…) without notifying him. He decided I was trespassing and decided he would take things into his own hands.

A mess ensued, words exchanged, police were involved and 4 hours later I finally had my keys back and the boat unlocked. And someone might be on the hook for felony burglary when it’s all said and done.

It was a day.

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Wow, what a story. I know our Marina has a clause in the contract that if your slip is empty they may use it and I’m responsible to give them notice of my return. Boating, it’s always something but never boring.
 
Wow, what a story. I know our Marina has a clause in the contract that if your slip is empty they may use it and I’m responsible to give them notice of my return. Boating, it’s always something but never boring.
Encountered this at Great Oak Landing, now Safe Harbor. Slip holders have to file a plan if they vacate their slip for a day. I as a transient rented it for a weekend, owner comes back a day early going ballistic on me. Told him FO, go see the dock master. They told him, too bad he broke the rules and I had a binding contract for the weekend. They put him someplace else til weekend over.
 
Wtf?!?!
 
What about the damage to the swim platform from that chain? Looks like property damage and breaking and entering to me. Id pursue this to the fullest extent of the law. At the very least id be speaking with my attorney
100%. It is part of the police report.
 
That’s a first….. why didn’t he go to the marina management?
Exactly. He used a terrible analogy about how if someone was squatting in your condo you wouldn’t go to the condo manager, you would deal with it yourself!

he had many other avenues he could have gone down, he chose this one.
 
Just a question, I don’t know the particulars, if there was no damage to the boat, and you got all your stuff back, can’t you just tell the slip owner the marina manager parked it there without consulting you, tell him you would be pissed also, then offer to buy him a beer at the local watering hole? Might actually become a friend of yours.

I may be making an outlandish statement there, but after 28 years in law enforcement I have brought resolution to many neighbor disputes in a similar fashion.
 
Just a question, I don’t know the particulars, if there was no damage to the boat, and you got all your stuff back, can’t you just tell the slip owner the marina manager parked it there without consulting you, tell him you would be pissed also, then offer to buy him a beer at the local watering hole? Might actually become a friend of yours.

I may be making an outlandish statement there, but after 28 years in law enforcement I have brought resolution to many neighbor disputes in a similar fashion.
I totally tried.
A. He wasn’t on-site. Or so he claimed.
B. He was not willing to move at all until we actually did involve Law enforcement.
C. There was property damage from the chain he employed.
 
Just a question, I don’t know the particulars, if there was no damage to the boat, and you got all your stuff back, can’t you just tell the slip owner the marina manager parked it there without consulting you, tell him you would be pissed also, then offer to buy him a beer at the local watering hole? Might actually become a friend of yours.

I may be making an outlandish statement there, but after 28 years in law enforcement I have brought resolution to many neighbor disputes in a similar fashion.
That’s a lucid, intelligent, well thought out opinion. Overruled.
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Just a question, I don’t know the particulars, if there was no damage to the boat, and you got all your stuff back, can’t you just tell the slip owner the marina manager parked it there without consulting you, tell him you would be pissed also, then offer to buy him a beer at the local watering hole? Might actually become a friend of yours.

I may be making an outlandish statement there, but after 28 years in law enforcement I have brought resolution to many neighbor disputes in a similar fashion.
You suck at making enemies…. The guy was an ass he needs to be bitch slapped
 
I think the most sweet justice would be for the association to kick him out of the harbor, as one board member I spoke to did suggest could happen.
 
I had a similar situation ….. where marina allowed charter fishing boats in the marina early in the season for a few weeks……. And the phuckers parked in my spot…. Just a note I already don’t like charter fisherman on my dock. So I told the marina I was coming in and they told me to park somewhere else…. I had a oh hell no moment…. You put the idiots there you get them out …Now. So they moved but they knew it was me who caused it….. fisherman can be very cold :)
 
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Oh, let’s talk about crab watermen. Laying pots even in channels. Can do no wrong. DNR favors them over sport boaters. I can appreciate a guy has to make a living. These guys cause a lot of damage to running gear with no recourse for damage. It’s got so bad I won’t dare run after dark anymore.
 

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