Safe Boat Handling

I know what I have learned the hard way and what I have been taught, but I'm always open to consider a different perspective.

What should any boater know to handle chop?

Waves?

At what point or intensity does your approach or technique change.

Is it wind blown spray? Not much you can do about that. Hull shapes can affect that to a certain extent.

Are you sticking the nose into a wave, maybe clipping off 50 gallons or so? I learned real quick on a Ranger, that it's easy to do. What the hull wanted was more speed to bring the bow up and over the waves. A good hand on the throttle is essential. I know, some folks like a hotfoot, I don't. I have more control with the hand throttle. I am not sure just what it was that taught me to handle a bass boat on rough water. Practice would be first on that list. A desire for a comfortable ride helps.

I started in a Fisher Marsh Hawk 3V. A 16' Aluminum bass boat, graduated to a 16'8" Champion and finally my Ranger 481VS. But I have been fortunate to have driven many more boats. I have ridden with many other in tournaments. Some good and some not so good. I suppose I learned a lot about running stump fields and rivers from some of those folks.

I have been in some scary water. I have also had fun. I can remember on Rend Lake in Southern Illinois, whooping it up, roller coasting in the big wide waves coming in for weight-in. While we had a good time, others showed up wet, trolling motors ripped off mounts, tackle gone, windshields broken, and scared stiff of that big lake. It was just timing, on and off the throttle gave us a superb ride in those waves.

Pool 19 on the Mississippi. Day one of a Federation 8 man team event. I had my little 16'8" Champion. Took a little spray in the boat, and it was interesting at the ramp with the high current, but I really had no problem. Other boats were stuck at Navoo, unable to get past the big waves with the wind blowing into a fast current. Boats were damaged. One capsized at the ramp. Another hit the Burlington, Iowa bridge and destroyed the topcap. A member of our team bent a prop shaft hitting the bottom between the waves. Yet another hit a piece of steel and punched a 3/4" hole thru the lower unit. I was told that five older boats became part of the river that day. Day two was canceled. No one drowned was the best news of the day.

My little Champion was responsive enough with the 150hp Merc, that you could back off the throttle, almost stopping and hammer it to bring the bow up for the next wave. You could turn on the wave and run it lengthwise, turn and go for the next big one at a lower height. Was great fun to drive, but took longer in the big water. If that boat ever filled with water, it would have gone to the bottom. It had zero flotation in it. We took plastic bags and filled them with foam peanuts and stuffed them in all the inner hull access panels. When the live well drain broke it came close to flooding the boat. A problem with older Champ's. It almost became part of the Ohio river, so it was an incentive to add the foam peanuts in bags.

The worst water for me, is when you have wakes for boats or barges, along with current, in a channel. Those waves get to bouncing back and forth and it's simply not a nice place to be. I usually trim down some and let the V on the hull try to cut it. Rough, real rough. I back off the throttle a bit to soften it, but you have to keep the bow up also. A 4 blade prop helps in rough water. Easier to keep the bow up.

Well, the other worst place to be is behind a tow, headed somewhere on the river in a hurry. They can create waves that cannot be imagined. Taller than my Ranger is in length. Do not get between one and the riverbank. They can put you high and dry if your not careful.

The worst beatings I took was always with other people. I got my calves bruised black and blue in a Ranger 362 on the Ohio river. I swore I would never, ever ride with the guy again. Had those flip down seats, which made for a nice open layout, but it bounced my calves against the fuel tanks we were sitting on. Could not hardly walk for a week. No need to drive wide open in windblown waves. Ego problem.

I always try to keep and eye on what's out a ways, with most of my attention on the here and now stuff. But you don't want to be caught by surprise. If you know that it's bad where you are, think ahead to where you may have to change direction. Are you going to be able to make that turn, or come around a point and have waves twice as tall. What about water that is just a few feet deep out in the middle of the lake. In big waves, there may be no water in the troughs. Same with points on a lake. Those stump covered points you can normally run right over, may have 3 foot wide stumps out in the air between waves.

You know, I would rather run rough water on any lake really, than rising water on a river. Problem with rivers is trash in the water. You can pull into a slough on the river one day and see 500, 50 to 100 foot tall cottonwood trees stacked up in there from a flood. A week later another flood might have floated them and washed them all downriver. Right in the main channel where your running from a tournament launch. I have seen boats that have hit wing dams and big trees. You can bend a Mercury where the lower unit attaches to the powerhead. And it will still run. Not very well, but it will get you home. Well, maybe not always. LOL

Not sure what anyone will learn from my ramblings. I guess they will say that I have a lot of experience. Sorry I don't articulate it well.

Carlos

Chris

Chris, bring it on up here and I'll throw the 25 on it for a day of fishing :<}

danl4x@charter.net Remove the x for e-mail reply www.outdoorfrontiers.com

http://www.boatsafe.com/nauticalknowhow/safetips.htm

Things like trying to cut wakes at 90 deg in a V-Hull or rolling parrallel over wakes in a flat bottom boat.

A good angle to cut waves, or when it is better to run directly away from the wind.

Working the throttle to optimize going over vs. plowing through waves.

I'm not making any specific claims about the best way to handle any of these situations. I'm just saying when people claim that its all about boat handling then there should be atleast some obvious things a person can do to improve the situation.

And as my original inquiry about "dry ride" implies there are certainly differences in what different boats can handle and the best way to approach some situations.

Rich P