I have debated writing this post for years. It’s not a fun story. It’s not about fishing or gear. It is a memory that haunts me to this day.
But I’m writing it because I see people make the same mistake at the boat ramp every single summer. And every time I see it, I feel a cold pit in my stomach.
The mistake is simple: Unhooking the bow strap before the boat is in the water.
If you take nothing else from my website—if you ignore my advice on canoes, engines, and batteries—please listen to this.
The Incident at Bellwood Lake
My buddy Steve and I were waiting in line at the launch. It was a typical Saturday. Ahead of us was a three-generation family: a grandfather (who looked to be in his 70s or 80s), a father driving the truck, and a young son (maybe 10 or 12) sitting inside the bowrider on the trailer.
The father was in a rush. You could see the stress on him. He jumped out, undid the transom straps, and then—before backing down the ramp—he walked to the front and unhooked the winch strap from the bow eye.
He handed the bow line to his elderly father and got back in the truck.
Steve and I saw it happening. We called out, “Hey man, don’t unhook that strap yet! The boat will slide!”
The father brushed us off. He told us he knew what he was doing and to mind our own business. He backed the truck down the steep ramp quickly.
The Physics of a Tragedy
Here is what people forget: Bunk trailers can be slippery. Roller trailers are designed to be slippery.
When the father hit the brakes on the steep ramp, momentum took over. The boat, no longer secured to the trailer by the winch, kept moving. It slid off the trailer with thousands of pounds of force.
The grandfather had wrapped the rope around his hand to get a better grip.
When the boat hit the water and shot backward, the rope snapped tight. It jerked the old man violently forward, then the tension released and he fell backward.
He hit the back of his head on the concrete retaining wall of the ramp.
The Aftermath
I ran over immediately. I tried to cradle his head and keep him stable while Steve called 911. The father was panicking, pouring water into the man’s mouth (which is the wrong thing to do if someone is convulsing or unconscious).
I held that man as he turned blue. I saw the injury to his skull. I used the cool-headedness I learned from my dad (a vet) to turn him on his side so he wouldn’t choke, but the damage was massive.
He died right there on the concrete ramp. Right there in my hands.
All because of a winch strap unhooked 30 seconds too early.
The Rule You Must Follow
I am begging you: Do not touch that winch strap until the stern of the boat is floating.
- Back down the ramp slowly.
- Wait until the boat is floating (or at least supported by the water).
- THEN unhook the safety chain and winch strap.
If you unhook on dry land, you are trusting friction to hold 3,000 lbs of fiberglass against gravity and momentum. It is a gamble you don’t need to take.
Rest in Peace
I don’t know the family’s name. I never saw them again. But that grandfather didn’t need to die that day.
Please, slow down at the ramp. Ignore the people waiting in line behind you. Keep that strap connected.