Adding a boom to my Mojo...anyone have experience?

[Holdmybeer]

Raising 2 awesome girls and have 3 nephews that come to the lake 90% of the time with us. They all agreed they didn't want to go out this weekend and watching us (adults) is boring. It has rained all weekend so no loss but it got me thinking.

Ages range from 7 to 14 and all have a fear/stigma about being behind the boat. My youngest (7) has kneeboarded but has a block now. The 11yr old nephew wants to try everything but struggles to get up. The 9yr old is spectrum autistic and he wants to do more than sit in a tube. My 10yr old girl worries about not letting go of the rope and the oldest 14 boy doesn't want to look "uncool" falling.

So I have been researching booms for side pulling. There are tower booms but not sure my S-Bend will support it. If I upgrade boats in a couple years, pretty sure the FX tower won't support it either. I have seen the pylon mount but the pylon is short and I am worried about strength.

Looking for ideas and suggestions. Pictures would be a huge help if anyone has done this. Just looking to help the kiddos build confidence and maybe a little bit I want the tube to stay home.
Thanks guys.

[PatL]

I had some success with a boom on my Outback years ago. I could get the kids to hold onto the boom and ride the skis. I was not successful transitioning them to a rope on the boom. Eventually they got old enough and overcame their fears and got up behind the boat. I suspect u could have some success with a boom but need to sort out what the progression is from holding the boom to getting up on a rope there.


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[Holdmybeer]

You bring up a good point.

I have this idea that once they feel confident on the boom then I can add a hanging handle. Then start adding rope a little at a time until it's at 5-6ft. After that it will be too dangerous and they will need to be behind. It sounds good in my head but not sure what will work.

The boom is my real question. $1k for a boom is not a deal breaker considering the 5 kids that would start loving boating vs liking boating. I just don't know which would work for my boat. Do I need the $1500 version? Does the Mojo layout not permit a boom?

[Max20]

Have you tried a Zup board? I have one that I would let go as we no longer need it, but I have no idea about shipping cost. Not trying to peddle mine, but we had huge success with the little guys learning. The rope it comes with is a double handle and it hooks into the front of the board so the kids don’t have to hold the rope. The board has handles they hold onto. You can use it simply to lay on your stomach and hold on, it has pockets they can slip their feet into and hold the rope like they’re skiing as well. Obviously you can use it as a knee board too and either hold the handles on the board OR hold the rope. It’s worth a YouTube search for sure.

[PatL]

You bring up a good point.

I have this idea that once they feel confident on the boom then I can add a hanging handle. Then start adding rope a little at a time until it's at 5-6ft. After that it will be too dangerous and they will need to be behind. It sounds good in my head but not sure what will work.

The boom is my real question. $1k for a boom is not a deal breaker considering the 5 kids that would start loving boating vs liking boating. I just don't know which would work for my boat. Do I need the $1500 version? Does the Mojo layout not permit a boom?

Hopefully some others can help on the mojo and a boom question. I just don’t have any experience doing this w a v drive. Agree w u small price to get them excited about boating. The calculus problem w the rope on the boom was how short it is. The hit from the boat was significant. I’m wondering if that will be easier w a tower mounted boom. Mine was the classic attach to ski pylon and rest on the gunnel setup.


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[HFarr]

I have no experience with mounting one, but here is a link with several photos of them. If you tether it to your bow lifting eye, I think that would carry the majority of the stress, and I think the base of your tower could certainly handle the load.

https://www.google.com/search?q=ski%20boom%20bar%20on%20a%20mojo&tbm=isch&hl=en&tbs=rimg:Ccva5EQlIjGEYW9JL6K6povU8AEAsgIOCgIIABAAK AE6BAgBEAE&client=ms-android-verizon&prmd=smivn&sa=X&ved=0CBMQuIIBahcKEwjg1tjemtn5AhUAAAAAHQAAAAAQEA&biw=360&bih=667#imgrc=FggGtX_CGxl1ZM&imgdii=hSfavA6Z3ZSNlM

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[Holdmybeer]

Thanks for the help.
I have been searching for a couple weeks. Was hoping to catch season end sale or something.

HFarr, those are the pictures I have looked at. I am thinking the same thing. If the bow eye does most of the work and these are kids not my 225lb frame it should be fine.

Just always nice to ask around in hopes of not being the guenia pig. I know the S-Bend design was first on Supras and those boats did many things then jist pull wakeboarders.

[HFarr]

I bet driving a boat with a boom feels strange. It would have to pull to the side badly.

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[Tommy2slow]

The boom is a great way to teach the littles. It is a huge part of our program with beginners. I don’t think it would work with the pylon at the sun pad on a v-drive and would have to be tower mounted. The cables have to reach the bow eye as they take almost all of the load and I’m not sure they are long enough to reach from the back. A bit tricky to drive as you can’t steer the boat when someone is holding the boom while in the water. Once they are up on the water the boat tracks fine. I have the boom mounted out the driver’s side so that I can see the athlete and speak to them. There is a small diameter extension available that is a super handy for the smallest kids as the main boom diameter is a bit big for their little hands. Once the kids are able to get up with relative confidence you can add a handle with 5’ of rope. Once they have have that mastered you can move them behind the boat with a short rope mounted to the tower. How the boat is driven plays a huge role in the success and fun on the water. Be gentle with the throttle and don’t go too fast. If the child is using the correct equipment, 12-15mph is all that is needed. I bought mine from Lane at Barefoot International. Small company with a bad website but his customer service and prices were great.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20220822/330c6cda046ff2808685f602a2850933.jpg
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20220822/ddab7570b0408a40c8b3cde1a7e1ce87.jpg


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[Holdmybeer]

Tommy
Thanks for the input. This is exactly what I was hoping to do. I'm no expert or trainer but I know I struggled doing these thing as a kid and this would have helped me. Trying to create as much positive experience as possible.

Is this boom setup on your prostar or new mojo?

[Tommy2slow]

Tommy
Thanks for the input. This is exactly what I was hoping to do. I'm no expert or trainer but I know I struggled doing these thing as a kid and this would have helped me. Trying to create as much positive experience as possible.

Is this boom setup on your prostar or new mojo?
This is the Prostar with the boom mounted to the pylon. Sorry, I don’t have experience specifically with the tower mounted design. I have been using the boom since 2014 so if you have any more questions I will try my best to answer them. On a safety note, don’t approach an athlete in the water while rollers are going by as they we rock the the boat and the boom will travel up an down with significant force. If there is a person under the boom they could get hit by the boom. Think “wack-a-mole” and you get the idea.

[PatL]

https://wakeboards.com/barefoot-international-deluxe-v-drive-boom/?msclkid=8724f5d0b66f18460bdd96d41a01587f

Seeing Tommy’s post got me thinking. I was pretty sure I had seen a v drive boom before. Above link is a boom designed to work of the rear pylon on a v drive. This could be an additional option for you.


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[Tommy2slow]

That looks like a better idea than the tower mount. The s-bend moves the boom forward on the boat to help get the athlete out of the spray. The height adjustment bracket is a cool idea as well. I have to move my spotter around to list the boat to adjust the boom height. That bracket would eliminate that. With this set up,I would also consider the extension to make the boom longer and the reduced diameter extension at the end. Both will likely be needed to get the athlete completely out of the spray with the boom a ways back on the boat. I have both and the spray doesn’t miss the athletes by much and mine exits the boat just in front of the tower base.


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[Holdmybeer]

https://wakeboards.com/barefoot-international-deluxe-v-drive-boom/?msclkid=8724f5d0b66f18460bdd96d41a01587f

Seeing Tommy’s post got me thinking. I was pretty sure I had seen a v drive boom before. Above link is a boom designed to work of the rear pylon on a v drive. This could be an additional option for you.


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Pat
It is between the pylon mount and the tower version. I have the S-Bend tower on my Mojo and I was worried about strength and lateral force on the tower. Equally worried about the pylon since it's 2ft long and sits in a hole and isn't really mounted to the boat.

Seeing the designs, the cables on the bow eye are doing 75% of the work. I like the tower better because it puts the kids even with me (driver) and easier to spot. I'm thinking I can modify the tower boom support arms to be turn buckles and it would also give me height adjustment.

As for offset weight....I was going to move lead around to even out the spotter. With the kids learning out of the wake and spray I'm not worried boat weight and the ballast will be empty anyways.

Good ideas guys...really thank you.