Fact Check

Boat Trailer Blonde

The story of a blonde and her boat at Lake Isabella.

Published May 19, 2000

Claim:

Joke:   Blonde has a bit of trouble getting her outboard boat to perform properly on a lake.

Example:   [Collected on the Internet, 1999]




A True Story . . .

Last summer, down on Lake Isabella, located in the high desert, an hour east of Bakersfield, California, a blonde (of course!!), new to boating was having a problem. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't get her brand new 22-ft. Bayliner to perform. It wouldn't get on a plane at all, and it was very sluggish in almost every maneuver, no matter how much power she applied.

After about an hour of trying to make it go, she putted over to a nearby marina. Maybe they could tell her what was wrong. A thorough topside check revealed everything was in perfect working order. The engine ran fine, the outdrive went up and down, the prop was the correct size and pitch. So, one of the marina guys jumped in the water to check underneath. He came up choking on water, he was laughing so hard.

(REMEMBER, this is TRUE)

Under the boat, still strapped securely in place was the trailer.



Origins:   We

Blonde

dismissed this anecdote as yet another "blonde joke," but one of our readers claims he took part in a similar experience in 1992 during his days as a designer for Bayliner. He reported that his incident took place at Lake Stevens in Washington State, and was relayed to him by the customer service team dispatched to help a man who had complained bitterly about the atrocious lack of performance of his new watercraft. The man had failed to take his boat off the trailer, but it was not necessary for a service person to go underwater to determine this: the license plate of the trailer was plainly visible under the surface.

Last updated:   27 March 2007


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