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Trolling Motors
Your boat may be equipped with a trolling motor. A trolling motor has a fixed length shaft that is
lowered into the water and provides quiet electric propulsion in shallow water conditions. It is
incumbent upon the operator to ensure that the depth at which the motor is set is sufficient for
safe operation and will not result in jamming the shaft if it runs aground or worse, bending or
breaking the shaft. The owner of the boat in this photo didn’t properly
adjust the depth of his trolling motor and it was ripped right off of the
front deck of the boat when a wake caused by a fellow boater picked
the boat up and set it back down. Not only was the trolling motor
broken, the incident resulted in a nasty and expensive fiberglass repair.
Also, always store the trolling motor with the depth control collar all the
way down the shaft as close as possible to the base. This way the
motor will be unable to deploy if you fail to properly engage the locking
base or you experience a failure in the base. Finally, you should
purchase and install an isolator mount for the motor head. It will keep
the trolling motor from bouncing when you go over waves which in turn
leads to premature failure.
Inlets
Inlets are exceptionally dangerous. They tend to be dredged so
they’re deeper than the surrounding area. This means much bigger
seas with an entirely different pattern. Winds and tides also make
sea conditions even rougher in an inlet. Just because the
surrounding area has seas conditions that are within your boat’s
limitations does not mean the inlet does. You have to evaluate the
inlet separately. If it’s close or you’re in doubt, always go around.
Any excess time or fuel expense pails in significance to the safety
of you and your passengers. It’s your job as the operator to know
your boat, it’s load and your own capabilities (e.g., Just because an
airplane can fly into a hurricane to collect data doesn’t mean that
all pilots can do it). It’s exceptionally easy to misjudge a situation.
The series of photos to the right show what can go wrong in an
inlet while an experienced and licensed captain operates a boat
that is not safe for the conditions. This captain was lucky to
survive the horrific incident. Do not let this happen to you. If you
elect to navigate an inlet make sure you’ve first completed a coast
guard-approved boating safety and navigation course. In the
course you will be taught how to keep your boat on the backside of
a wave and straight. You’ll learn not to accelerate over the crest of
the wave because you can stuff the bow below the water or broach
the boat. You will also be taught that if you slow down, the trailing
wave can break into your boat causing it to sink. Inlets require you
to see what’s in front of you and behind you simultaneously. That’s
no easy task. Even after completing the course we recommend
that you hire a professional captain to practice inlet navigation with
you prior to attempting it on your own. Before navigating any inlet
you must study the way the waves are breaking and their
rhythm/pattern. This will help you gauge when you should enter the
wave pattern and what speed you should target once inside. While
all inlets are dangerous, some of the most notorious are located in
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