Just bought a 2004 Maxum 2500 SE

[rwc]

Hello all,

I have just taken possession of a 2004 Maxum 2500 SE with MCM 5.7L Mercruiser and a Bravo 3 sterndrive. Her name is White Pearl and she was a single owner family boat prior to me buying her.

I'm naval architect, so I know big ships, but this is my first boat, so I know very little (pretty much nothing!) about boats. The boat will continue to be a family boat for my wife, myself, and two small kids. I'll operate the boat in the sheltered waters near Vancouver, Canada and surrounding islands.

I'm guaranteed to have lots of problems and silly questions, but will do my best to read through all of your past experiences first. Great site and thanks, it's already helped!

Wade

[mmwjr]

Welcome aboard

You said it's your first boat but have you boated before? If not I recommend a safe boating course to learn the rules of the road and more.

[rwc]

I've done a fair bit of boating either on rentals or on other people's boats.

I got my license a couple of years ago which goes through a lot of the safety and rules of the road type stuff (weirdly, you can rent without a license in Canada, but have to be licensed to operate a private boat). I've been reading back through that to make sure I'm familiar with the basics. That said, it misses a lot of stuff like boating with kids or docking on anything that isn't a nice big straight, flat chunk of dock.

I'm also hiring an instructor starting next week, but he's a marine biologist uni professor, so not quite sure if it's the same as a safe boating or power squadron type course. We shall see.

First trip out was interesting. Ten years since I've started a carbureted engine, so I forgot that it wouldn't just start by turning the key. Then, I've never pulled into or out of a marina slip, so that was an adventure. Fortunately, my friendly neighbour was there to "catch" me!

[mmwjr]

Remember never go faster than you want to hit the dock.

Take a day off when few people are out and find a cove then practice maneuvering the boat in slow tight turns as close to spinning on a dine to get the feel of her.

Also no breaks and she will always keep moving due to current and wind.

[rwc]

Thanks. I will definitely take that advice. Hoping to do that before the instructor comes so that I can focus on listening rather than stressing that I'm turning the wheel the wrong way.

I was just glad there was nobody behind me because I was a snail! "Catch" in this context meant that he had to pull me in because I stopped well short of the dock with no real intention of getting any closer...