DuckHunterJon
Lieutenant Junior Grade
- Joined
- Apr 19, 2010
- Messages
- 1,082
Saturday, we had the boat out in Chaumont Bay, NY. In the morning it was like glass. We went out fishing, came back in for lunch, then went back out and skied for a while in the afternoon. Around dinner time, we decided not to leave it tied up to my parents dock as we would be heading up to the St Lawrence early Sunday morning. We heading back to the boat launch (about 4 miles), and the wind was really picking up. I wanted to go out around a shoal marker, and was heading out into bigger water. The waves were progressivly getting bigger, but I kept asking my wife and she said she was fine with it. We were getting a little spray over the bow, but nothing more than spray.
About 25 yards out, I saw a set of big waves. I'd say they were 4 -5 feet, 3 in a row. I know I didn't want they to hit us from the side, so I steered towards them. The boat rode up on the first one, came down, rode up on the second one. That time it came down right into the third. I was standing, and watched the bow punch about a foot under the top of that wave. Bear in mind, my Procraft sits low to the water, and the bow slopes down in the front. The water came over the bow, up the windshield, and knocked me clear over the helm seat and into the back of the seat. Motor killed as I pulled the tether off. I got back to the seat, fired it back up, made a hard port turn, and was with the waves heading back to shore.
I was a bit scared, but figured we're out of the worst of it, heading back in around the shoal marker. The waves were coming at our stern, and quickly, I was taking water over the bow when each wave would push the stern up, and force the bow down. After about 3 of these, I was able to find the right speed to stay on the back side of a wave, and rode it most of the way in to the launch.
Question, while the initial bow over the wave was a little scary, it was very quick, the boat pretty much punched through it. On the way back in, however, the bow would dive into the wave ahead of it, and pretty much sit there. Seemed like slow motion. I don't want to relive it - but my question is how close were we to pitch poling? I don't imagine it was a possibility, but I'm not sure how much it takes to flip a boat forwards. Has anyone experienced it and can give and idea of what it took?
Thanks.
About 25 yards out, I saw a set of big waves. I'd say they were 4 -5 feet, 3 in a row. I know I didn't want they to hit us from the side, so I steered towards them. The boat rode up on the first one, came down, rode up on the second one. That time it came down right into the third. I was standing, and watched the bow punch about a foot under the top of that wave. Bear in mind, my Procraft sits low to the water, and the bow slopes down in the front. The water came over the bow, up the windshield, and knocked me clear over the helm seat and into the back of the seat. Motor killed as I pulled the tether off. I got back to the seat, fired it back up, made a hard port turn, and was with the waves heading back to shore.
I was a bit scared, but figured we're out of the worst of it, heading back in around the shoal marker. The waves were coming at our stern, and quickly, I was taking water over the bow when each wave would push the stern up, and force the bow down. After about 3 of these, I was able to find the right speed to stay on the back side of a wave, and rode it most of the way in to the launch.
Question, while the initial bow over the wave was a little scary, it was very quick, the boat pretty much punched through it. On the way back in, however, the bow would dive into the wave ahead of it, and pretty much sit there. Seemed like slow motion. I don't want to relive it - but my question is how close were we to pitch poling? I don't imagine it was a possibility, but I'm not sure how much it takes to flip a boat forwards. Has anyone experienced it and can give and idea of what it took?
Thanks.
