(1) run boat up to temperature to make sure all thermostats are open and circulating

(2) quickly pull out of lake

(3) disconnect lake raw-water inlet and put that hose going to water pump in a small bucket

(4) turn on engine (idle) and put 5-6 gallons of RV antifreeze in bucket to suck though engine and make sure to have good stream of pink coming out the back

(5) fog engine seconds before turning off for the winter

Any thoughts?  Better ideas?

Step 2.....drain the engine and manifolds and put drain plugs back in

Step 3,4,5 same as your step 3,4,5.

If you drain the water first, it's hard to screw up.

When you suck in your 5 or 6 gallons, it fills the empty engine behind the thermostat first and with the engine full, any more antifreeze that goes in goes out the exhaust.

If you don't drain first, you have a lot better chance of screwing up and having a freeze problem because there's mixing that happens in the engine doing it your way and you don't get the same level of protection.

Lots of people do it your way and depending on where they live, they never have a problem because it doesn't get cold enough to freeze and crack the block with the diluted mix or they're just lucky.

Lots of marinas do it your way but circulate the mix and check the protection level with a refractometer and add antifreeze to the recirculating solution till they get the desired reading.

Everybody has "their way" of winterizing, but if that way doesn't include draining first, you're just that much much closer to having a problem.

Oh yeah, one other thing I should mention......DRAIN FIRST   

It lets you sleep better on that coldest night of the year too, instead of tossing and turning andwondering how the boat's doing