My boat is smaller (17'), so I have just 8' whips. I tie the dock ropes on the cleats so as to have the side of the stern one large step from the dock. Then I adjust the ropes from the whips for enough tension to keep the boat off the dock as waves roll in. The ropes get adjusted now and then as lake level drops. When I go out, I slip the dock ropes off the cleats; I have other ropes on board in case I want to dock elsewhere. On return, the dock ropes slip back on the cleats first, then the whip ropes. That way the boat/dock clearance stays the same.
When boarding the boat while the whip ropes are in place, and assuming the place on the boat (eg. aft platform) is that one large step away, commit to boarding in one smooth motion. Do not put one foot onto the boat and leave the other on the dock for any length of time. Ask one of our extended family members what might happen!
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