Rick,
The swells in January took out those lower protective rails. My son and I pulled them out of the water and pulled them up the beach. They were destroyed by dinks tied to the dock when they shouldn't have been. The trough between swells was low enough to allow dinks under the rails, followed by swells breaking over the top, you get the picture. We were amazed that people were using the dock in those swells, even after being waved off. The 2 typical responses we got were 'It's not ours" or "it's insured". Pulled 2 dinks out from under Quito's. The last set of rails put on there were done by Conservation and Fisheries Dept,(it was a slooooow process).
I think realistically, the dock should have at least another leg if not a "tee" put on for both added room but also for those who insist on tying up during swells. (Other option during swells is fuel dock.)