Author's Response:
Both of these are addressed in the hints and the guide. The boat must be set so it starts at the OTHER side before you send it on a round trip, so you can jump in at the moment when it changes direction. Otherwise the boat leaves without you, and stops moving when it gets back.
The beer game is basically math. You need to force your opponent to place 11 or 12, which means you need to place 10, which means you need to force your opponent to place 8 or 9... you get the idea...