Swamping from Hades......

[.264 magnum]

Scene 2008 LVS, lots of wind choppy even confused water, empty bags, motor off, pulling a tired me into the boat after tubing. As if we won the devil's lottery - while reaching for the rear deck a big wake (from a massive cruiser) rolls under the rear maybe a 1/2 count before a much bigger wave (wake from a huge Donzi ~50ft. moving at a nice clip) rolls over the front 1/4 of the boat. Water filled the front, glidiing over the windshield on both sides some of the water spilled through the entire length of the boat filling it to just above the seat cushions in the rear a little higher in the front. My wife was in the captain's seat and she was 100% soaked,hat knocked off, cell phone ripped out of her hands lost to the lake and confused. Our son was standing at 7 o'clock and nearly knocked overboard. My daughter was on the rear deck coiling my tow line and if not for her grabbing the ski pole she would have been swept off the rear of the boat. I was hammered in the face/upper body by the water exiting the back of the boat. We were sure the boat was going to sink.

1. The auto bilge was on within a ten seconds my wife could not flip the switch
1A. I'm proud of my son for getting vests on my wife and daughter and himself within a few seconds
2. I got in my and wife started the boat
3. My son hooked up the 2,000 gph Tsunami pump for speed filling bags and it went to work
4. Some-how we did not loose electrical
5. Within maybe five/six minutes all visible water was gone
6. The auto bilge ran a LONG time after the visible water was gone

It took me four or five man hours to clean up and dry the boat.


The moral is pay attention to your boat's position relative to other traffic. The captain needs to stay off the cell phone.
My wife felt like crap therefore no one gave her any grief.

[zabooda]

I've had a few inattentive moments myself. The last one a buddy pulled up near me and my occupants weren't prepared for me to gun it through his wake so we had to take the wave. Any way you look at it, it's a sight for others to see.

[patrick232]

What happen to the caption of the other boat being responsible for his wake?

[.264 magnum]

What happen to the caption of the other boat being responsible for his wake?

We have a lot of huge cruisers and speed boats on the lake and wayward wakes are an issue every day. All that said you make a great point.

[moombabound]

This thread could be an eye opener for some. Having no ballast at the time may have contributed to your happy ending. Posts in ballast-related threads imply it's not uncommon to ballast beyond the stated boat capacity, in one case by nearly 1000 lbs!! So far I've avoided the temptation...but it is a temptation...sure would be nice to have a tsunami of a surf wave.

[Sled491]

Wow, what a unbelievable story. It's stories like this that makes me reconsider going to a bigger lake for more run time. Heck no, the biggest boat on my lake is a 24ft deck boat at best!

Maybe this will put everyones minds at ease, but water ballast will not sink you boat. It may swamp it or allow you to take on water and maybe lower your freeboard a bit but will not sink your boat. Even if you had been hit by a third killer and finishing wave you would not have gone to the bottom. I do realize however that this is not the reality going through your head as this is all taking place.

[jester]

All i have to say is WOW. I am happy for a happy ending. Sounds like your son knows what to do without thinking. You have to be proud about that.

[.264 magnum]

All i have to say is WOW. I am happy for a happy ending. Sounds like your son knows what to do without thinking. You have to be proud about that.

A bit later I told him he really did a nice job taking care of his mom and sister by putting jackets on them. He didn't remember anything except plugging in the Tsunami.

[.264 magnum]

Wow, what a unbelievable story. It's stories like this that makes me reconsider going to a bigger lake for more run time. Heck no, the biggest boat on my lake is a 24ft deck boat at best!

Maybe this will put everyones minds at ease, but water ballast will not sink you boat. It may swamp it or allow you to take on water and maybe lower your freeboard a bit but will not sink your boat. Even if you had been hit by a third killer and finishing wave you would not have gone to the bottom. I do realize however that this is not the reality going through your head as this is all taking place.

My dealer agrees.