Going Single

Handling a single engine boat is easy when you know the right techniques

By Dusty Miller

I was standing by a gas dock one Saturday afternoon when a small boat came in with a man and two children on board. The man brought the boat in quickly, cut the engine and told his daughter, quite forcefully, to grab the dock. She was about 10 and did as she was told. Fortunately, one of the dock staff grabbed the boat too, but think about what might have happened if the youngster had misjudged or the dock staff hadn’t been quick. The young girl could have broken her finger, hand or wrist because she didn’t have the strength to fend off or stop the momentum.

Handling a single engine boat is easy when you know the techniques – and they’re pretty simple, particularly in smaller boats. The difficulty arises from having most of the weight located at the stern, which means the bow tends to wave around like a flame in the wind. So you have to be gentle at low speeds, in channels or around docks.

First of all, go slowly. As you approach the dock, slow down to idle and take the engine out of gear. To steer, turn the wheel slightly in the direction you want to go, put the engine in gear for a few revolutions then put it back in neutral. I call this “Touch In, Touch Out.” If you aren’t getting as much turn as you want, do it again. Touch In, Touch Out as often as you have to, but – and this is very important – do not turn the wheel when the engine is in gear. This can cause real problems as it can whip the bow around too quickly and throw everything totally out of whack.

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