After 20 years with bunks, I put on my 3rd carpet last summer. They wear out, as does the wood underneath. Had to replace the wood also this time.But as mentioned, the hull is not as well supported, and the maintenance will get you eventually. My rollers are 22 years old, most of their time in saltwater. So I've gotten a nice life out of them. But I should probably replace this off season. Not looking forward to that job.
Have to laugh a little at that, not at you but at many people. I remember once when My buddy Harlan and I were retrieving my Whaler at a ramp where the current was raising hell with people. There were folks taking upwards of 30 min. to get a boat loaded. People in the water helping, it was a zoo. There was a crowd watching the FUN. Harlan went and got my truck and trailer and got in line for the single lane ramp. My trailer was properly setup for my boat. I had put time and effort into setup. When it was our turn I told people to get out of the way. Harlan backed the rig in. I throttled up into the current and under power cut in and on to the trailer running up to the bow stop. We cleared the ramp in under 2 min. When I shut the engine down a guy on the dock watching said, "Damn, you guys have done this before." It takes confidence and practice to load in current just as it does to dock in current and high wind.I sort of remember helping friends load onto bunks, we were always messing around trying to get the boat straight when the current was ripping through.
My Bristol Skiff is an absolute beast in any kind of wind. Flat bottom, light as a feather up forward, and if the skegs don’t line up between the bunks just right - which is fun to do since the after end is still floating when the bow is on the stops - it’ll never sit right. I’ve trailered all sorts of boats, large and small, more times than I could even guess at, and that little skiff embarrasses me almost every time. One of these days I’ll put some time into maki g some trailer adjustments and probably set my dignity aside and just put goalposts on it to keep the skegs lined up.Have to laugh a little at that, not at you but at many people. I remember once when My buddy Harlan and I were retrieving my Whaler at a ramp where the current was raising hell with people. There were folks taking upwards of 30 min. to get a boat loaded. People in the water helping, it was a zoo. There was a crowd watching the FUN. Harlan went and got my truck and trailer and got in line for the single lane ramp. My trailer was properly setup for my boat. I had put time and effort into setup. When it was our turn I told people to get out of the way. Harlan backed the rig in. I throttled up into the current and under power cut in and on to the trailer running up to the bow stop. We cleared the ramp in under 2 min. When I shut the engine down a guy on the dock watching said, "Damn, you guys have done this before." It takes confidence and practice to load in current just as it does to dock in current and high wind.
Now that you're "totally" a retired gentleman with lots of "extra" time you can do those "trailer adjustments". (Of course you probably need to go back to work to have any extra free time)My Bristol Skiff is an absolute beast in any kind of wind. Flat bottom, light as a feather up forward, and if the skegs don’t line up between the bunks just right - which is fun to do since the after end is still floating when the bow is on the stops - it’ll never sit right. I’ve trailered all sorts of boats, large and small, more times than I could even guess at, and that little skiff embarrasses me almost every time. One of these days I’ll put some time into maki g some trailer adjustments and probably set my dignity aside and just put goalposts on it to keep the skegs lined up.
I don't know why the ramp we used back then made such a huge deal about powerloading - I guess it erodes the ramp? There were huge signs warning of a $500 fine and lifetime ban for powerloading. The ramp I use now, they don't care at all - in fact sometimes when I'm alone the owner sees me coming down the channel, backs my truck down the ramp, and hooks my boat after I power myself up to the stop. But the ramp we used to use back in the mid 90's, federal offense if the prop was spinning.
It's not the ramp surface that it erodes - it undermines the ramp. Washes out the substrate under the ramp surface at the bottom of the ramp.They say power loading will erode the ramp....there's some truth to that but at our boat club the ramp takes much more of a beating from Mother Nature than any prop so I agree - what's the big deal? Plus isn't it good to push the silt away at the base of a ramp?