Constantly Towing Tender

[jkindredpdx]

Not once in the last 5 years. On Deck

[COLINFLTENG]

yes I tow my hard bottom 9' dinghy last summer behind my CS40 with no problems deck full with kayaks keep dinghy close during strong wind

[Group9]

Originally Posted by WindLove

It's ok to tow a dinghy, but put it on deck with winds gets close to 20 knots. I have had a near loss by putting off the decision. It's like reefing, if you are thinking about putting it on deck, it's time,

Yep. I sunk one I was towing one time because I waited too late, about twenty five years ago. It was a home made wood and fiberglass 8 ' pram, with no flotation, and I was young, and even so, hoisting it up out of the water with the halyard and up onto the deck in 25 knots of wind and six or seven foot seas was one of the worst things I ever went through (it took a while to buff out all of the scratches where it banged into the hull as I hoisted it up).

These days, I would just cut the line and chalk it up to stupidity.

I was towing my whaler across the Bahama Banks a few years ago in settled weather. Just as I neared Chub Cay and reached the toungue of the ocean, it blew up and I was watching that dinghy surf down ten and eleven foot waves and shooting past me at about ten or fifteen knots, waiting for it to decide to ram my transom.

That made a believer out of me and putting it on deck if I even had the notion it needed to be there.

And, still, it almost got me again, one day, coming into Pensacola Bay, where some big rollers came out of nowhere and it did it again for about five minutes before I could get inside.

You live and learn.

[Sandero]

We tow a 10' RIB with a towing bridle and a the painter. The bridal is tied to the stern cleats port and starboard allowing a lot of flexibility in trim.. We never ever tow with the OB on the dink. We've got a Garhauer demountable lifting crane for that. It's super!

I would not and do not tow a dink off shore and towing in large seas coastal is not a good idea either. I did tow in the Windward Islands however. Better for multiple reasons to not tow, but no biggie in protected water and fair conditions.

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by Group9

Yep. I sunk one I was towing one time because I waited too late, about twenty five years ago. It was a home made wood and fiberglass 8 ' pram, with no flotation, and I was young, and even so, hoisting it up out of the water with the halyard and up onto the deck in 25 knots of wind and six or seven foot seas was one of the worst things I ever went through (it took a while to buff out all of the scratches where it banged into the hull as I hoisted it up).

These days, I would just cut the line and chalk it up to stupidity.

I was towing my whaler across the Bahama Banks a few years ago in settled weather. Just as I neared Chub Cay and reached the toungue of the ocean, it blew up and I was watching that dinghy surf down ten and eleven foot waves and shooting past me at about ten or fifteen knots, waiting for it to decide to ram my transom.

That made a believer out of me and putting it on deck if I even had the notion it needed to be there.

And, still, it almost got me again, one day, coming into Pensacola Bay, where some big rollers came out of nowhere and it did it again for about five minutes before I could get inside.

You live and learn.

We all learn that lesson. Once in the Sea of Cortez I left one island anchorage for one 20 miles away. The wind had blown hard during the night out in the Sea but was calm when we left in the am. So I decided to tow my little Dyer Dhow on a 3/8 poly tether about 25 feet long. When we got out in the channel between islands, the seas were very steep about 14-16 footers! Left over from the previous nights blow. The mother ship would surf down those waves and the dink would be sucked behind the wave, then the mother ship would stop in the trough and the dink would surf down the big swell either crashing into the stern or windvane of the mother ship. Or it would try to pass us until out of tether and round up wildly. Eventually the Dyer dug in and completely filled with water, in the cockpit I yelled "duck" as the tether became bar tight.... suddenly the dyer exploded vertically out of the water and threw all the water inside it out! At that point I hove to and put the dink on deck, but it was a dangerous move in those waves. Lost an oar that was lashed on the mothership in the process.... Just say NO to towing a dink in anything but very protected waters!

[Jim Cate]

G'Day all,

I've posted this several times before, but here goes again:

We have towed inflatables, both RIB and regular, for way too many miles. Not important why, and of course it is not a particularly good idea, but you can improve your odds of success with some forethought and some simple gear. For long term success, you must assume that the wind and sea will at some time build up unexpectedly, f/c be damned!

First, if it is a small dink, it may become airborne all too easily. When that happens, it may land inverted, so it is mandatory to remove the motor, oars, any loose seats and so on.

Second, it should be self bailing, or failing that, have a tight cover to prevent filling with water. If it fills, loss is very likely to follow.

Finally, the biggest hazard is when sailing downwind, the dinghy will surf sooner and faster than the towing boat. This will cause the painter to go slack, and often the dinghy then goes sideways or even 180 degrees off course, followed by the slack coming out with a big jerk. This can break painters or flip the dink... not good! There is also the issue of the dink ramming the towboat... not good for either one, especially if there is an outboard rudder or windvane. The answer is to tow a small drogue behind the dinghy. We built a short series drogue, one with only two cones (of the standard Jordan size) on an old dock line. A metre of 3/8 chain on the end keeps it in the water, and the drag keeps the dinghy tracking straight and at the end of the painter -- a much more stable condition.

Even with these precautions, we had some very anxious moments when the conditions degenerated unexpectedly. Never lost the dink at sea in a lot of miles, but I still can not really recommend the practice!

Cheers,

Jim

[jkindredpdx]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Finally, the biggest hazard is when sailing downwind, the dinghy will surf sooner and faster than the towing boat...The answer is to tow a small drogue behind the dinghy...A metre of 3/8 chain on the end keeps it in the water, and the drag keeps the dinghy tracking straight and at the end of the painter -- a much more stable condition... Cheers, Jim

Good info Jim! Years ago my friend lost a finger smashed between his dinghy and boat.