Taking Water In Over Bow

rgilfert · 09-26-2012, 09:45 AM

A week ago last Sunday (9/16) my wife and I needed take our boat out and head NW in the Broads directly into some very heavy seas (Accuweather.com had the NNW wind pegged at 15 MPH with gusts to 22 MPH). Our boat is a 1998 FourWinns Horizon 200 Bowrider. I intentionally kept the boat at a low speed with the mindset: 1) the slower speed would keep the boat from planing & thus the bow would ride higher in the air 2) the wave slapping action would be less violent. The plan was working well except that after every 20+/- waves ... we'd encounter a couple of waves that were enormous and despite the fact that the bow was riding high, the boat would go over the crest of the first huge wave and then plow nose first into the side of the next one. On one occasion "green water" actually came over the bow and onto the bowrider front (fortunately I had left the bow canvas on and so minimal water actually got into the boat). Very scary! Fortunately shortly after this occurred we were able to turn south around the NE tip of Rattlesnake and head towards West Alton Marina and things immediately became a lot less hairy. I know that it's best to stay off the lake in weather like this...but when it is unavoidable my question is what is the best way to drive a boat (especially a bowrider) into the wind....slow (like I was doing) our perhaps faster? Should I not head directly into the waves...perhaps at a slight angle instead?

09-26-2012, 09:45 AM	#1
rgilfert Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Bedford, NH / Rattlesnake Island Posts: 299 Thanks: 152 Thanked 227 Times in 57 Posts	Taking Water In Over Bow A week ago last Sunday (9/16) my wife and I needed take our boat out and head NW in the Broads directly into some very heavy seas (Accuweather.com had the NNW wind pegged at 15 MPH with gusts to 22 MPH). Our boat is a 1998 FourWinns Horizon 200 Bowrider. I intentionally kept the boat at a low speed with the mindset: 1) the slower speed would keep the boat from planing & thus the bow would ride higher in the air 2) the wave slapping action would be less violent. The plan was working well except that after every 20+/- waves ... we'd encounter a couple of waves that were enormous and despite the fact that the bow was riding high, the boat would go over the crest of the first huge wave and then plow nose first into the side of the next one. On one occasion "green water" actually came over the bow and onto the bowrider front (fortunately I had left the bow canvas on and so minimal water actually got into the boat). Very scary! Fortunately shortly after this occurred we were able to turn south around the NE tip of Rattlesnake and head towards West Alton Marina and things immediately became a lot less hairy. I know that it's best to stay off the lake in weather like this...but when it is unavoidable my question is what is the best way to drive a boat (especially a bowrider) into the wind....slow (like I was doing) our perhaps faster? Should I not head directly into the waves...perhaps at a slight angle instead?