26/12/2017
It’s scary to think that I launched GulfStream coming up on 12 years ago. It has gone by in a flash.
I’m the first to admit that I hadn’t a clue what I was doing back then. When I put it all on the line for my first order of Rinker boats my level of experience in boating and business was embarrassing to say the least.
It was therefore of little surprise when I had all manner of cock-ups in my first couple of years at it. From boats falling off trailers at the slipway to forgetting to put bungs in, running out of fuel on sea trials, breakdowns, tows home, on-board fires and all manner of berthing disasters... you name it, I’ve been there!
It’s surprising I’m still here, let alone still in business!!
God bless my customers from those early days. They really deserve a medal for putting up with us! Some of them are even still around today.
Nowadays I like to think we’ve got a bit better at it. Sure we have the odd mishap, but the completely disastrous days are a thing of the past...
..Or so I thought until a fateful day in the Spring of last year.
As I’m writing this I’m not even sure if I can talk about it yet. It’s still a bit too raw...
Ah well, here goes.
We had a lovely low hours brokerage cruiser for sale. I had personally taken it out of the water at the end of the preceding season and it was running a dream. It had been generating interest from several parties and one chap from England seemed particularly keen. In early Spring he and his friend duly arranged to fly over the see the boat in person and have a sea trial. His chosen day clashed with another customer coming to collect his new boat, but I arranged the viewing and sea trial for the morning and boat collection for the afternoon.
No problem.
I had it all under control...
The day arrived and I had the low hours cruiser sitting in the showroom, gleaming from bow to stern. The chap from England and his pal seemed impressed.
Oh, I should mention that the chap in question is involved in the boating press and writes for a couple of magazines that you may have heard of.
I was thinking, ‘this is great! If all goes well we might get a nice bit of PR out of this.’
It was looking good.
A few minor snags were found, but nothing insurmountable, so we arranged to head to the water for the sea trial.
Said boat was being sold complete with a trailer so we towed the boat over to the river and launched her at the slipway.
The boat started on the button, as I knew she would. A quick look around the engine bay revealed no issues, and we motored off up the river as nice as you like.
Now, the boating journalist who was interested in buying the boat obviously knows a thing or two about sea trialing boats and he was keen to put it through it’s paces.
Nothing too extreme. And nothing the boat couldn’t handle with aplomb. But I’d say it was probably the most vigorous shake down that the boat had had in a while. And this within the first 30 minutes of use after a winter lay up.
Anyway, all was going good. The boat was running well and I was starting to imagine all the business this influential journo could send my way. ‘This is great!’ I thought to myself again.
Right around this point the boat started to slow a bit. Throttle response seemed a little sluggish. We came down off the plane and as the boat sank back into the water my heart began to sink with it...
‘Typical’ I thought. ‘What the bloody hell is wrong with this thing?’ It had never done this before.
I tried to play it cool...
"Maybe it’s just a bit of dirty fuel" I suggested. "Sure put the boat back up on plane and we’ll see how it goes".
The helmsman obliged and nailed the throttle. It felt like we were being pushed along by a 10HP outboard. The boat was going super slow and as she struggled to get up on plane the dash lit up like a Christmas tree and the engine alarm began blaring.
‘Oh here we go’ I thought. I could sense the sale slipping away from me...
We immediately backed off and I suggested we open the engine hatch for a little look-see.
The spectacle that greeted me was the single most horrifying sight that I have seen on-board a boat (and I’ve seen some sights!)
The engine room was at least half full of water!!!
I was amazed that the engine was still running, especially given the fact that the front pulleys were frothing the water so much that the whole engine bay was doing a great impression of a hot tub on full bubbles!
All thoughts of closing the sale immediately disappeared from my mind.
This boat was trying its best to sink with one of the UK’s most esteemed boating journalists, his buddy and me on board. Forget about getting a sale, imagine the PR disaster this was gonna be!!
I immediately jumped on the helm and pointed the boat back toward the slipway.
I thought it best that we close the engine hatch and just pray that we make it back before the boat sinks or the engine stops...
Mercifully we were only a few minutes away from the slip, but it felt like an eternity!
At this point (and for some time afterwards) we had no idea what was causing the leak, so rather than thrash the motor to get back, I kept her at a steady 2,000 rpm or so and was making around 10 knots.
As we approached the slipway I was running out of prayers, but I noticed that the trailer was still in the water. 'Thank the lord'.
There would be no pussyfooting around putting this boat back on the trailer...
Afraid that the engine might cut out at any moment, I kept it lit and resolved to myself that we were getting on the trailer in one shot, by hook or by crook.
We hit the trailer bang on the middle, in one go, doing roughly 10 knots!
The trailer took a bit of a wallop, but we were home and dry.
Crisis averted!
I was never so pleased to get a boat onto a trailer in my life.
We got the boat pulled up the slipway and all the water pumped out. And with no glaring cause to the fault and all souls in fine fettle, my thoughts naturally returned to the sale...
Ever the optimist, I reckoned I could maybe pull this one back out of the fire!!
I suggested that it must be something fairly minor. They’re certainly weren’t any holes in the boat. And, check out the reliability of that motor? Half submerged and the thing never even coughed!
I was really talking the whole thing around.
After all, there was not only the sale but also the PR at stake!
I wasn’t sure if my efforts were having the intended effect but the boating journo was too polite to crush me there and then. So he was nodding along in all the right places. He was definitely going to give it some more consideration.
‘That’s good’ I thought. I mean, under the circumstances it’s probably the best outcome I could hope for...
I optimistically helped the journalist and his pal climb down from the boat and we stood making pleasantries while my assistant prepared the load for the short journey back to the showroom.
..It was at this point that we noticed the front wheel of the trailer sitting at what could politely be described as a jaunty angle...
Closer inspection revealed that the front axle suspension unit had collapsed and was a complete write-off. No doubt due to our slightly heavy landing minutes earlier.
It was now that the charade was dropped...
The journalist came over to commiserate with me and very gently tell me that he wouldn’t be buying the boat.
This was quickly followed up by a request for a lift back to the showroom so that they could get their car and head home.
I wanted to head home too...
So I left the stricken boat at the slipway and we went back to the yard. I said cheerio and offered my apologies to the journalist and his pal, and I feebly tried to explain that things usually go much better than this!
As they pulled out of the gate, my afternoon appointment arrived - the guy who was coming to collect his new boat.
I put a brave face on and eventually got him loaded up and away with no problems. He was happy... for now.
Once he left it was time to head back to the slipway and recover the basket case.
Half way there, my phone rang.
It was guy who had just left with his new boat...
He was only a couple of miles into his journey and one of the wheels of his trailer had just passed him on the hard-shoulder and promptly bounced through the hedge. He was just enquiring as to whether I knew anything about this or happened to have another wheel to hand?...
I wanted to cry.
*photo is not the actual boat. It’s a representation of what could’ve happened!
