Almost Killed Kajun on the James!

[RANGER690]

Kajun came up and fished with me today. Launched at Dutch Gap around 10am. Went up to Grubbs for bait. No problem. Ran to Hopewell fished. Kajun caught the first fish of the day. He personal best!!! That is always good.

http://images.snapfish.com/3456364723232%7Ffp336%3Enu%3D3238%3E385%3E247%3EWS NRCG%3D323335679543%3Bnu0mrj

Fished several spots. Basically one fish from each stop. Broke one off in the Stone Container pier. Lost another in open water near the pumphouse. Couldn't get another big one. Some teens and under.

Then, decided to try one more stop before calling it an evening. Buzzed by Dutch Gap on the way up river. Cruising the straight-away before Osborne at about 45mph. Looked away for a second. Bad idea. Kajun yelled " Oh S&!T" !!! I look just in time to see it. BAM!!! Air. Wham! Shake. Shudder. Everything in the boat changes location. I kill the engine. Coast to a stop. Cuss. Breath. Look at each other and cuss some more. Nobody bleeding. It was a full size tree trunk. We hit it at 90°. Check bottom of boat for water (none). Trim motor. Prop looks okay. Climb back. Don't see lower unit oil yet. Recheck hull for water (none). Start motor. Running but unusual amount of smoke. Put it in gear. Okay so far. Think outloud, let get to the ramp before we see water in boat. Good idea. On plane and back to ramp.

So far just damage to bottom near front of boat. Need better light to climb under boat. Cleared a spot on driveway under motor. Will look for fluid in the morning.

Hey Kajun. How do you rate that pucker factor?

http://images.snapfish.com/3456364723232%7Ffp336%3Enu%3D3238%3E385%3E247%3EWS NRCG%3D323335679267%3Cnu0mrj

Will call Insurance man tomorrow and see what I have to do. Got to have the motor looked at and gone over. Dang it!!!

Well, we made it home.

Dayton

[BBCroaker]

Glad you all are OKand that it just made you pucker up. That it wasn't to serious.
That Ranger is pretty tough boat then! Did you have to check your britches after you got back?
Kajun probably thought dang all I did was catch the biggest fish .

[Kajun]

that was definetly a pucker factor of 10!! lol...all that was missing from it was a yeehaaw when we was airborne. sure hope you didnt get any motor damage though ,definetly a bad lick.[sad]


other than our lil excitement at the end of the day ... i had a great time and i'm still alive lol ... dayton put me on a personal best hawg and some good pullage :) thanx!!when you ready to hit some stripers let me know!

[spin-a-bait]

Ouch!!!

[joe from oxford]

Now, about that other thread with the full face helmets? Did you record the airtime? We definately need to start a championship "boat jump" category here. Katnip turned this exact scenario (except it was nightime) into a brand new boat and motor....Very sorry about your boat Dayton....jfo

[striperjoe32]

Careful JFO, ins. fraud is against the law and I'll tell on ya ! It was just Dayton, glad Kajun is ok ! I like him. I had to buy my last boat AND my new one ! Everyone should have to suffer like me ! Get your butt back here and fish JOE ! ! ! ![tongue]

[spin-a-bait]

striperjoe32 originally wrote:
Careful JFO, ins. fraud is against the law and I'll tell on ya ! It was just Dayton, glad Kajun is ok ! I like him. I had to buy my last boat AND my new one ! Everyone should have to suffer like me ! Get your butt back here and fish JOE ! ! ! ![tongue]


NOOOOOOOOOOOO!Dont tell JFO to come fish....I catch all of my fish at the one hole he showed me[grin]Do you remember that JFO??

[Blackielee]

Yeah OUCH! That did leave a mark. Glad all alright, good luck with the boat. count your lucky stars.[angel]

[joe from oxford]

Hi Joe...Long time no talk. Good to hear from you. Difference from Katnip and Dayton's deal was Katnip's boat was metal and had some "serious leak" issues after the incident. If my memory serves, insurance totaled the hull and he was able to work a deal to come out with entirely new rig....I dunno how hard a lick a fiberglass hull can take without being structurally questionable...Think about the physics required to lift Dayton into the air....jfo

[carp]

GLAD YOU GUY'S ARE OK, IT COULD HAVE BEEN ALOT WORSE.

[spin-a-bait]

joe from oxford originally wrote:
Hi Joe...Long time no talk. Good to hear from you. Difference from Katnip and Dayton's deal was Katnip's boat was metal and had some "serious leak" issues after the incident. If my memory serves, insurance totaled the hull and he was able to work a deal to come out with entirely new rig....I dunno how hard a lick a fiberglass hull can take without being structurally questionable...Think about the physics required to lift Dayton into the air....jfo


That Hurt more than that log did[grin]

[RANGER690]

Kick me please! Hahahahahahah. I dish it out, got to be able to take it.

I guess we really didn't go airborne like Bo and Luke Duke. But the sensation and watching all the loose stuff in the boat settle back down, made you want to screen YeeeeHawwww. Of course, it may have been that Kajun and I were propelled into the air by the sudden pucking of our....................well, anyway.

Forgot to mention that I had left my landing net at home, so had to use my beautiful little hands to land all of Kajuns' fish. The fish don't bother me much but knowing he could thrash and sink the Gamakatsu into me is not pleasant.

So..............learnings for the week.

1. Go fish with Spinabait
2. Bring a landing net.
3. Watch where you are going, Idiot.

Thank you and have a great day.

Dayton

[wasabi]

Welcome to the airborne club! Glad no one was hurt.

[MYSEAPRO]

hey dayton i quess your in the same boat as me for awhile (no boat). i hope you get everything fixed

[spin-a-bait]

RANGER690 originally wrote:
Kick me please! Hahahahahahah. I dish it out, got to be able to take it.

I guess we really didn't go airborne like Bo and Luke Duke. But the sensation and watching all the loose stuff in the boat settle back down, made you want to screen YeeeeHawwww. Of course, it may have been that Kajun and I were propelled into the air by the sudden pucking of our....................well, anyway.

Forgot to mention that I had left my landing net at home, so had to use my beautiful little hands to land all of Kajuns' fish. The fish don't bother me much but knowing he could thrash and sink the Gamakatsu into me is not pleasant.

So..............learnings for the week.

1. Go fish with Spinabait
2. Bring a landing net.
3. Watch where you are going, Idiot.

Thank you and have a great day.

Dayton




2 & 3 sound like good tips

[jonnycat]

All is well that ends well. Glad y'all are OK. I think I saw you leaving the barge pits late morning. I was above the bridge in the infamous, "Dutch Gap", area. It didn't happen close to the power plant but about 2 miles away. Talked to a 3 person group at DB while taking the boat out who had a pretty decent day. The 15yr old girl got to reel in 4 citations of great sizes. Hope the boat situation turns out favorable for you. Later for now---jonnycat

[boss hawg]

Good that no one was thrown from the boat. Bad that the boat took a beating. Good luck with the insurance I think all of us are curious about how that turns out. And I was upset about a black scuff on the side of my boat that I got from the floating dock at deep bottom. Makes my heart sink to see that fiberglass busted up like that.

[racn35]

http://www.myfishingpictures.com/img/054519.JPG (http://www.myfishingpictures.com/?p=54519&c=500&z=1)


glad you guys are ok and can joke about it now- hope the boat is ok...........coulda been way way worse !!!

[RANGER690]

Made a quick crawl under the boat this evening with a flashlight. Another spot about 2' back from the ugly stuff, there is a spot of spider cracks about the size of a softball. Some gouges running it or miss down the bottom, but none of those look like they would need work (but what do I know?). Going to wait for the rain to pass and jack it up to look under the trailer bunks.

Hopeing for the best.

Dayton

[racn35]

did you call the insurance company yet ? ihad a hard time getting mine insured this summer when i bought it- i sold my brand new 2004 boat and bought a 1969. all the big companies wont insure a boat that old. had some write a "agreed value" at least. hope it turns out well for you.still have not written one for sure i should say (edit)

[striperjoe32]

racn, you aint called the right company, Nationwide is on your side, we'll let's say they put the food on the table for me and my family for the past 27 yrs. we now, no kidding, have a excellent boat policy that is more comprehensive and user friendly and not so much BS underwriting like in the past, especially on "older" boats, you are right about that. good luck to Doo Doo, Joe

[racn35]

well ok then striper man joe ! thanks for the b-mail invite to come up and fish on your new boat come january. in the mean time i mailed ya my phone number to call me about details on that policy. sooooo read ur b mail and buzz me.

[RANGER690]

Had motor gone over today. All looks okay. Going to talk to Insurance man tomorrow. Might not be out of commission too long.

About 12" of real uglyness, then another 12-18" of spider cracked gel coat. Could have been much worse. I consider myself very lucky.
http://images.snapfish.com/3456638323232%7Ffp58%3Dot%3E2329%3D476%3D338%3DXRO QDF%3E232427497%3A4%3B2ot1lsi

In the words of Arnold Sweetsanogger....."I'll.....um... I will be......um....dang it............oh yea..........."It is not a tumor!"

Dayton

[Kajun]

well thats good to hear on the motor dayton...hopefully it only the gel coat that needs repair....but yea i think it could have been much worst and i do consider ourselves very lucky the more i think about it.

[ketch69]

OUCH!!!!! Thats ugly. Are them holes in the gelcoat near the stern?


DEAN

[RANGER690]

No Ketch, the damage is near the front. I wasn't running much trim, so the impact is pretty far forward. That seems to have saved my motor (knocking the wood down and the stern passing over it). I think the damaged area would be out of the water if I was on plane and running more than 1/2 trim.

Dayton

[joe from oxford]

Dayton, Do you think your prop cleared over the top because you were airborne or do you think you just got lucky on the motor mount, foot, and prop? joe

[RANGER690]

No airborne. Just a lucky hit. You know how low those water-logged things ride in the water. They just barely float. So, I am thinking that we hit it, just a little nose high, and the impact forced the log down and the stern passed over it.

My transom is under-cut. Sorta like a built in setback/jackplate. Thus my lower unit/gear box/prop do not ride very deep below the keel/pad. I think I just got very lucky, considering what could have happened. And again, it is all my fault. It was visible enough that I should have seen it. I looked to my right while considering if I wanted to stop and fish that piece of shoreline. I looked back about the same time Kajun (quietly and calmly) "Holy Mother of all that is good and decent. You, sir, are about to absorb an impact with obsturction in the water. Prepare yourself for impact." Or something like that. He may have paraphrased using some vulgarity![grin]

No stuctural damage. Just some gel coat and I will be back on the water following Spin-a-bait!

Dayton

[joe from oxford]

Well that's some good luck Dayton. In Kerr we get a good number of crossties down the rivers which float just below the surface...if there's any riffle at all you can't see them cause they float so low. Unlike your experience, my one tangle with a crosstie at full steam resulted in not a scratch on the boat but the foot, motormounts etc were all messed up. Hope u get back online soon...jfo

[crxess]

It is amazing what some hulls can handle. Your damage doesn't look to bad concidering what you went through. Hope all turns out well.

My SR 225 got hammered in a hurricane. 18" of heavy dock rash on the Starboard side. A friend at HydraGlass re-glassed and gel coated it for $700. Almost as good as new. Well, better than the rest of the boat.[smile]

[mini moe]

You guys had a close call. That boat must be tuff. I bought a new 20 ft aluminum boat 2 years ago and it leaked from the getgo. I'm talking bad leaking nearly sinking. The dealer welded the hull to no avail.I discussed the matter with the manufacturer for several days and they wanted me to send boat back to factory. Well I had heard of people not getting thier boats back for a long time and sometimes they still wern't fixed. I told the manufacturer that I had a fishing trip planned in 2wks. and if they didn't give me a new boat that I would put them on local tv consumer report. That worked real well. They gave me a year later model and to this day, knock wood it don't leak. Hope you don't have futher problems.
Mini Moe

[RANGER690]

Hey Moe, You found us. Cool. Welome aboard.

Hey folks, watch this new guy. He is from Carolina!!!! Yuk! Hahahahhahahahaahahhahaah

Moe, see Spin-a-baits post with pics. He is the man to watch. Just follow the red bass boat with the huge catfish rod rack on the back. Mark his spots and get back to me.

Dayton

[Big Cat]

So who is Moe?

[RANGER690]

Um...he is the new guy that just posted above me. Duh.

Oh, he posted on the VCA board. Got no reply. I told him about Tidalshad!

Dayton

[racn35]

And we welcomed Moe as y'all did me, thanx. Welcome Moe

[mini moe]

Hey Big Cat,
It's me Mini Moe from ugh NC, the guy that drinks a lot of coffee and catches hardly any fish. You guys have an awesome place to fish. I envey you. keep on cutting bait and casting. See you on the board and maybe on the James. I usually fish the Jordan Point area.
Dennis (Mini Moe)

[mini moe]

Hey Big Cat,
It's me Mini Moe from ugh NC, the guy that drinks a lot of coffee and catches hardly any fish. You guys have an awesome place to fish. I envey you. keep on cutting bait and casting. See you on the board and maybe on the James. I usually fish the Jordan Point area.
Dennis (Mini Moe)

[mini moe]

Hey Guys,
It's me again bothering the crp. out of you. Sorry about that double post I made last night. I was sleepy and got quick on the click button. Did anyone get killed in that Insanity II boat that centered the channel marker post? That looked bad. We catch a lot of flatheads around here mostly in the yadkin river. Used to catch alot in the 40-45lb. class. If anyone's interested in flatheads ,let me know. I can give some advice on how and where to get them.
Dennis (Moe)

[spin-a-bait]

RANGER690 originally wrote:
Hey Moe, You found us. Cool. Welome aboard.

Hey folks, watch this new guy. He is from Carolina!!!! Yuk! Hahahahhahahahaahahhahaah

Moe, see Spin-a-baits post with pics. He is the man to watch. Just follow the red bass boat with the huge catfish rod rack on the back. Mark his spots and get back to me.

Key word here...."Bass Boat"....anyone who catfishes in a bassboat can't be but so good....
Dayton

[RANGER690]

Well. my baby is home. Looking good. Can't wait to get back out. Going to try some bay/ocean stripers on Saturday.

All you river runners be careful out there and have some fun.

I am buying a drink for the guy who gets the next "Biggest James Cat".

Dayton

[Kajun]

good to hear dayton!!...what did it end up costing ya? or did the insurance pick it up?

[Kajun]

double post..