Minimum power for wakeboarding?

[Titanium48]

My wife is a snowboarding addict who has decided she needs to board on liquid water too, so we're looking for a boat. Trouble is, we're on a small budget and our car has a 1000 lb tow rating, so we're looking at 1970s era 14 foot boats that come with 40-50 hp outboards. Would that be enough power to pull a 220 lb beginner wakeboarder or should I suggest she find a buddy with a real wakeboard boat? I'm assuming we can take advantage of the slow speed at which wakeboarding is normally done and use a a lower pitch prop for more initial pull, yes?

 

[amynbill]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

My wife is a snowboarding addict who has decided she needs to board on liquid water too, so we're looking for a boat. Trouble is, we're on a small budget and our car has a 1000 lb tow rating, so we're looking at 1970s era 14 foot boats that come with 40-50 hp outboards. Would that be enough power to pull a 220 lb beginner wakeboarder or should I suggest she find a buddy with a real wakeboard boat? I'm assuming we can take advantage of the slow speed at which wakeboarding is normally done and use a a lower pitch prop for more initial pull, yes?

Youre wife is 220? And how much do you weigh? Plus gas, gear...

40-50 hp will be a bit tough if you have to have a spotter in your area. Maybe ok if just the driver and boarder. Especially if you can dock start instead of deepwater. But really, I think you will have a lot of trouble with that little of hp.

 

[StuBone278]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

I'm not sure if it has to do with the outboard so much as the size of the boat. Too small of a boat and even if it can pull the person up, making a cut at 220 pounds could seriously rock the back end of that boat, maybe even dunk the corner of the transom. I would use your friend's boat, but that's just me. I know I don't plan on pulling any wakeboarders behind my jon boat. (if it's even possible)

 

[Titanium48]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

I'm about 185 lb and a spotter would be required so there is a fair bit of extra weight to pull. I'd forgotten about pulling the back end of the boat around - my dad's 200 lb buddy used to be able to make some "unplanned course corrections" on a 16 footer with a 70 hp (seriously underpowered - the boat was rated for 125 hp). That was with a slalom ski though - how much different would a wakeboard be?

 

[Mike1187]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

I had a 14 foot fiberglass runabout with a mercury 85HP on it when I was in high school, and currently have a 16 foot aluminum boat with a 50HP evinrude. we've been skiing, tubing and wakeboarding behind my 16 footer for a couple years now and it works out OK... as long as you keep it light. it'll pull a light wakeboarder fairly easily even with 4 people on-board. with 2 others on-board it pulled me out up just fine from deepwater(I'm about 200 Lb) we even had a 260lb kneeboarder behind the boat a couple times even though it was a bit slower starting. it does NOT like a 260 lb person on skis though.... he could only hold on long enough to barely start to come out of the water because it was so sluggish. I'd say a 40-50HP will work... but if I were planning on wakeboarding a lot I'd try to find something a little bigger.

 

[commandohorn]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

I don't think you can find a boat big enough to do the job and be pulled by your 1000lb tow limit. 100 HP minimum would be my recommendation.

 

[locked and loaded]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

man i have pulled my buddy tons times wake boarding redneck style lol.That is behind my last boat which was a welded 14 foot 36 in bottom jon boat with a 02 johnson 15hp .I weigh 190 the boarder weighed 175 and my wife is 120 she was my spotter only thing it took a little longer for him to get up once he did and was jumping my wake i pulled the boat a little side to side but it worked lol.Also just bought a 15 foot jon a little wider bottom when i work out the kinks in the evinrude 25hp on it i will be pulling everyone.P.S. my father in law has a 1973 14 foot v bottom with a 74 15hp and we all skied behind it just last weekend with him and a 18 year old spotter just a little hard for beginners to get up a little slow on take off Just for kicks we had a perfectly good newer ski boat with us too but never used it but to tube lol But thats rednecks for ya

 

[IES99]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

My wife is a snowboarding addict who has decided she needs to board on liquid water too, so we're looking for a boat. Trouble is, we're on a small budget and our car has a 1000 lb tow rating, so we're looking at 1970s era 14 foot boats that come with 40-50 hp outboards. Would that be enough power to pull a 220 lb beginner wakeboarder or should I suggest she find a buddy with a real wakeboard boat? I'm assuming we can take advantage of the slow speed at which wakeboarding is normally done and use a a lower pitch prop for more initial pull, yes?

My $0.02:
Here's my experience trying this (I have not succeeded to wakeboard, but have triedit; I do slalom ski a lot). I weigh about 190. The amount of pressure exerted on the wakeboard when trying to get up is tremendous. With your wife at 220 pounds there will be a problem getting started. I would start her off with your first suggestion: find someone who has a real boat with enough power and also knows how to wakeboard to teach her.

 

[12vMan]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

I'm with IES99 on this one.

1000lb towing is going to limit you to a Sea-Doo or similar, which would work good enough, but probably out of your budget?

 

[vandy21]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

I used to wake behind 90hp outboard, but thats the smallest i've personally ever rode behind. maybe you can go smaller, but I'm not sure

 

[Titanium48]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

Well, we ended up going for a 14.5 ft Glasspar with a 70 hp Evinrude. Not under 1000 lbs (closer to 1500), but I did budget for trailer brakes and after reading about this guy's adventures with a nearly identical car I think it will be OK.

It's almost ready to go, after an unexpected floor replacement (it seemed good and solid, but I later discovered someone had just covered the rotten floor with 3/4 inch plywood ) so we'll soon see how it works out.

 

[BF]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

pretty sure that will work fine for you... The first time I ever wake-boarded was about 5 years ago behind a neighbor's 16' trihull with a 70 evinrude on it. I was probably 185 or so then. Took a couple tries to get up, but that wasn't the boat's fault. It's way different than slalom skiing (which I did a lot in the old days). Their boys (16 and 18 at that time) did LOTS of wakeboarding behind the 70. They had a big extension on the ski tube, and one was getting oh-so-close to landing a back flip across the wake.... he thought he just needed a slightly larger wake. (that's why they invited me along... as extra ballast). I guess he still needed something else, 'cause he didn't land it with me in the boat either. But it was fun to watch him try.

good luck & careful towing.

 

[jim_b_20653]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

My kids wakeboard most every day behind our 15' Whaler with a 48hp Evenrude. My oldest son weighs about 170, and they have had as many as 5 in the boat. Certainly a true wakeboard boat would be better, but your 1000 lb tow limit would put that out ofthe question.

 

[Liquid_force]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

My kids wakeboard most every day behind our 15' Whaler with a 48hp Evenrude. My oldest son weighs about 170, and they have had as many as 5 in the boat. Certainly a true wakeboard boat would be better, but your 1000 lb tow limit would put that out ofthe question.

Yeah...as wide as they are wakeboards don't require a lot of force to get out of the water. My brother and I learned behind his SeaDoo SP (35-40hp), I was around 190 lb at the time and it wasn't a struggle at all. It will take some good driving to hold the speed steady once you start moving around, but yes a small boat with a 40-50 should work fine to learn and have some fun.

 

[overload]

Re: Minimum power for wakeboarding?

Almost any boat will pull up a wakeboarder. People do it all the time on pontoons. The problem is maintaining speed. You need 18 to 23 MPH for wakeboarding and the boat needs to be making a wake. Your boat needs to hold that speed with a boarder tugging at the boat and have enough power to keep the boarder up on turns. Alot of smaller boats do not make good enough wake at those speeds and will plane out before then. It is not that much fun being pulled behind a boat at WOT with a flat wake going 19 MPH. There are these kids at my lake that wakeboard behind a lund fishing boat with a 60 HP tiller all the time. They run at WOT and have a flat wake (perfect for skiing), I say more power to 'em for making due with what you have, but if you have a choice get a bigger boat with more power. Otherwise if you could find an old 14' or 15' fiberglass runabout with a 60 HP, that might work with some fat sacs.