Z5 Bad Judgement Call

[rdlangston13]

Sunday morning we were getting ready to get back on the water at canyon lake and we figured we should get some fuel and since the boat was already on the trailer and there is about 1.50 a gallon difference between gas on the water and gas down the street we figured we would cruise down the street. well i decided to gamble and leave the boards on the z5 and just got slow, about 35 mph. Well reckon i didnt take into account a 30 mph head wind and the bungy straps that hold the front of the board down and the buckle straps on the back busted on two of the three slots allowing my surfboard and my girls new liquid force to fly out of the boat and take a nice slide across the assfault. The boards are not too tore up. still usable but there is some visible damage on a couple of the corners. needless to say the g/f was not pleased. called the local dealer today about getting new straps for the z5

[you da man]

So sorry to hear that bro. I've never left boards on top of my Z5 when towing the boat. Ive trailered my boat at 80mph but I also have extra tow straps for the Z5 so instead of the two in the front, I also have two for the rear.

[rdlangston13]

yeah i learned my lesson. even if it is a 3 mile trip to the gas station TAKE THE BOARDS OFF!

[mmandley]

Dam bro sorry to hear that man. Yes at 35 they would have been fine but with a head wind yea.

[Gottop69]

that sucks... Sorry to hear that...

[bergermaister]

That sucks big time. I can relate - had a tie down strap break that was holding a camping table down on the roof rack of my Expedition a few years ago. Of course at about 75mph in the fast lane on a holiday weekend. Table flung off the roof like a kite, nailed my tower and my wakeboard, left it dangling by the bungee, and the table went skidding across actually 4 lanes of traffic because we were right next to a truck stop. Amazingly it didn't hit any other cars.

So like an idiot I pull into the unpaved center median in a big cloud of dust, stop and hit the hazards. I'm trying to run across 4 lanes of 75mph traffic to retrieve a $40 table - wearing flip flops... Brilliant.

My board survived with a few battle scars. The fingers on the racks were bent pretty good but straightened out without breaking. The table ended up pretty lopsided and messed up. Should have left the damn thing on the side of the road or ran over it myself.

[mnpracing]

Table flung off the roof like a kite, nailed my tower and my wakeboard, left it dangling by the bungee, and the table went skidding across actually 4 lanes of traffic because we were right next to a truck stop. Amazingly it didn't hit any other cars.

So like an idiot I pull into the unpaved center median in a big cloud of dust, stop and hit the hazards. I'm trying to run across 4 lanes of 75mph traffic to retrieve a $40 table - wearing flip flops... Brilliant.

My board survived with a few battle scars. The fingers on the racks were bent pretty good but straightened out without breaking. The table ended up pretty lopsided and messed up. Should have left the damn thing on the side of the road or ran over it myself.

Did you have your wakeboard in the tower rack while you were doint 75mph down the highway?

[rdlangston13]

That sucks big time. I can relate - had a tie down strap break that was holding a camping table down on the roof rack of my Expedition a few years ago. Of course at about 75mph in the fast lane on a holiday weekend. Table flung off the roof like a kite, nailed my tower and my wakeboard, left it dangling by the bungee, and the table went skidding across actually 4 lanes of traffic because we were right next to a truck stop. Amazingly it didn't hit any other cars.

So like an idiot I pull into the unpaved center median in a big cloud of dust, stop and hit the hazards. I'm trying to run across 4 lanes of 75mph traffic to retrieve a $40 table - wearing flip flops... Brilliant.

My board survived with a few battle scars. The fingers on the racks were bent pretty good but straightened out without breaking. The table ended up pretty lopsided and messed up. Should have left the damn thing on the side of the road or ran over it myself.

yeah i feel lucky big time that nothing got too badly damaged. although i am in big trouble to scratching up my girls board. guess ill have to get her a new one next summer, we just bought the one she has now in april.

[bergermaister]

Did you have your wakeboard in the tower rack while you were doint 75mph down the highway?

In this case, yes it was. I was loaded down with camping gear and had no where else for them to go. Probably not the best place for boards to be riding while on the road, however I've had numerous other trips down the highway with wakeboards in the racks without any issues. They fit pretty snug and always bungeed in. Never a wakesurf or anything else up there though.

I prefer to keep the boards down in the boat or back of my truck while on the road if there's room, but that's not always the case.

Other than this incident, the worst thing I've had to deal with is scrubbing splattered bugs off the bindings.

[rdlangston13]

Other than this incident, the worst thing I've had to deal with is scrubbing splattered bugs off the bindings.

my tower is cover in splattered bugs. i tried to wipe it down last week and got maybe 50% of them off