Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Pond Boss Boat-Sinking Adventures

As "bait" to entice the details of Greg Grimes' recent "experience", maybe a thread for boat-sinking stories is in order.

I'll even start this gruesome challenge with my most memorable boat-sinking adventure.

Picture a bass-boat - full of electronics, tackle, high-end rods & reels, life vests, ice-chests, etc. This bass boat had a circulating live-well that was designed to overflow through an elevated hull-port located just below the gunwale. Now picture this bass-boat moored (unattended) in a marina boat-slip, in Aransas Bay (salt water), late at night, with its circulating live-well freshly loaded with 2 qts of lively shrimp - all ready to head out before dawn the next morning. Got the picture?

My pre-dawn stroll to the marina was met by the spectacle of familiar tackle-boxes, ice-chests, life-vests and many other buoyant objects floating haphazardly throughout the marina. Quite the gut-wrenching omen!!! Closer inspection revealed my boat's bow barely protruding above the surface (still moored in the boat-slip). A thorough investigation of the situation prompted my conclusion that circulating bass-boat live-wells are ONLY intended for FISH - and NOT for shrimp, which are quite capable of wedging their relatively tiny bodies into the live-well's discharge-port - thus causing the live-well to overflow INTO the bass-boat's hull and producing a (presumably) authentic replication of the Titanic's final moments - except the Titanic wasn't moored in a marina. (Sinking a boat in wide-open water at least has some excitement and glamour associated with it. Sinking a boat in a marina-slip offers nothing but utter embarrassement.)

Needless to say, I never fished that day (nor for several months thereafter), and the shrimp earned their freedom - except for the guilty culprits. If this story saves one person from the grief, embarrassment and expense that I endured that fateful night, then maybe this post will have served its purpose. Footnote: This memorable event also marked the beginning of my preference for kayak-fishing.

Greg - Your turn!!

Well... this slightly off topic and extremely humiliating but how about a Hummer H2 Sinking...

May 2005... Pewter Colored Hummer H2, Decked out with every available option... Sat TV, Sat Radio, Xbox, Ps2, Three flat screen TV's, My laptop, briefcase, cell phone etc. Im sitting at the end of my driveway which slopes down to a beautiful 65 acre private lake. I am speaking with a customer on the phone trying to explain to him how to send me an email and attach a picture... I'm absent mindedly playing with the buttons, putting the truck in gear, revving it up... back in park, back in gear... la ti da.... Customer says... Ok, Tony I think I did it, go check your email.... I jump out of the truck to run into the house to check my email, when I get out I dont realize that the h2 is in gear.. there was a slight incline at the end of my driveway which caused it not to take off when I jumped out... as I open the house door.. movement catches my eye and I see my Hummer rolling down the back yard toward the lake... I sprint to the truck trying to catch it..... To late.. it floats out into the middle of the lake and sinks in 35' of water....

$8500 towing / diver bill...
Insurance totals the Hummer...

My wonderful friends and neibhors from that point on would refer to the fishing area in front of my house as the "Hummer Hole"


Your turn Greg!!

My dad lives a few miles up the Potomac River from the Chesapeake Bay. He "used" to own a 16' center console fishing boat with a little 40 hp Yamaha on it. It was a great little calm water day fishing boat. Me being the naive and perhaps a bit cocky teenager I was at the time, I decided that I was a good enough captain to take it the 15 miles down the Potomac River and then nearly across the Chesapeake Bay. I wanted to fish for red drum and sea trout in some excellent cuts along the many islands in that area.

Well, an early season t-storm began rolling in and instead of heading to the nearest harbor, I tried beating it back to my father's dock. It caught up to me in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay. Turns out it was a rather large and strong t-storm and even with keeping the boat head on into waves and the bilge pump running non stop I ended up taking on so much water that the fuel tank got contaminated with sea water and the engine cut out. It wasn't long and the boat was flipped in the now 8'-10' seas. Fortunately, I didn't have much tackle in the boat and it was just a bare bones fishing boat. I also was smart enough to have a life vest on. Water temps were in the mid 70's so it was not life threatening immediately.

Anyways, I spent the next hour and half being tossed around in the middle of the Chesapeake in a full blown t-storm and then another 4 and half hours floating in more calm waters until another fisherman happened to see me bobbing around... He was nice enough to scoop me up. By this time it was after dark and I was getting a bit on the chilly side.

To put it mildly, my father wasn't thrilled... Took a long time for him to trust me with another boat! They ended up finding the boat 30 miles further south in a marsh about a week later. It was beyond salvaging.

Ok KD give you credit nice work. You guys are making me feel better-wish I had insurance. But so far not heard about anyone sinking the boat that is used to generte most of the your income for your employees. Bob you had any mishaps in all your years your willing to share?

Keep em coming and I might share the only pic I have a crappy pic from wife old cell phone. Remember my new iphone was destroyed as well with many family photos/videos (visit to Nate, etc.) not yet put on desktop.

Greg, to save you the pain and suffering I still think you should let your wife tell what happened.

No way am I going to let her tell her version I could never post again after the embrassement. At least when I tell it I can add in a few excuses.

Your story and pic online by 6 pm or I am interviewing Wendy tonight.

I have never actually sunk a boat but have filled a couple with water.

25 or 30 years ago a storm blew up and I was fishing back in a protected cove in a stick steering(front) boat. I figured I could make it across the lake to the launching ramp. When I hit open water, the storm really got serious and a wave broke over the boat and actually hit my Brother who was in the back seat. The motor kept running but couldn't get up any speed but I made it to shallow water. We both went over the side and pulled the boat to shore.

Second misadventure also about 25+ years ago. I was in my 20 ft Ranger(I still have it) when a bad storm came in and I made a run for protection. I was OK but saw a young guy on a sail board who was off the board but still out in the lake. He was going to wash onto some pretty good sized rocks so I went and got him. I got him in as my boat was filling with water. He said something about getting his board and I replied with something about **** that board. I got back to calm water and let him out. We watched the board get destroyed on the rip rap like he would have been. He told people that it was my fault and that I should have gotten his board. My Brother asked how he would like his butt whipped and he shut up. We were able to bail and pump the water out of the boat and head for shore when the wind stopped 3 or 4 hours later.

I'm keeping my mouth shut about my jon boat misadventure on big waters. As Sonny Corleone said "Shtoopid, just shtoopid".

BTW, if you mount a motor on the back of any light weight aluminum boat, make sure the motor is positioned exactly in the middle of the transom. That would really be important in the middle of winter. That's another one that I don't want to talk about.

Oh yeah, don't ever try to put a 40 pound catfish into a 10 ft boat.

Lusk and Duffie help Grimes fix up his new boat

ROFLOL - Love those Stooges !!!!!

Methinks it's about to get interesting!

Well hello Pond Boss family. I have never posted here, but have read many threads through the years. I find the opportunity irresistable to share such a fabulous vacation story. I could not think of a good screen name, but the one I picked seems appropriate for atmosphere here in Ball Ground post boat sinkings.
Did you all notice the 's' at the end of sinking. Did Greg mention that he sunk the boat twice in one day?
You know how the saying goes "If at first you don't succeed try try again!"
Really Greg should tell the story since he was there. That way he can embellish to feel a little better about the whole thing. All you all need to know is this 1) I never believed that the boat should go in the ocean 2)when my opinion was poo pooed and Greg decided it was going to go, I said don't you think you should take the generator and the pulse box off? 3)I was not the only person to tell him the boat with about 6 inches of free board should go no where with waves.

So lessons learned at very little cost, an iphone, some fishing equipment and alot of boat repair but no one was hurt and that is all that really matters. Sometimes God has to tap us on the shoulder with little warnings, unfortunatly sometimes God has to shake the fool out of my husband. The good news is that God shook him pretty hard this time- Greg even said "I guess I just need to listen to you all the time." I am holding him to it guys, I love my risk taker husband but boy am I getting more and more gray hair. You got to listen to me honey- it really costs too much to keep this hair a fine shade of golden brown!
Wendy

Haha! That's hilarious. SinkingS...

It'a about time!
For those of you who haven't met Wendy, she is rock solid! She's the wife, the mom...and the glue that keeps the Grimes ship (so to speak) afloat!
Welcome, Wendy!
The Grimes'are an important branch of the Pond Boss family.

Wendy, Welcome! I was thinking your side of things might have been more detailed, but I think you'll end up filling in the blanks that Greg conveniently "forgets". I thought he'd be in big do-do when he told me " Wife warned me".

I'm glad to hear that the pulse box is O.K. I know Greg was worried about it.

Actually, I've never sunk a boat. Drove a tractor part way into a pond several times, but no damage.
Been ejected from an electrofishing boat thrice.
Once, I was trying to steer the boat under a limb without hitting the guys in front. Swung the boat around, steered it where the limb would hit me...I grabbed the limb about waist high, the boat kept going, I hung onto the limb. One of the guys on the bow went to the back, steered the boat back around and got me. Never got wet on that one.
The second time, I was driving, till steering, spun hard, hit a stump, got ejected. Yelled, "Step off, step off!" The guy in the front got off the switch about the time I hit the water.
The third time, three years ago, similar situation. Was shocking with the small boat in a new lake. Saw what I thought was a school of shad, turned hard right, hit a submerged stump. Boat stopped. Lusk didn't. Hit the water and started sinking. I was a little angry, blackberry in my shirt pocket, favorite hat on, billfold in my pocket. Then, it dawned on me. I was sinking. Geez, I better kick and get to the top. I was probably down ten feet in fifteen feet of water.
Swam up, still a bit angry. Blackberry soaked, hat gone, glasses gone. Walter was good natured about it. We finished electrofishing, I dripped dry, loaded and came home in time to go get a new phone and glasses.
I haven't been in that boat again. Bought the big boat.

Someone should follow all pond managers around with a video camera. This stuff would be gold.

Hey Wendy, thanks for the report.

BTW, what's this "NEW" boss stuff?

Wendy thanks !!! A good laugh . -- --

You gotta laugh at your mistakes, but most importantly learn from them...

Surviving them also helps!

Hi Wendy. Glad you finally decided to join us - but too bad it was prompted by such an unfortunate experience.
Now then.... with the aforementioned greeting and condolence officially conveyed; it is now your wifely-duty to hound Greg for the published details - preferably with photos.
Indeed, there are countless boat-owners who have sunk their boats under all sorts of circumstances. BUT, I've NEVER heard of a boat-owner who sank his boat TWICE IN ONE DAY!!!! This has got to be a great story.....
Who knows! There could be movie-rights involved.
Can't wait to hear the details! We're counting on you!!!

Here was a fun day last February.
There used to be a road crossing between these lakes and apparently I forgot to tell Justin that I connected the lakes in the fall with a big excavator. Boy was he surprised when he tried to cross the 'road' with the mini-excavator.

Ok I just saw this no idea she had registered and mad a post. Wendy was fairly nice in her post and nice name honey. BTW you have always been the boss everyone who is married knows this.

She is a better writer (proofs my serious proposals) ,so she can provide more details. My version will be riddled with excuses on what I was thinking, blah blah blah...

Greg, we know you're busy with the golf tournament happening this weekend, but after it's over you must fill us in on the sinking (s).