Not such a good day at the lake.

[Afun]

Afun- wasnt try to get the thread rollin OR fire ya up. Just restating what you had already said; your OWN rollers caught you off guard and put you in a situation where you had to make a quick decision. In the moment, you had enough hours under your belt to make the right one. Awesome. However, it should be noted, you did NOT have enough hours under your belt to keep yourself free and clear of your own wave in the first place. You put yourself in a bad spot. No biggie. you dealt with it. Now..... before you take offense to that, understand; I'm not saying I or anyone else here is the worlds best driver...... But I think in a few seasons, you'll laugh at the notion that one day you had to take evasive action because of your own wave. That simply wont happen with more time under your belt. I know personally, I have to take that type of action maybe 5 times a summer..... And it's ALWAYS because of the completely unpredictable/dumb actions of other boats OR very large commercial traffic...... And always when we are maxed out ballast/passenger wise..... And usually on a crowded river.

And JS: I think it's beyond cool that you posted your experience here. Too many would be too proud to do that. But realize it really does help the next guy! It should also remind us all (for those of us that take it seriously anyway) to stay on-point when we're ballasted up.

Yeah right...you wanted to get me going, lol. Norris was a little unusual the other day. The roller from the other boat is what caused the massive U-turn. I was trying to avoid getting to close to the shore and getting out of the way off other boats. I saw my rollers coming at me, but since I had power under the throttle and my nose was up....no problem getting over them. I don't think I was in the position to throttle down at any point and let my own rollers pass. We immediately left and found much better water with much less traffic. That's the beauty of Norris. We always have some place to go.

[Afun]

Glad you have it dialed in, I don't know if I could feel good about having my boat slammed to the rubrail with 10 people in it. The wakeboard wake must be rediculous! I'm surprised you can plane out and ride. What engine and prop do you run? Total weight?

I am also surprised about planing with that many people in the boat. The other day with a total of seven people and the wedge stowed, I had two move the biggest guys to the very front of the bow. She started to plane, but it was a PITA...

[robtr8]

Pretty evident that a boat slammed like that is no longer seaworthy.

Pretty evident that a boat slammed like that can't quickly retrieve and/or protect from oncoming traffic the downed rider.

Why is this acceptable?

Seems like an "It's all fun and games until someone looses an eye" situation.

[Chattwake]

Oh, come on, don't turn this into a bash those who slam their boats thread. If you know how to drive a heavily loaded boat, you very rarely will get into trouble at all. If you do, it's from other boats, and not yours. Most of the time, you're not going to bother even attempting to ride and burn the gas with a slammed boat unless you have great conditions anyway.

[Chattwake]

The moral of this thread is just be aware of who you put behind the wheel. That's it.

[shawndoggy]

I dunno rob, put two little kids in the bow of an rlxi, and you have the same issue, right? I think it's more about the conditions you are willing to safely endure with a given vessel. Remember the guy whose little unballasted boat sunk last year because of the jet ski wakes?

[tn_rider]

Pretty evident that a boat slammed like that is no longer seaworthy.

Pretty evident that a boat slammed like that can't quickly retrieve and/or protect from oncoming traffic the downed rider.

Why is this acceptable?

Seems like an "It's all fun and games until someone looses an eye" situation.

Are you kidding me?? So what you are saying is instead of blocking the path of the boat that is putting your rider in danger what would you do? Continue to idle?? Also saying that a slammed boat wouldn't have time to get back to the rider...idk about you but the people in my boat ALWAYS pay attention to the rider and will let the driver know seconds after him falling. You must not pay much attention. I'm never far from a downed rider. If another boat is headed toward my downed rider I immediately turn and block the path of that boat.

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[robtr8]

Shawn, you're absolutely right. That's why I don't let anybody up there. Did it once, didn't like the results.

tn, you're absolutely right, that is what I expect the driver to do. But if you have to feather the throttle, wait for your own wake to go by, then go back, it doesn't seem timely.

I plead complete ignorance to the finer points of barge seamanship, why I'm asking.

[tn_rider]

Shawn, you're absolutely right. That's why I don't let anybody up there. Did it once, didn't like the results.

tn, you're absolutely right, that is what I expect the driver to do. But if you have to feather the throttle, wait for your own wake to go by, then go back, it doesn't seem timely.

I plead complete ignorance to the finer points of barge seamanship, why I'm asking.

All I'm saying is, if my rider is down, and another boat is in my downed riders path, I'm throwing the throttle back down and turning as fast as I can. I don't care if I take a roller over the boat turning around. My boat getting a wave over the front isn't as important as the life of my friend/rider.

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[Fman]

I also wonder if insurance companies are going to start looking at overloaded boats. If the boat is rated for 2100 lbs including gear, you have 5000 lbs in it, boat sinks, it's pretty obvious it was grossly overloaded. I'm betting you will see some fine print somewhere about overloading and them not covering it if the boat sinks.

[Sunscape fan]

Is it really necessary to load a boat with 5000 lbs to get a good wave?

Edited May 6, 2014 by Sunscape fan

[Deven]

I also wonder if insurance companies are going to start looking at overloaded boats. If the boat is rated for 2100 lbs including gear, you have 5000 lbs in it, boat sinks, it's pretty obvious it was grossly overloaded. I'm betting you will see some fine print somewhere about overloading and them not covering it if the boat sinks.

Or if someone gets hurt or killed on an intentionally overloaded boat. What is the criminal case going to look like?

[Afun]

I dunno rob, put two little kids in the bow of an rlxi, and you have the same issue, right? I think it's more about the conditions you are willing to safely endure with a given vessel. Remember the guy whose little unballasted boat sunk last year because of the jet ski wakes?

Is anyone slamming a RLXI? I think this is a ski boat with a very narrow beam and very little freeboard....very little freeboard. If you are, beware that this boat has gone down with JET SKI WAKE.....which is still hard to believe.

The good news was that everyone in the boat made it out OK.

[racer808]

I think that slammed boat is cool as hell. Wake has got to be insane! Personally, no way I would do that too sketchy for this boy. I will say, I've seen a lot of old Mastercrafts & Sangers that already sit that low on their own so it can't be too bad?

[tn_rider]

I think that slammed boat is cool as hell. Wake has got to be insane! Personally, no way I would do that too sketchy for this boy. I will say, I've seen a lot of old Mastercrafts & Sangers that already sit that low on their own so it can't be too bad?

It's really not that bad. If you see a roller coming either get in the throttle and raise the bow or turn to the side and let it hit the side. Common sense. The wake is insane, but I've seen the 03-12 x-star wake get bigger with less weight. It was WAY sketchier to drive weighted.

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[Slyexe]

Is anyone slamming a RLXI? I think this is a ski boat with a very narrow beam and very little freeboard....very little freeboard. If you are, beware that this boat has gone down with JET SKI WAKE.....which is still hard to believe.

The good news was that everyone in the boat made it out OK.

I've put 2000# of ballast in mine with 5 people and had no issues. I've also gone out in 4 foot rollers and had no problems. It's all about positioning and taking your time.

[Malibuzer]

Come on guys! This post was about an one persons on the water incident and you aken over and beat each other over the head about over ballasted boats. Go start a thread about driving ballasted boats and fight there. This guy shared something that is a good reminder to be careful.

[flapjack]

It's really not that bad. If you see a roller coming either get in the throttle and raise the bow or turn to the side and let it hit the side. Common sense. The wake is insane, but I've seen the 03-12 x-star wake get bigger with less weight. It was WAY sketchier to drive weighted.

I'm surprised by all of the mentions in the post of "throttling to get the nose up." I've spent years in slammed boats like tn_rider is showing.

1) The best way to take a roller is from the side.

2) If a roller is coming at the nose, it is best to reverse. Powering up late is the best way to sink a boat.

3) If you can not reverse, you are better off being still than powering forward. Limited water gets in the boat with the nose rocking at a standstill.

It is the forward motion through the wave that gets the water in the boat. You never want to take a chance at sticking the nose of the boat into a wave/roller.

[Malibuzer]

[Malibuzer]

Kudos to Ajive.

http://www.themalibucrew.com/forums/index.php?/topic/49011-driving-advice/#entry708182

Edited May 6, 2014 by Malibuzer

[tn_rider]

I'm surprised by all of the mentions in the post of "throttling to get the nose up." I've spent years in slammed boats like tn_rider is showing.

1) The best way to take a roller is from the side.

2) If a roller is coming at the nose, it is best to reverse. Powering up late is the best way to sink a boat.

3) If you can not reverse, you are better off being still than powering forward. Limited water gets in the boat with the nose rocking at a standstill.

It is the forward motion through the wave that gets the water in the boat. You never want to take a chance at sticking the nose of the boat into a wave/roller.

You should know if a roller headed your way is big enough to swamp you. You should have plenty of time to bring the bow up. If you don't IMO it's the drivers fault for not paying attention. Never have I had a roller come over the bow from throttling through it. In most cases I have enough time to tell my own occupants to sit down and hang on there is a roller and I'm going to have to bring the bow up.

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[Afun]

I'm surprised by all of the mentions in the post of "throttling to get the nose up." I've spent years in slammed boats like tn_rider is showing.

1) The best way to take a roller is from the side.

2) If a roller is coming at the nose, it is best to reverse. Powering up late is the best way to sink a boat.

3) If you can not reverse, you are better off being still than powering forward. Limited water gets in the boat with the nose rocking at a standstill.

It is the forward motion through the wave that gets the water in the boat. You never want to take a chance at sticking the nose of the boat into a wave/roller.

You could only take it on the side if you are already positioned that way. How about if your boat is listed? If you got the nose up over the wave....no problem. If you are not paying attention and you nose up late....you will get water in the boat. Vigilance is key.

A slammed boat going in reverse will only dip the bow more and make it more prone to take on water from the roller. Staying still and having the roller come over the bow is wrong, isn't it. You should know what size roller will swamp your boat.

I think this is a great subject and I think we are all learning.

Edited May 6, 2014 by Afun

[tn_rider]

You could only take it on the side if you are already positioned that way. How about if your boat is listed? If you got the nose up over the wave....no problem. If you are not paying attention and you nose up late....you will get water in the boat. Vigilance is key.

A slammed boat going in reverse will only dip the bow more and make it more prone to take on water from the roller. Staying still and having the roller come over the bow is wrong, isn't it.

I think this is a great subject and I think we are all learning.

+1 on learning from the subject.

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[flapjack]

You could only take it on the side if you are already positioned that way. How about if your boat is listed? If you got the nose up over the wave....no problem. If you are not paying attention and you nose up late....you will get water in the boat. Vigilance is key.

A slammed boat going in reverse will only dip the bow more and make it more prone to take on water from the roller. Staying still and having the roller come over the bow is wrong, isn't it.

I think this is a great subject and I think we are all learning.

Even listed, the boat can take quite a wave from the side. In fact, I've never seen a wave come over the side. The boat is so narrow it rocks between the rollers. No dipping in the roller. This includes 247 listed with over 5K ballast. Water above the rub rail.

Going in reverse trivially lowers the nose. What it does is makes the wave approach more slowly. This limits the water than can come over the nose.

Staying still, the roller doesn't come over the boat. Rollers are not like an ocean wave crashing on shore. The nose simply dips in the roller.

NB... if some douche surfs 10' from your boat, all bets are off. All of my thoughts above are true for your own wake. It's also true for a fairly crowded run where people avoid each other by 60' ish.

Edited May 6, 2014 by flapjack

[robtr8]

I think more research is needed. I'll buy the beer.