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Is there a way to give someone a tow fast?


wakeboarder3780

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Hey crew, gave someone a tow in last night (second time) since owning the bu, but last night they were a LONG ways away from where they trailered. Got me thinking while we spent 20 mins towing them back if there was a faster way to tow them in. They tied up to their front hook and I just put them on my ski pylon.

I was wondering if you could rig up a line to hook up to both of my transom hooks with his line hooked up and able to slip on this line creating a load balancer.

Bottom line - is there anyway to tow someone fast? I would have much rather towed them 20 mph and just focused on really gradually slowing down so they didn't ram me at the end. I can be patient and go slow but if there is a better way I want to know it.

Edit: I was towing them about 6mph and it felt like there was a good deal of tension on the line.

Edited by wakeboarder3780
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Holy Crap. I would be scared to death if I was around a boat being towed that fast.

Usually the longer the rope the faster you can tow (less prop wash, and wider wake for them to stay in). I keep a 100' rope in the bow for emergency tows usually I tow about the speed you would tow behind a house boat 7 mph ish.

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Is there a general speed most people tow? I generally see people towing at "idle".

Way too many variables. Hardware on towing and towed boat, power, conditions, weight of towed boat, on and on. Of course, you could tow a 16 foot whaler faster than a X-80. So, its really impossible to answer the question with a safe speed becasue there are far too many variables.

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Towing anybody that is broken down is simply paying things forward. If there are kids on board, the decision is pretty much automatic. In our lake most folks board and surf up the river arms, a tow is usually 1 to 1.5 hours. We might as well kick back, open the cooler, turn up the music and enjoy the ride. A few miles per hour max using a 6 person tube rope off the back hook. Anything you try to do in a hurry on a boat usually ends up with less then the desired outcome- unless of course you are picking a seasoned wakeboarder and side starts are common. Trying to tow fast will break something- hooks or rope that pretty much fly like a rocket and sound like a shotgun.

Any length of tow gives everybody involved time to contemplate their belly buttons; I figure if we pull 3 boats in per season and if we ever break down again it will be like breaking even- That and we only need to empty the trash as all the food and drinks are consumed. Oh and the interior of the boat is spotless by the time we hit the dock- yep too much starbucks.

Last year we thought we broke down and towed by a 1950s wood boat @ first I was pretty much beside myself that the boat would not start but when your battery terminal is too tight and breaks off- and you don't look to see whats up- you end up getting a long tow. In hindsight, I could have just put the terminal back on the battery and started the boat.

Edited by JAXONBOATS
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The first day we got our boat we had to tow in a 2005 wakesetter I believe. No power, nothin. In hindsight it was probably the master fuse. Took about an hour. Nice and slow. I wasn't about to screw up our new toy. It was dark. The marina guy was pissed because he had already locked the gate. I'm like "we were fulfilling our maritime obligation!"

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i can (and have) pulled some towing that was just too long.

i do feel i have a responsibility to get those broken down folks to safety.

i not convinced that i have to give them a tour of the pond.

if the options are dropping them off in 5 minutes at the closest attended dock or an hour and a half at their trailer i don't see the problem with letting them do some leg work, drop a dime, call a cab/friends, etc.. another twist is that once their boat is moored safely i can pull their driver into my boat and blast them up to their trailer.

majority of the time they have a sick boat because they are boneheads; why should i work my tail off keeping my boat ready then spend my free time towing?

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Depends on the boat being towed, if its another boat the same weight than slow is good due to the fact the tow points at the back transom are not made for "heavy towing"

If its a light boat such as a 15ft aluminum dingy. I would have no problem towing on the plane at 15-30 km/hr. As long as the tow rope is connected to the low bow eyelet on the front of the boat. If the rope is high the boat swings left to right. Also jack the out board up.

If its an inboard have one or two people in the boat being towed to steer the boat. If there are kids put them in the tow boat.

When towing a boat you will make a larger wake so be aware around marinas, and be extra aware of wind, current and obstetrical.

If it goes bad cut the boat lose and have the dead boat throw out the anchor if required.

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If there is a ramp near the break down area, offer to tow their disabled boat there. Then you can take the disabled boats owner to their truck/trailer at cruise speed and they can drive it to their dead boat. Much faster and efficient if it will be a long tow.

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