The FFF Barramundi Board

After talking to a few mates about some bad experiences with taking people out fishing in the past it got me thinking. Some say they would prefer to go by themselves than take them again...

Ive had some deckies in the past that have been hard work, and some deckies that are A+. So what do you reckon are the do's and dont's for being a deckie on your boat? I know its not always possible for them to be able to do everything but I guess it comes down to a helpful attitiude and a lot of it comes down to their boating experiences. The people I fish with these days are all great deckies and most have their own boats as well which I think makes it easier.

My favourite deckies....

Never wait to be asked to chip in for fuel, ice, fishing costs. Always insist on paying their way.
Offer to bring or make lunch.
Never ask to be dropped off home. They meet you and stay til the end and help clean the boat.
Offer to drive the car or boat at some stage.
Always offer to get the anchor, tie off rope.
Its always a bonus if they can reverse the boat/trailer in/out.
Bring their own fishing gear and can tie their own knots (not always possible).

Just interested on people thoughts as I know some people are pretty adamant with who they fish with. Nothing beats fishing with a great deckie I reckon!

Never wait to be asked to chip in for fuel, ice, fishing costs. Always insist on paying their way.
Offer to bring or make lunch.
Never ask to be dropped off home. They meet you and stay til the end and help clean the boat.
Offer to drive the car or boat at some stage.
Always offer to get the anchor, tie off rope.
Its always a bonus if they can reverse the boat/trailer in/out.
Bring their own fishing gear and can tie their own knots (not always possible).

AND NEVER DRINK THE SKIPPERS UNLESS INVITED OR

They must be on time I have been known to leave home without my deckie.

My favourite deckies. MUST...

Never wait to be asked to chip in for fuel, ice, fishing costs. Always insist on paying their way.
Offer to bring or make lunch & a few drinks
Never ask to be dropped off home. They meet you and stay til the end and help clean the boat.
Offer to drive the boat at some stage.
Always get the anchor, tie off rope, Minnkota
Must be able to reverse the boat/trailer in/out.
Bring their own fishing gear and can tie their own knots .
Offer to pay for lost lures.
Preferreably a NON Smoker !!

Surely Im not asking too much ?? .............am I ???

If the above doesnt happen ....its probably thier first & last trip..

The best deckies fish hard and dont p..s and moan when the fishing gets tough. That starts to feel like a charter again to me and it is my pet hate. Cant stand someone who gives up after 5 casts and says there is nothing here. we all know that fish can turn on in an instant and switch off even quicker. A tidy person is also a good asset as I hate having shyte all over the deck and you cant move around.

Ive never had a deckie until recently and I now know why.
He did everything wrong in accordance wiith the etiquite rules
Not onlyid ne not offer to pay fuel, he had no cash and borrowed $100 from me. (I know, more fool me)

I chased him for 3 weeks to get my 100 back.
I nearly had to call in the 'boys' to kneecap him
he was dirty that he had to haul the anchor, retreive the boat, didnt want to help packing up, didnt want to get dirty,

then when we called into the bark hut, he bought himself a beer and sat down. They dont teach young blokes the rules of life anymore
needless to say, he wont be back
I have calmed dow now though

nomad wrote:Ive never had a deckie until recently and I now know why.
He did everything wrong in accordance wiith the etiquite rules
Not onlyid ne not offer to pay fuel, he had no cash and borrowed $100 from me. (I know, more fool me)

I chased him for 3 weeks to get my 100 back.
I nearly had to call in the 'boys' to kneecap him
he was dirty that he had to haul the anchor, retreive the boat, didnt want to help packing up, didnt want to get dirty,

then when we called into the bark hut, he bought himself a beer and sat down. They dont teach young blokes the rules of life anymore
needless to say, he wont be back
I have calmed dow now though

Man you stood a lot there. I would have accepted the inevitable and left him at the bark hut.

Hmm I prefer to just fish alone than bother with deckies.. I occasionally have family or friends up so I enjoy the company on the water then.
My pet hate when it comes to deckies is people who smash ya boat up, dent it and scratch it. I also get the s...ts with people who seem to think its ok to try hook ya with lures. Flicking them so hard back that they launch out of the water and either smash into the boat or make ya duck for cover or the types who dont seem to understand how to cast without sending lures wizzing past your head. Then there are the folks who seem to find every snag possible. I sometimes get the odd sooker, generally they are people who havnt chased barra before and wont pay attention to any suggestions I make then get all sooky and cranky when I catch all the fish. I like to keep my boat nice and tidy so I get the s...ts when someone spills their smelly food all over the place or turns the boat into an obstacle course. There are the folks who insist on making a big song and dance about dropping their guts.. fair enough we all need to let a little gas out at times but seriously spending hours listening to someone near on poop their pants gets old very quickly. As far as paying for fuel and cleaning the boat. I dont mind paying for fuel, most times I take someone out im gonna be going out anyway so it doesnt bother me. Id rather clean the boat myself.. call me strange but i kind of enjoy it lol. Smoking doesnt bother me, I smoke myself but i just make sure the smoker doesnt flick ash all over the place and make sure their butts go into my 'butts bottle' and not out into the water. If my deckies dont smoke I make sure if im smoking the wind isnt blowing the smoke back to them. Thankfully no deckies have complained about me smoking, if they do then they get to go for a swim. The only person who has a sook about me having a smoke is my g/f and she doesnt like fishing or boats so its all good lol.
So yeah, I am probably a bit picky about deckies so it is probably better for all invilved if I fish alone.

Got be keen like cuddles stated, i love me fishing and will fish from dawn to dusk.. Not big fan deckies who give up after 5 cast's. i usally take them ones to shoal bay for a day in a low tide hole, they never ask again...
If there keen all the other stuff is usually a given anchor fuel etc

There's the other side of the coin as well, not all skippers are fun to be around i've been a deckie and had the front of the boat driven into trees everytime and while you're sorting stuff out getting spiders out of your hair and picking up all the debris he's down the back casting away get it settled have a cast and he wants to move spots...he also decided to take off WOT while I was standing on the transom having a leak and took off while I treaded water waiting for him to look over his shoulder, takes all types

itsinmeblood wrote:There's the other side of the coin as well, not all skippers are fun to be around i've been a deckie and had the front of the boat driven into trees everytime and while you're sorting stuff out getting spiders out of your hair and picking up all the debris he's down the back casting away get it settled have a cast and he wants to move spots...he also decided to take off WOT while I was standing on the transom having a leak and took off while I treaded water waiting for him to look over his shoulder, takes all types

HA ha been there. Some people shouldnt own boats. Im probably one of them.

Although I shouldn't be surprised i suppose - It must be something to do with having owned boats before.

It used to amaze me how people would accept an invite for a day on the Murray water skiing, let their kids ski all day while they sat on the bank drinking beer, never offer to observe, then pack up and leave without offering to help get the boat on the trailer, load it up with all the ski gear they'd been using or offerring to put in for petrol.

I ended up buying a t-shirt that had big letters on the back saying "Boats run on petrol, not thanks"

My other hate is people that would spend the day fishing in the boat, leaving the baot covered in scales, old bait, squid ink etc and then when you got back and parked the boat in the driveway, jump out, grab the fish they'd caught and "see ya" leaving you to wash the boat down.

Having said all that, it's not about the petrol, or the cleaning or anything else really.........It's about the offer!!!

Someone who listens to what I ask them to do, pays their share and helps clean up. I don't mind teaching people but I don't tolerate fools lightly.

Must be able to get out of bed on time (Phil you reading this) although much improved.Youve gone to all the trouble to get gear & boat ready then when you arrive at deckies place hes is still in bed & uncontactable.You can then go alone i guess if chasing Barra but tough on your pat malone when Billfishing.

luke79 wrote: There are the folks who insist on making a big song and dance about dropping their guts.. fair enough we all need to let a little gas out at times but seriously spending hours listening to someone near on poop their pants gets old very quickly. .

Funniest sentence I have read for a while!!!! nearly did a little wee!!

Where do I start. I never fish alone so I have a massive list of things I like my decky to do / not to do. The most important ones are
1. Pay your way. I am not a charity
2. Offer to help wash the car / boat. I am happy to do it myself but if the offer is made that is just as good and I will usually say "Na mate its right"
3. The deckie can take their car from time to time. If the deckie is driving, they can't get p...ed then say "Who do you reckon should drive"
4. Don't farking put any hooks into me
5. If something farks up (flat tyres / car is broken into etc) offer to chip in for a replacement. Again, I will probably say na it's right mate, but if the offer is made that is just as good to me.
6. If you can't be bothered to help clean up, then at least clean the fish or vice versa. I don't care which I do but not both.
7. If my boat and trailer are attached to the rear of your vehicle, don't drive like a dickhead.

Thats about it really. All about a bit of common sense and respect for your fishing mates I reckon.

Cheers

Matt