gettin up question? boat driver..

what do you tell them to do.

1. gas to the max...
2. gas 1/2 the max..

ive been telling him to gas it all the way to pull me out the hole. works ok for me, but not so good for him trying to get up. like i said, he hasnt yet.

we're going in the morning at 10am, so i need to know how to get him up as far as the speed goes.

and suggestions...

try different ways---you will figure out what is best for him!! Ask him as you try each and see what he thinks!!

what is the best way everybody else does it...?

usually you want to pull beginners out slower so they get the concept of it and build it in their muscle memory

Best rule of thumb is ease into the throttle, especially with beginners. As the rider comes up out of the water, slowly add speed. Big guys may need a little more punch- good driving comes with experience, and usually everybody in the boat gets a better pull than the driver Good luck!

yeah i think that would work better....

he trys and then the rope just pops hard out of his hand..

yeah, i see that happening to people all over my lake... just accelerate slowly

yeah im gonna try that..

for him and me....

thanks for the info guys...

For me and most people there is no 'too slow'. Its easier on the hands and you entire body when the driver doesn't gun it...

If he's popping the handle, that usually means he's trying to pull himself out of the water. Break him of that habit quick. The trick I use for people trying to get up the first time (from an instructional)

1. Relax in a sitting position, with your arms loosely around (outside) your knees.

2. When the boat starts to pull, let it pull you...do NOT pull back.

3. Keep repeating this to yourself (and actually do it). Pull my heels to my butt, pull my heels to my butt.

I haven't seen one person not get up when doing this. As the driver, I don't go too easy, otherwise they don't pop up and so they start to try and pull.

Another trick we use with kids when teaching them is close your eyes and the boat will pull you up. It works every time. If they look at the boat, they try to stand up too early. If they close their eyes, they get up every time. We pull them slowly, build speed and they are amazed that they are riding so quickly.

The real answer is: it depends.

It depends on the rider, how strong they are, how corrdinated they are.

It depends on how powerful the boat is.


On my SAN, with the ballast tanks full and an experienced adult male rider we just hit it all the way.

When my son's girlfrind rides we empty the tanks. With a petite girl and a light boat it only takes about 1/2 throttle or less.

When we pull a beginner up we will often "feather" the throttle, easing into it slowly to gently pull the rider up instead of pulling them over.

Likewise, how you throttle back once they are up depends. When I pull my son I can hit it full and I have time to adjust the stereo volume before backing off and letting the Perfect Pass take it. If I did that with the girl friend we would be at 40 MPH before I had the stereo adjusted.

After you figure out how hard to accelerate, throttle-up to 2 mph slower than your riding speed, then ease it up the last 2 mph and let your perfect pass take over. This way, you don't overshoot your final riding speed.

Very slow is best for beginners. Tell the to not push or pull (ball up) and they will be up with ease.

Experienced riders usually say the faster the better -- less work.

you don't tow riders at 40 mph do you?

what other speed can you tow a rider at?

No, I don't tow a wakeboard at 40 MPH, but that is how fast you will be going if you don't back the throttle off.....