Argh, first dock rash

So the commissioning guys were bringing the boat to a yard for haulout. I was of course there to see it. The guy driving was up on the fly bridge, and he was being directed by the yard guys to maneuver into the slings.

There were guys on the dock at the rear of the boat, pushing around a single fender with a stick. I happened to be right there at the stern, on the finger dock. The guy on my side got distracted, loudly saying "WHERE'S THE STABILIZER?" He walked forward and the side of the boat contacted this unfortunately placed cleat.

First crunch! Do boaters call this dock rash? With airplanes, if you hit the wing or tail into the wall of a hangar, or another plane, it's called "hangar rash."

So of course the yard will repair. And Hampton sent the same gel coat over with the boat for repairs.

My question, is this just kind of a way of life with our boats? Some dock (etc?) crashes are inevitable, you just repair and get on with it?

One fender for a 65' boat? For ANY boat? Sometimes I'm amazed at things that happen. But, they do happen and all you can do is deal with it. That's why you go slow. Less crunch.

Greetings,
Mr. JB. Dock rash or "The last time I use this marina" after the repair is done to my satisfaction unless you have no other choice.

Molly said:

One fender for a 65' boat? For ANY boat? Sometimes I'm amazed at things that happen. But, they do happen and all you can do is deal with it. That's why you go slow. Less crunch.

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They weren't docking, they were driving the boat into the slings of the travel lift. There were no fenders deployed on the boat. Fenders on the boat would just get in the way of moving through the slings.

the fenders were tied to the dock, floating. But yeah the could have had more, why not just line the finger dock with them?

Dock rashes are inevitable. Crying shame to happen to your brand new boat though.

You won't even notice after the repair, as Hampton expected a few of these.

"So of course the yard will repair. And Hampton sent the same gel coat over with the boat for repairs."

Too bad you were there to see it happen. Better you didn't even know about it.

OTOH, you now have the opportunity to see how the yard deals with scrapes and gouges, you have the matching repair kit, so when it happens to you (as it will) you can repair to the same standard.

If you're looking for a bright side, at least you're original gelcoat hasn't had a chance to fade, so the match should be really good.

No, this is not normal. You'd expect the commissioning crew to be extra careful. Unless the wind was howling 35 knots or the tide was running 10 knots, there is really no excuse for not being able to fend off the boat going into the slings. I'd watch these guys like a hawk and never use them again.

Ugh, sorry to hear about Mahalo receiving her first scrape. I'm sure she'll come out nice and clean after the touch up and you'll have many years of happy memories cruising her. Looking forward to seeing pictures of her on the hook up in the Islands.

I'd have them leave it. The first scratch is always the toughest to stomach, now you got that out of the way and don't even need to feel guilty yourself!

DDW said:

I'd have them leave it. The first scratch is always the toughest to stomach, now you got that out of the way and don't even need to feel guilty yourself!

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I'm putting in a vote to the contrary. Two of them clearly look like they're down to fiberglass. Let the first dock rash (that is the term we use) to be your fault.

Nothing normal about it. Careless and inattention and lack of appropriate safeguards.

You might consider adding a more substantial rub strip at least on the very aft stern quarter / swim deck. The SS doesn't look like it provides much protection and that area is perhaps the most prone to some amount of "rash".

There was a thread recently about dock cleats v bull rails.
Need I say more?

One should not construct one's docks for the primary purpose of running into them.

Sorry this happened Bob. I am sure they will fix it will so that you won't see it.



Yes, I think dings in the gelcoat are inevitable. It doesn't mean you have to like it or shouldn't repair it, but it will happen.

Wil not be the last one..... good luck..

One man's dock rash is another man's patina. If it ain't scarred, it ain't being used.

If every mark tells a story, my boat could be a great source for a tome!

Bacchus said:

You might consider adding a more substantial rub strip at least on the very aft stern quarter / swim deck. The SS doesn't look like it provides much protection and that area is perhaps the most prone to some amount of "rash".

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Or keep a fender rigged up with the appropriate lengths of lines to allow leaving it dangling horizontally along that stretch of hull.

Pisses me off that some boats just do not have a decent way to hang a fender off the stern quarter. Last boat didn't (the panel there was just cosmetic and totally unsuitable for mounting any sort of cleat) and now the current boat has a big, wood, TNT swim platform back there. No decent way to hang a fender there, not that I'd want much pressure being pushed against the platform, but still...

Meanwhile I've been pleased the Aere inflatable fenders are doing a good job at the t-head slip we've got currently. Pricey but they work well. Fishery Supply has great prices on 2-packs of their Fenda-Socks (double-layer fleece).

Nobody drives my boat at the yard but me. That said, the yard I normally use, moves the boat into the slings with plastic tipped boat poles, pushing and pulling on cleats and other metal deck fittings. If you think about it, what are the odds that anyone in the yard has any amount of experience operating your make and model of boat? If the boat needs to be moved under power, the person with the most experience driving my boat will do it.

Ted

O C Diver said:

Nobody drives my boat at the yard but me. That said, the yard I normally use, moves the boat into the slings with plastic tipped boat poles, pushing and pulling on cleats and other metal deck fittings. If you think about it, what are the odds that anyone in the yard has any amount of experience operating your make and model of boat? If the boat needs to be moved under power, the person with the most experience driving my boat will do it.

Ted

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Legally I don't own the boat yet. Not until we go through title. It really was not the fault of the guy driving the boat. No one driving the boat into the slings could have seen this area. The fault is in the yard not having fenders along their finger dock, and the guy that was supposed to be fending going off station.

The attitude of pretty much every person at this yard basically sucks ass. I will not likely go back there.

Think I'd ask what the discount is for the scratch and dent model.

Ted

JustBob said:

My question, is this just kind of a way of life with our boats? Some dock (etc?) crashes are inevitable, you just repair and get on with it?

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Yes. 'fraid so. Just sigh and move on.

Having said that, I'm right this minute on tenterhooks because a prospective buyer and my broker are about to head off from our berth without me there, for a sea trial. Deposit paid, so far all good, but I just hope there is no boat rash after it all. I offered to go to drive out and back in, but the broker said in his experience, on sea trials, it went better without the owner there, because being protective of their vessel, if any negative comment is made, some owners sometimes leap in and over-react, and the sale gets killed as a result. I hope I'm above that, but who knows? However, I offered to answer by cellphone any questions the buyer might ask, where the answer is unique to the boat, so we'll see. I hope I don't end up wanting to say, "I told you so".

Molly said:

One fender for a 65' boat? For ANY boat? Sometimes I'm amazed at things that happen. But, they do happen and all you can do is deal with it. That's why you go slow. Less crunch.

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We deploy five fenders to a side, covering the boat's length.

Peter B said:

Yes. 'fraid so. Just sigh and move on.

Having said that, I'm right this minute on tenterhooks because a prospective buyer and my broker are about to head off from our berth without me there, for a sea trial. Deposit paid, so far all good, but I just hope there is no boat rash after it all.

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PS. All went well, the sale is proceeding to Insurance survey. So far so good. No boat rash.

Peter B said:

PS. All went well, the sale is proceeding to Insurance survey. So far so good. No boat rash.

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Fingers crossed for you. Hope all goes well.

Ted

Peter B said:

PS. All went well, the sale is proceeding to Insurance survey. So far so good. No boat rash.

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Share you trepidation at others operating it though. I have a friend who when she was young went for a test drive to purchase her first new car. She was in a wreck and the car had to be towed back with her and the salesman getting someone to come pick them up. She did not purchase the car.

Most sea trials in South Florida are run by paid captains. That solves the concern over operating and the desire not to have the seller there. Real Estate agents also prefer owners not being home. If home, they want them to just stay away from the potential buyers.

I knew of one home in a small town in Mississippi owned by an artist, with a studio behind it. The home was painted pink and the colors inside were unique to say the least. They lost a few potential buyers when she heard them talking about changing the color of the house and she refused to sell to them. The realtor learned to make sure she wasn't home and, if they encountered her, to not mention changing the colors.

O C Diver said:

If you think about it, what are the odds that anyone in the yard has any amount of experience operating your make and model of boat? If the boat needs to be moved under power, the person with the most experience driving my boat will do it.

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In this case the odds are very good. Brand new owner may never have run that particular boat. A Yard that does commissioning for that Yacht builder may have seen a few of them.

JustBob said:

The attitude of pretty much every person at this yard basically sucks ass. I will not likely go back there.

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That is really too bad. Which yard is it? (I only ask since I’m in the same general area). My local yard had some management changes and I was not particularly pleased with them the last time I was there. Nice folks, careful with the Travel Lift and blocking, friendly and helpful, but not really great on follow through at times.

Good luck Pete on your sale. Re fenders on the dock, just left my boat at Boat Works for lift in morning, their docks have the best padding I have seen anywhere, no worries about boat rash.