Memories of my Dad and truck toppers on boat ramps.
Today is one month since we lost my Dad. Having been down for back surgery rehab, I've had lots of time to reminisce of times with my Dad.
In the late 80's I was fishing a lot of bass tournaments in our adopted home of Conyers, Georgia. As many wannabees like myself were inclined to do, I had my name and hometown on the side of my boat. I guess that was supposed to make me appear more like some kind of fishing pro, which I was far from being even though I did OK.
Vicki and I along with our then infant daughter, Heather, were home to Benton for an April vacation. I pulled my Skeeter HP-150 Wrangler to KY lake so we could spend as much time as possible on the lake. My 1st day on the lake I hit a stump with my brand new trolling motor and sheared the plastic reduction gears. I spent that day and the next getting it fixed.
As Dad and I finally got on the lake to spend the day chasing crappie, the weather was cold and windy. We put in a valiant effort but the crappie didn't want to cooperate and Dad wasn't as die-hard as I was to endure such conditions. Mid day we headed back to the ramp at Sportsman's Lodge and Marina.
In those days the ramp at Sportsman's was 3 individual lanes separated by concrete block dividers. I was driving a Ford F-100 with an aluminum topper with plastic side "glass" that were well past being usable for seeing out of. Dad was very capable when it came to backing farm equipment and such but my truck presented a real issue for him. He chose to turn around and look out the back glass instead of using the over-sized side mirrors I had installed. As he lined my truck up with the outside of 3 lanes, there was an old man and his wife in a similar truck with topper in the center lane. They were having all kinds of trouble backing down the narrow lanes and the wife was outside of the truck and behind/beside it trying to help by yelling directions to her husband. When he made a turn different to her directions, he was showered with cuss words that would have embarrassed many sailors. To say their ramp coordination wasn't going well would have been an understatement.
Dad was making decent progress looking over his shoulder backing down the ramp. It was then I watched a disaster forming. As I was waiting to pull my Skeeter up onto the trailer as soon as Dad got it far enough down the ramp, the old lady stepped over the concrete block divider and onto our lane, oblivious of my truck easing down that lane. I started screaming and waving my arms to get Dad's attention but neither he or the old lady got the message. As my trailer inched toward the water, it was also inching toward the back of her legs. When the 2 met. she was knocked off balance and sat down onto the carpeted flat area behind the wheel. It caught her off guard and I don't remember her saying a word as Dad proceeded to back my trailer into the water with the old lady still perched on the back of it. When Dad stopped, the water level was almost arm-pit deep on the lady. I was surprised she didn't float off. It was then the Dad realized the error of his ways and pulled the trailer back out of the water so she could step off. I pulled my boat up onto the concrete ramp to make sure she was OK.
About the time I got my feet onto the concrete, she stood up. At the same time, her husband realized something was amiss and he got out of his truck. When he saw his wife and she told him what happened, he started laughing his butt off. WRONG MOVE!!! The cussing took on a new level, direction, and meaning. As the 2 of them went at it, Dad backed the trailer back down and I loaded the boat. When we got to the top of the ramp, both of us went to the lady to make sure she was OK. She said she was fine but cold. Her husband had quit laughing and both of them accepted our profuse apologies.
We secured the boat as they finally got theirs loaded up. We waited until they got back to the parking area and made sure they were OK.
Dad and I both decided it was time for us to get out of there before the mood changed. As I drove toward Mom and Dad's house, we both exploded laughing as I told Dad what I had witnessed. It was then that I realized my name and hometown was plastered on the side of my boat. OH CRAP!!! Here comes the lawsuit! Luckily it never came. Dad and I got some serious laughs the rest of his life over the ramp incident. It did make both of us much more observant when backing trailers up.
