Tip of the Week

It’s still a week away, but you know you’re already imagining yourself out on the water on the 4th of July. Fishing, skiing, flying across the water at open throttle, sitting on the side of the road with a flat tire…

Right. Nobody includes that in their holiday plans. Unfortunately, too many people end up including it in their vacation anyway. Right now is the time to make sure that you’re not the guy sitting on the side of the road with a broken down trailer, watching everyone else driving towards fun on the water.

• Tires: In most cases, a flat tire is easy to prevent. Check your tire pressure. Low tire pressure puts a lot of extra stress on the tire, causing it to fail faster and easier. Check the tires themselves. Is the tread wearing thin? Are there cracks in the rubber? Are their any bulges? All of these indicate a tire that’s about to fail. If you notice these, replace the tire.
• Wheels: You’ve seen the poor schmoe sitting on the side of the road looking at a trailer that only has one wheel. A quick check of the lug nuts can prevent this. Lugs should be tightened to 90 ft-lbs. They should be in good condition; no excessive corrosion or cracks.
• Lights: Holiday weeks are busy on the roads. Properly functioning lights are important in these conditions. Brake lights and turn signals can do a lot to prevent your boat–and you–from being in a collision. They can also save you from an expensive traffic ticket. Before you head out on the road, just take 5 minutes to make sure everything lights up the way it should, and do it early enough so that you have time to fix things if there’s a problem.
• Spares: In the event that something does happen, be sure you have spares; spare tire & wheel, and spare bulbs for your lights.

Go check things out tonight when you get home, so that you’re all set to head out next week. We want to see you on the water–not on the side of the road.