Re: Seamanship in adverse conditions
 

I don't leave the boat until it either slips under the waves, or is on the trailer :D

Re: Seamanship in adverse conditions
 

Then you've missed the incredible sight of coming up from 100 feet down and seeing that wonderful SeaCraft hull waiting for you above; knowing that you've got a SeaCraft to get you home from the sea.

Re: Seamanship in adverse conditions
 

I used to dive, and in the keys, bahamas, or places that have good visibility and light currents, it's fun. Here off from East Central Florida, we have lost several divers over the last couple of years. The poor visibility, thermoclines, and currents make it a measured risk, every time you go down. We have also seen a lot more tiger and bull sharks out there lately. I caught the largest bull shark I have ever seen last month trolling, which is pretty rare too.
I will leave the view for you :D, but I do like scalloping!!!

Re: Seamanship in adverse conditions
 

If you watch the video below from about the 1:15 mark to 1:30 mark, you will see the proper way of running an inlet during breaking seas. As you will sea, the CG is coming in at angle with the seas on the port quarter and they have adjusted their boat speed so that they are riding just behind the back of the wave in front of them. What you dont see is that when the wave in front of them breaks...they increase throttle and speed across the whitewater to avoid the wave behind them.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=kLXsKeybUeA

All of the footage from the beginning to about the 1:15 mark is practicing and seeing how the boat handles in breaking surf. I do not recommend allowing a breaking wave to overcome you directly from astern as they do in the footage....

Re: Seamanship in adverse conditions
 

I saw that last week, great video.

One of the things that I see is many boat manufactures put marginal power on the new boats. People then add a lot of crap/weight to the boat. This becomes a problem in rough sea conditions because the boat will struggle to power up behind these waves, or get overtaken by a wave.

Most of the SeaCrafts I have seen on here have plenty of power, but many of the newer lower end boats can be dangerously underpowered. These boats also tend to be bought by boaters with little rough sea experience. The combination can be deadly.

Re: Seamanship in adverse conditions
 

Thats why I love that 150 on my 18. I wouldn't want anything much heavier than its 375# weight range though. When it gets rough, it does need a little less prop than the 19 thats on it now.

Re: Seamanship in adverse conditions
 

That 150 for power and weight is pretty sweet on your 18SF

Re: Seamanship in adverse conditions
 

With a 37 gallon tank the only thing she lacks is range. With the motor tilted up, I can actually fish skinnier water than most big flats boats with their heavy V-6's. I get alot of funny looks when I float on by :D