Running shoe, making large wake

[markpierce]

Not a trawler:

 

[Andy G]

Looks a bit tight, was there another boat between you and the 'go fast'?

 

[markpierce]

Yes, another boat had passed seconds before.

 

[Nomad Willy]

Mark you're just going to have to chill out and get along w other boaters. Just don't change course very quickly. Going back into Thorne Bay in Alaska the sportfishing charter boats used to pass me in Willy at 25 knots w the same separation you show here ... about 30' (or a boat length). CRAZY I admit but we both have boats largely unaffected by wakes and they see we're so very slow we probably look basically stationary. The same AHs on the freeway will swerve from the inside lane clear across 3 lanes or so right in front of you in the right lane and just barely make the exit ramp.

This was one of the reasons we left the lower 48 and went to Alaska. Too crowded w AHs. Well after 7 years in Ak Most of my problem w that AH stuff is gone. It's very very rude (to be sure) and when you don't see them coming it either startles or scares the crap out of you when they go scream'in by but the chances of a real accident are actually small. We just gotta drive defensively and dial out everything else.


The wake of the first boat looks small and you should be able to swing into the bigger boat's wake in plenty of time to put your boat at a good angle. Better look 360 degrees before you put the helm hard over though.

PS .. What's w the "running shoe" ??

 

[BaltimoreLurker]

SOP. Typical on the rivers around here on the weekends. I try to stay off the water on weekends. It could be worse .... you could be in a sailboat trying to deal with this.

 

[koliver]

Mark, Eric:
Was that pic taken in a "no wake"zone? if not, I don't see what your problem is. The Sea Ray is going faster than his maximum wake speed, so his wave has flattened out and won't bother you in your wide, hard chine trawler. Eric, this guy may meet the definition of AH due to other behaviour, but just driving his boat the way its designers wanted it driven doesn't qualify.
We have encountered "Sea Ray Wash" a couple of times where quicker thinkers would have had a camera handy: 1 Heading into Gabriola Passage against a 7 knot flood current, and a 50 ft Sea Ray passed us close aboard, putting us in his wash at its deepest spot and causing everything that wasn't secured to end up on the floor. 2 heading south down Agamemnon Channel and encountering a northbound Sea Ray 55 going up the very center of the channel at 20 knots and refusing to give way or slow down. Dealing with #1 was impossible, but #2 only required a course change so that I could take his giant wash bow on. That brought me close aboard his transom and got his attention.

 

[Underway]

The wake shouldn't be all that large with the boat on plane. Some years ago we had a slip at the very corner of a large marina on Lake Travis near Austin. Go fast (very fast...like 100+ mph) boats approaching and departing from the "Carlos and Charlies" watering hole next to the marina would drop off, and climb on plane right in front of our slip. When they left the C&C dock they'd typically idle to the edge of the no wake zone (in front of our boat), put the transmissions in neutral, and step to the swim platform, where they'd relieve themselves (men and women). Then they'd break out a six pack, strap in, and pour the coal to their twin and triple supercharged big blocks....thereby swamping that corner of the marina as they climbed out of the hole. Quite entertaining during the day...not so much at 2 AM.

 

[Nomad Willy]

Keith,
I agree re the boat in the picture. I'm referring to the AH that just passed Mark and is out of the pic. Way too close even if the other boat was not there.

The boat in the pic is shown going way too fast for a no wake zone but otherwise I have no problem w it. Even if I were there w a kayak he has the right to throw whatever wake his boat makes. When one goes forth in a boat one needs to consider the company he's keeping. I was passed by a 50' boat going 20+ knots almost in the cut at Deception Pass while I was in a canoe. I didn't get wet but it was a bit of a wild ride. My point is that I need to accept big wakes if I go where big boats go.

I was using the "AH" re the guy going fast w essentially no separation. THAT I have a problem with.

skidgear,
A heavy boat on plane can/will throw a huge wake. Only light boats or very slow boats make small wakes.

 

[Tom.B]

TBH... I have stopped worrying about wakes and just deal with them as a part of the boating experience. You can't stop them... Yelling on the radio does nothing... Proving any damage loss from someone's wake to your boat is piratically impossible... And really, it's just a wave. I understand the arguments and like you guys, have heard them all. Yet, the waves continue to come. All we can do is be prepared for them and try to minimize the impact as best as we can.

 

[Underway]

Keith,

A heavy boat on plane can/will throw a huge wake. Only light boats or very slow boats make small wakes.

Really???

 

[Brooksie]

Guess I don't get the point... Wake, what wake?

 

[windmill29130]

He's probably burning 30 gph too! Just reminder that when they pass.

 

[markpierce]

The close-by wake wasn't significant, and no, it wasn't a no-wake zone. I was turning to go behind the stern of the "running shoe." ... I'm occasionally amused by the boats purchased by some, imagining their personalities. Wonder how the fellow spots close obstacles of the flotsam-filled Delta looking over that high, long foredeck? ... Wakes are part of the environment, but I do dislike big-wakers passing so close there isn't time/space to maneuver to reduce the wakes' impact. Had to make some "wild" maneuvers to pass behind their sterns, and fortunately for the most part, there weren't other boats blocking the maneuver. ... About the only boats I overtake are those that are anchored. If they are close by, I slow down from my 6-7 knots speeds, especially for open-top boats with fishermen/persons aboard.

The below-hull-speed wakes made by Pineapple Girl as well as FlyWright and Mahalo Moi on our Stockton trip last weekend, on the other hand, were benign.

 

[Marin]

The original photo is typical of what happens around here all the time. In the case of the photo example it's nothing to be concerned about as the wake from a planing boat is not much in terms of wave height.

Far, far worse are the tsunamis put out by the big semi-planing sleds like Bayliners and such that dig their sterns deep into the water as they plow along and throw out massive stern wake waves. They are easily dealt with by turning into them at a 60 degree angle or so.

As to the apparent distance between Mark's boat and the planing boat, that, too, I think is no big deal. We have boats pass us closer than this fairly frequently in the commonly-used channels and straits in the islands and in the proximity of our marina. We drive to Bellingham almost every week to our boat at speeds up to 70 mph. Other vehicles are within a few feet of us either going our way or the opposite direction. We don't think anything of it on the road, and we don't think anything of it on the water other than having to minimize the effect of a big wake as described above. As long as the other boat doesn't actually hit us we don't get concerned about passing distance except in the cases of the big plowing sleds, and that's only because a close pass doesn't give us much time to turn into the wake. The physical distance between the boats themselves doesn't matter.

 

[FlyWright]

Mark and I were out together this weekend. That's the same guy who waked me by passing so close I had no time to turn into his wake. He had plenty of room to pass further away but chose not to. At best, it seemed like an inconsiderate move on his part.

Lesson learned for the Admiral to keep the fridge door latched. She caught the egg casserole as it slid out of the fridge. The bean dip Snapware lid took a hit, but stayed in place.

 

[markpierce]

Another fast boat fast approaching FlyWright's port side while another trawler has turned sharply to cross the fast boat's wake. Here I had crossed an earlier fast boat's wake.

 

[Giggitoni]

This big boy didn't bother us at all! Here I caught the Coot heading out to help the ship maneuver around the channel...

 

[Anode]

Hmmm....unless the wake from a passing boat is huge, I turn the bow away from the wake at a 45 degree angle and take it from behind.. unless other traffic prevents it. Requires a less dramatic turn and time than trying to turn into a passing wake. Works for me.

 

[FlyWright]

I agree, Chip. I often do that but at the time, Coot was to stbd while the SeaRay passed to port.

 

[Giggitoni]

That's what I do as well, Chip, in open water. However, in the narrow river and slough system in the California Delta a turn away from the wake would, at times, put us up on the bank!

What we are really talking about is courtesy and performing a slow, coordinated pass. Those are two things we don't often experience here.

 

[Nomad Willy]

Ray I agree but there are big differences between what one thinks is an acceptable maneuver or wake and what the next guy thinks. Look at this thread. I thought the planing hull passing Mark was smart assed and dangerous behavior not to mention rude and others think it's business as usual.

Anode,
I almost never take wakes from behind. It takes forever.

Marin I think Bayliners would be lighter by far than GBs and the newer GB have big power to make wakes. A high powered GB w lots of power would make a huge wake. Cars and boats at speed? Bad analogy.

 

[sunchaser]

Ya gotta love California.


Big:

• wakes
• taxes
• public pensions
• population
• state government debt
• worries over nothing
• fuel prices
• hopes for pure E cars

Little:

• America's Cup boats
• hope for better state government
• chance of a quiet day on the water
• wakes from Mark's boat
• chance of a Giant's repeat
• opportunity for business growth
• sales of pure E cars

 

[beachbum29]

Getting waked is part of inside cruising. Usually it's too much activity in a small space then what is comfortable.

That's why we try and only go out during the week.

Another thing are the idiots who anchor right inside or just outside a high speed channel. When you go by at 20 knots they will scream obscene words and give you the single finger salute. What's that all about?

And don't forget the water skiers who only have limited areas where they can achieve the needed speed in order to ski. Those pesky buggers are always cutting in front of you. What happens if they fall?

So on & Scooby do...

 

[Marin]

For a wide, flat-transomed boat like a GB turning into a big wake results in much less "shoving around" than turning away from it. We've tried it both ways and turn into the wake results--- in our boat, at least--- in far less rolling. Lots of pitching, of course, if the wake is high, but little to no rolling.

 

[beachbum29]

For a wide, flat-transomed boat like a GB turning into a big wake results in much less "shoving around" than turning away from it. We've tried it both ways and turn into the wake results--- in our boat, at least--- in far less rolling. Lots of pitching, of course, if the wake is high, but little to no rolling.

A little throttle into the wake helps significantly

 

[Codger2]

Lots of pitching, of course, if the wake is high, but little to no rolling.

I don't alter course or speed and there's almost no effect of a wake on the Halvorsen 32.

 

[Anode]

I don't alter course or speed and there's almost no effect of a wake on the Halvorsen 32.

Walt - I deal with a 65' Sunseeker almost every time I go out. Guaranteed to spill your drink.

 

[Anode]

Hmmm....unless the wake from a passing boat is huge, I turn the bow away from the wake at a 45 degree angle and take it from behind.. unless other traffic prevents it. Requires a less dramatic turn and time than trying to turn into a passing wake. Works for me.

This was in response to Mark's picture in the original post. I'm not good enough to get a boat turned into these wakes....
Eric - Don't worry you won't have to wait long.

 

[Woodsong]

Taking a passing wake on the stern @ a 45 degree angle? Not me...I much prefer to go bow first into passing wakes but still @ a 45 degree angle.

 

[Anode]

Taking a passing wake on the stern @ a 45 degree angle? Not me...I much prefer to go bow first into passing wakes but still @ a 45 degree angle.

Look at the original picture ...you can make a 90 degree course change and take this wakes on your bow?...