The Legalities - Day One
Got the boat home on Sunday without a hitch. We just sat there looking at it for a few hours, sipping lemonade and reflecting on the good fortune of getting such a great boat at such a great price. I decided there and then that I was going to repay the kindness of the previous owner, specifically his renewal of the trailer registration, by getting the boat legal and ready to go the next day so that I could send his plates and registration back to him immediately. Unfortunately, no act of kindness goes unpunished sometimes...
Day One
Monday morning I got up and did some work to make certain that there would be no "fires" in my absence and headed for the DMV in the Georgetown Park Mall. I was greated by the "triage" employee, a nice woman with a smile and a "good morning sir, how can we help you?"
I told her that I needed to register my trailer. What do I need to do?
I was then informed that I needed to have the trailer inpsected first and then come back with the appropriate documentation. Not a problem, until she asked me if it was a boat trailer and did it have a boat on it. It did, I told her, and she shook her head with that "silly boat owner man" look and informed me that the boat can not be on the trailer for the inspection! Now I instantly switch from a casual, buffet-esque demeanor and go into problem solving mode. WHERE THE HELL AM I GOING TO STORE THIS THING WHILE I GET IT INSPECTED?? I hadn't done the research yet on marinas becasue I was going to trailer the boat. I knew of a few ramps in the area, but how much would that cost? What if the trailer did not PASS inspection? How long could I leave the boat in the water? Etc, etc.
OK I would figure it out. Next stop Harbor Master's office. Resume casual, buffet-esque demeanor...
The Harbor Master folks were amazing! I could tell from their smiles and friendly faces that I had entered the boating world that I had always known growing up around boaters and marinas with my parents. In about 5 minutes, the paperwork was done and the boat, at least, was legal. I then asked the helpful people there if they knew anything about getting a boat trailer inspected. Again I got the head shake but this time it was accomianied by the "poor poor boat guy" look. They knew my predicament and could feel my pain. I was told, however, that the DMV person was correct. The boat had to come off the trailer...
I ran home and started making calls to the marinas that I knew, explained my predicament and finally found one that would help me out...for a $5 ramp fee, provided that my boat got out that day. AWESOME! Gotta love the boating community!
I'll wait until tomorrow, so I can be sure to have enough time to get all this done...
Day One
Monday morning I got up and did some work to make certain that there would be no "fires" in my absence and headed for the DMV in the Georgetown Park Mall. I was greated by the "triage" employee, a nice woman with a smile and a "good morning sir, how can we help you?"
I told her that I needed to register my trailer. What do I need to do?
I was then informed that I needed to have the trailer inpsected first and then come back with the appropriate documentation. Not a problem, until she asked me if it was a boat trailer and did it have a boat on it. It did, I told her, and she shook her head with that "silly boat owner man" look and informed me that the boat can not be on the trailer for the inspection! Now I instantly switch from a casual, buffet-esque demeanor and go into problem solving mode. WHERE THE HELL AM I GOING TO STORE THIS THING WHILE I GET IT INSPECTED?? I hadn't done the research yet on marinas becasue I was going to trailer the boat. I knew of a few ramps in the area, but how much would that cost? What if the trailer did not PASS inspection? How long could I leave the boat in the water? Etc, etc.
OK I would figure it out. Next stop Harbor Master's office. Resume casual, buffet-esque demeanor...
The Harbor Master folks were amazing! I could tell from their smiles and friendly faces that I had entered the boating world that I had always known growing up around boaters and marinas with my parents. In about 5 minutes, the paperwork was done and the boat, at least, was legal. I then asked the helpful people there if they knew anything about getting a boat trailer inspected. Again I got the head shake but this time it was accomianied by the "poor poor boat guy" look. They knew my predicament and could feel my pain. I was told, however, that the DMV person was correct. The boat had to come off the trailer...
I ran home and started making calls to the marinas that I knew, explained my predicament and finally found one that would help me out...for a $5 ramp fee, provided that my boat got out that day. AWESOME! Gotta love the boating community!
I'll wait until tomorrow, so I can be sure to have enough time to get all this done...
posted by venture17 at 10:49 AM
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