want some towing advice

coolbri70 · Jun 4, 2013

yesterday I was out on the river, people wave as they pass by, I wave back, so I was waving back to a man and he started motioning for me to come over, so I stopped and putted over to him and his lady. his Johnson had blown 2 holes in the block and he needed a tow. I have never even towed a skier or tube, much less a boat. wasn't sure how to go about it, I was afraid to plane out as the rope was small and long, figured if it snapped might leave a welt. I went at a fast displacement speed 1500 rpm,and he was behind me going straight, then I would hear a thumping, I looked back and they were fish tailing from side to side and the rope would thump as it passed over his bow light. why, was I pulling too fast

too slow

not sure of the physics on this, I wondered if I should plane, if I had pulled him up out of the water on plane, would that put more tension on the rope or less

I know i'd be pulling harder but would his boat have been less of a drag on plane than it was at displacement speed. any opinions, whats harder on the engine? why the fishtailing? it was pretty bad at some times I would see his boats profile it was swinging so bad. if it ever happens again I would like to be more knowledgable. any guidance appreciated, thanks

matt167 · Jun 4, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

You were dragging him faster than his displacement speed I think. Either that, or your point of anchor was higher than his and you were lifting his bow so the keel could not track correctly.

boaterinsd · Jun 4, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

I myself would hook the tow rope on the dead boat to the bow eye. As far as the speed i'd go slow and burn not as much gas, unless he gives you cash up front, plan on PAYING it forward for the tow. Hope this helps, Jeff

cobra1476 · Jun 4, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

Slow and steady. Was he trimmed up?

coolbri70 · Jun 4, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

maybe I pulling him too fast, he gave me gas money when I got him to the ramp, it was 7 or 8 miles and the river snakes, I wondered if it had to do with the wind direction. I was pulling with my starboard stearn cleat to his bow line, I think someone would have had to get wet to hook to the bow eye, also his boat was a trihull, it did kinda look like he was almost planed, does a trihull plane slower than deep v. I also wondered if I were doing something illeagle towing something with no rearview or spotter. I hadn't quite gotten into towing stuff yet

crabby captain john · Jun 4, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

What were the attachment points of both boats? I prefer to tow (only when absolutely required) with the towed boat on my starboard side unless it is sinking, dock buoys between boats tied to each others cleats as my 2nd choice. That way I can lay it right on the dock. 3rd choice is to attach a bridle to my stern. The tow line is attached to it and the bow eye of the towed boat. My 1st choice is to call Tow Boat US for them.

coolbri70 · Jun 4, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

the trip took 1 hour so we must have been doing 7 or 8 mph

coolbri70 · Jun 4, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

crabby captain john said:
What were the attachment points of both boats? I prefer to tow (only when absolutely required) with the towed boat on my starboard side unless it is sinking, dock buoys between boats tied to each others cleats as my 2nd choice. That way I can lay it right on the dock. 3rd choice is to attach a bridle to my stern. The tow line is attached to it and the bow eye of the towed boat. My 1st choice is to call Tow Boat US for them.

it was my rear starboard deck cleat to his top bow line, not the bow eye, seemed to put him directly behind me

GA_Boater · Jun 4, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

You didn't have a need for a spotter or mirror - those are for water sports. The times I've towed or was on the other end of the line, the line was hooked to the bow tie. Also just slightly above idle, maybe 3-5 mph. You have to remember the towed boat doesn't have a lot of control so slow is good.

coolbri70 · Jun 4, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

GA_Boater said:
You didn't have a need for a spotter or mirror - those are for water sports. The times I've towed or was on the other end of the line, the line was hooked to the bow tie. Also just slightly above idle, maybe 3-5 mph. You have to remember the towed boat doesn't have a lot of control so slow is good.

ok, so I think I was pulling too fast, hope it didn't make him seasick, I think he was just happy to get back before midnight, he was upriver and would have eventually gotten back by drifting the current with his trolling motor, I saved him about 6 hours

Home Cookin' · Jun 4, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

coolbri70 said:
it was my rear starboard deck cleat to his top bow line, not the bow eye, seemed to put him directly behind me

that's the problem--always tow in the center of your boat. It's easy to rig a harness.

take your stern line and tie one end to each cleat.

take his bow line and attach with a bowline (knot) to the center of the stern line, then the other end to his bow, in the center.
start your boat going forward, pay out the line with some tension, flip the stern line over your motor.

The longer the line the better the tow; shorten or go alongside when you get to the destination.

also the towed vessel will fish tail if its weight isn't even.

best to stay at hull speed, not plane. Stay level.

smokeonthewater · Jun 4, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

I'm gonna say he needed to drop his motor.
I generally tow for free at just over idle but I once towed a bass boat at 30+ mph when the guy offered to fill my (115 gal) tank if I did..... Made $400 in less than 30 minutes.

ALWAYS attach to the bow eye... it can generally be done hanging over the front of the towed boat or from the swim platform of the towing boat.

coolbri70 · Jun 5, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

thanks for the tips, it might not happen again but in the event it does, i wont be clueless. i didn't think of trying to get at the bow eye from my boat:facepalm:

Frank Acampora · Jun 5, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

It ALWAYS takes more horsepower to plane. Thus, it takes more force to get a towed boat to plane. The only exception is just when getting over the hill when the non-planning hull transitions to plane.

THUS: Unless you have specialized towing equipment, towing slow at displacment speeds is a much smarter move.

southkogs · Jun 5, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

coolbri70 said:
...it might not happen again but in the event it does...

Invariably, it will. At least once per year I need to help someone by towing them. Right now, I'm on an every other year rate for needing a tow

Make sure you keep all this in mind in case you're the "tow-ee" as opposed to the "tower."

H20Rat · Jun 5, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

You got lucky towing from the stern cleat, you probably were just below the speed where the cleat and your boat would have departed ways! They aren't meant for that much force and will either rip out, or rip apart. Stern eyes + towing V going to the other boats bow eye is the way to do it. Also, if the other boat has more than a couple people in it, I like to have the extra passengers (leave 2 in the towed boat) in my boat. Seems to pull easier and safer.

Lastly, be VERY careful with using any ropes that have metal hooks... I have a 10 ft line with heavy duty hooks that I use as a V for towing, but beyond that, no metal! Getting hit by a rope that breaks without metal hurts and leaves a mark. Getting hit with metal is much, much worse!

BobGinCO · Jun 5, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

My Boating Safety Course said you should tow side-by-side.

oldjeep · Jun 5, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

Home Cookin' said:
that's the problem--always tow in the center of your boat. .

This. Tied off center they would be hitting the inside of your wake rather than staying in the clean stuff in the middle.

As for thesuggestions of towing side by side, I've got no idea how you would accomplish that in anything but a barge. Runabouts, especially those with towers would be banging into each other.

BobGinCO · Jun 5, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

oldjeep said:
As for thesuggestions of towing side by side, I've got no idea how you would accomplish that in anything but a barge. Runabouts, especially those with towers would be banging into each other.

As I recall from my training, you cross the dock lines (bow to stern, and stern to bow) and get your fenders in between and it works quite well. Shifting the towed boat slightly aft, to prevent tower gnashing still allows side-by-side towing.

Captain Caveman · Jun 5, 2013

Re: want some towing advice

I once melted my lower unit (oil leak) about 20 miles from my dock. Luckily I was fishing with buddies in another boat. I ended up transferring all of my beverages to their boat, since the tow back took about 3 hours. We took it nice and easy. They enjoyed a few beverages at a slow pace and I got my boat home.

want some towing advice

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