Questions from a Driftboat rookie...and than some

[dampainter]

Without ever being in one, I just got a 2000 willie 16x 54 and am wondering also about loading it up with gear ,1)can I put everything in it but the kitchen sink for future camping trips? how do I know if I am overloading it? and how do I check the tongue weight? 2)Is there anything to watch out for as far as motoring with a 8 or 9 horse? how do they handle with a motor anyway? after going out in the lake to see how it rows the other day told me I am going to need a motor to do any boating in still water...3)If I am drfting a river and come to a area that is too narrow to row how do I handle that? 4) what is too rough in a lake or bay for a driftboat? If I get a motor will I be able to handle .....small? whitecaps? I guess what I mean, will I be able to boat what a similar size aluminum v hull could handle ? I bought it hopeing that I can do it all in this thing plus the rivers , something I can do with the wife and kid.... man, I cannot wait to get my stuff together with this thing,I know v hulls and small boats but this drift boat is totally new boating to me. Are there any driftboat "clubs" around? thanks in advance

[ 02-23-2002, 07:00 PM: Message edited by: dampainter ]

[RichH]

Congrats!!! I think you're gonna love it. I would HIGHLY recommend going down a river with someone that has experience the first few times. Some time spent in still water is a good first step. Then hit some easy drifts, again with someone with experience. You'll find that moving water is a whole new ballgame compared to still water.

As for motoring, I think an 8 horse is fine. I tend toward the wuss side of things as far as what I'm willing to go out in. I've fished Tillamook Bay and the Multnomah Channel in a drift boat and its fine though I'd be hesitant to cross a bar though many do. Common sense goes along way here. If I can be of any more help email or post and I'll do what I can.

[DC]

You can do most things in a drift boat that you can in a conventional flat water boat, but some things you can not do as well and some things you can do that they can not. On a lake or bay you will find that with a motor you can get around, but the high bow is just like a sail anad high winds tend to blow you all over the place. The high bow also makes it very difficult to see forward when you are operating under power. You almost have to stand-up to see directly in front. That is a bother at times. Where the drift boat shines of course is in a river and then you will be amazed at how they handle in fast water and where you can go that you would never dare with a regular boat. Don't think about overloading as you will have to row that much harder the more weight you put in the boat as the deeper it sits in the water, the more resistance the river will apply. Learn to row it on a lake and then in a river that is free of hazzards. I have know people who push themselves too far in the begining and end up selling the boat because of a bad or dangerous situation. Happy rowing.

[Pete]

DP,
I too have a Willie 16x54, but mine's an '88. I'll share a bit of my experiences with it.
1) Overloading is when the boat doesn't handle well. You want to keep within the weight limits posted on the gunnel, if the sticker is there. About 1000 pounds of people and gear is the maximum, but if you're going white water, you will want to keep well below that limit. The tongue weight should be about the same loaded or unloaded ... lift the tongue with the boat empty and make a mental note of what it feels like. Keep in mind, though, the the trailer will bounce more with more weight in the boat, so while you're towing, keep the load weight down.
2) Motoring. 8 is about the maximum power. You won't go faster with more power, you'll just lift the front of the boat more. How do they handle? Slow and awkward, but better than a log raft. :rolleyes: On a lake you'll find that any wind will play havoc with you.
3) Areas that are too narrow to row aren't too much of an issue. You'll dip the oars to point the boat, but your aren't pulling through moving water, so you just lift the oars and maybe fold them out of the way. Usually you'll set up before you get to the spot and just drift through.
4) Too rough is something that happens after you're out there. Typically the wind in a bay or lake will pick up during the day and the waves will build. When the wind and waves and tidal current are going different directions is when you may have troubles. For me, I found I was uncomfortable before it got dangerous.
Funny story about my first time in TBay with the motor on my drify: I got to the Garibaldi ramp really early so I wouldn't get in anyone's way. I got the boat off the trailer and got the motor going. Put the motor in reverse to get over to the dock so I could tie off and go park my trailer. (Reverse is nearly impossible to control.) Well, here I am, going backwards, but I'm pointed at someones boat. I couldn't seem to get pointed the right way and it looked like I was going to hit. I tried to avoid hitting ... I couldn't. Just as I hit, I gunned the motor, trying to keep off the other boat. But since I was new to all this, I screwed up. I gunned the motor in reverse and really whacked the boat. Moments later I learned that the owner of the boat I hit had been asleep in the boat...with his head right by the spot I hit. He wasn't particularly happy about it, to say the least. But after some serious supplication he calmed down and everything was OK. Lesson in all this, do your learning in an uncrowded place in daylight!

[Spooled]

Hi Dampainter, I have the same year and model Willie Drifter as you. I just bought an 8HP Mercury motor for it. It is plenty of motor, a 6HP might be even better. Pete hits it on the head as far as handling with the motor. If you are interested in going down a river to row or would like to see how the boat acts with the motor, e-mail me and we can set something up.

You will love having a drift boat once you get used to it. As DC says, give yourself plenty of time. The first time I rowed was from Riverside to Clackamette Park on the Clackamas. I was with an experienced oarsman and was still wondering why I ever bought the boat when we got done. Today that is a fairly easy drift, at the time it seemed like a major whitewater adventure. What worried me then, is now second nature.

[FM2]

Wow!!, you have alot of great questions but since I have a bowl of raspberry cheesecake ice cream with extra cashews sprinkled on top waiting for me I have one suggestion,

When you are ready to drift a river just let me know and I will be more than happy to show you the ropes. The best way I believe to learn how to use a DB is to follow another boat down a drift and when that time comes, let me know and I will hook up with you, I hope you don't mind drifting behind a Fishrite though :grin:

Good Luck and Good Drifting! :grin:

[ 02-23-2002, 10:26 PM: Message edited by: FM2 ]

[rags]

Congrats on the DB. I got my first driftboat in 1974 and would never give it up. Everything said here is good advice. Have someone go with you experienced and start on a easy river. Don't try to drift every river. If you want to catch fish learn a few rivers really well. I had an 8hp longshaft on my boat for years until I bought a sled. One thing that will help plane your boat out is a aqua-fin on your motor shaft. Learn proper DB etiquette! It will make your outings much more enjoyable. Many threads on this subject. Need any help shoot me or anyone on this board an e-mail and we can set something up. Great bunch of people here.

[rags]

Oh, forgot this. Always face your danger when drifting down the river. This way you can pull away from it.

[FishinMission]

Dammy...you better take good care of that boat, since my fishin' buddy no longer has it in his garage, and if anything happens to it, I'll have to listen to him cry....just kidding. If you ever want a "class"...just give either one of us a shout, and we can school ya. Have fun with that thing..you got a reaaly good deal.

Mark

[chromer]

It always amazes me how few people know how to tell when their drift boat is properly loaded. What I mean by "loaded" is the proper weight distribution between the front and back of the boat so that you get the optimum performance out of the hull design.

Many years ago when I bought my first Willie drift boat I was talking with Willie about this. Where to position the front seat, rowing seat and when to adjust depending on load and passenger size. He said "Just **** in it." Afraid of what the answer might be I asked him for a little more detail. He replied "Just load the boat until the puddle of **** is in the center." Typically, the foot brace is positioned at the center of your boat so use it as a reference. "Simply the best" rule I've ever found for trimming seats and loading for optimum results. It works and makes a big difference in heavy whitewater or pulling plugs all day.

Damppainter - I highly recommend spending a couple of days in a row in the boat. If you just do weekends you'll loose a lot of what you learned the week before. And definitely spend some time with with an experienced oarsman before heading down the river. Stories like Pete's make me cringe and I've seen near disasters on easy pieces of water (like the lower Wilson) because the rower had no clue. It's O.K. to kill yourself and dent your boat all up, but consider us around you, too.

By the way, when I sold that Willie drift boat it went with a full day (5 drifts between Mills and Sollie Smith) of lessons. Including backing, launching, anchoring, opposing currents, sweepers, backeddies, etc. There's more to it than just rowing.

Good luck. Like all the rest have said you'll love it once you get the hang of it. We were all rookies once and learned somewhere. By the way - what color is that new Willie? JK!

Pete: You're lucky the guy in that boat was going fishing and not duck hunting!

[BuKuBass]

To ascertain tongue weight, cut a stick to the height of the hitch, place it under the tongue(say aahh) and on a bathroom scale. Tongue weight should equal ten percent of total trailered weight. I disagree with pete re. lighter weight equals smoother ride. Logic dictates that a heavier load would be smoother. Many people make the mistake of thinking that a trailer with a heavier load capacity than required will result in a smoother tow. If the springs aren't loaded enuf, ride will suffer.

[Pete]

BuKu. I'm not sure we disagree on this. Few drifty trailers are equipped with shock absorbers, just springs. Certainly, you want enough weight to keep the trailer from bouncing over every pebble in the road. When I said lighter is better, I was referring to the handling of the boat on the water, not on the trailer.

The other side of trailering is that any weight that bounces is kinetic energy. A heavy load may settle the springs better, but it also creates more force in a bounce. The key, I think, is to find the right load for a particular set up. The assumption I made (which certainly could be wrong) is that the trailer is reasonably matched to the boat.

Originally posted by BuKuBass:
I disagree with pete re. lighter weight equals smoother ride. Logic dictates that a heavier load would be smoother.<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">

[cully]

chromer, I found it interesting that you gave up so much of your time when selling your boat, to school your buyer. I bought a drift boat in sept. and the seller offered to show me a few things on the river and I passed the offer up. I was embarresed to ask questions and did not want to take up his time. I now wish I had taken the time and swallowed my pride. I have sinced researced Alsup and Streeks two books and asked you guys a ton of questions. Still I feel like I need to take it really slow. If at anytime any of you boat owners sell your boat and have the time to school us buyers maybe you could be as thoughtful as chromer and my seller and teach us rookies a few things. It would keep us all a little safer.

[chromer]

Pete:

Just for the record, I think that a propoerly balanced boat that is heavier will row much better than a light boat improperly balanced. There's more to it than just weight. For example: I'm sure you have rowed your boat solo with no weight up front. If your's is like mine it probably rows like crap. Add 3 - 4 25 pound rocks in front of the passenger seat, and/or hang a 30 pound anchor off the bow, and the boat rows like a dream. Its not so much total weight, but its the distribution of the weight.

Another factor is the boat itself. An example: This past Fall I had one passenger (balanced boat accordingly) and made the drift from Mills to Sollie. Back bouncing and plugging for salmon. At Sollie we picked up a second for the re-run and because of the short turn around time didn't bother to adjust the balance. With two up front the boat actually was easier to row. A little more sluggish maybe, but held its track in the boily stuff much better. I've also noticed the same result when I fill my broodstock live box. The added weight actually improves how the boat rows, tracks and handles. So, my conclusion: Koffler boats (at least mine) row better when the weight is shifted slightly forward of center, whereas, my Willie rowed better with the weight centered.

Just my $.02

[dampainter]

THANKS for all the replys!!! with the work I am doing ....overtime up the gazoo which I must do to pay for toys like this boat! and my daughters future college days, I don't expect to have much time ( work 6 days with sunday day off ) to play with my toy but I expect the overtime to stop in the summer sometime... does anyone have experience doing the deschutes? I live in The Dalles and figure this is where I'll be drifting along with the klickitat and drano lake area...anyone fishing the mouth of the white salmon? I was on the bench last fall getting a taste of this salmon fishing,saw a drift boat on the mouth with water being pretty rough looking and that boat was doing just fine...I was impressed,I knew than I had to have one. When I can get the time I hope to get over in the ?? rivers most talked about...lets see,the clackamas,sandy,trask,wilson, wind and others. also figure the bays possible someday for crabbing...sometime this summer I want to take a week and drift /camp some river with wife/kid for starters...may not be able to get out much but I finally have it :grin: for now I have sundays, where to?? the boat is a willie package, all aluminum "color", chromer.... A note to all...if I am out there and screw up river etiqette....drift into wading people and slam into other boats ( just kidding, I hope) I APOLOGIZE :shocked: I suppose a guide is in my future but even so I am thinking this maybe something that I just do it... to get the expertise.....

[Nanook]

[ 11-25-2002, 04:03 PM: Message edited by: ****** ]

[dampainter]

******,
NOOO WAY!!!!! but hope to go fishing with you sometime and will be back for your other boat in the future,( would you consider a used drift in part sale?) again, thanks for the driftboat. where was your first drift? any suggestions? and don't worry I'll try not to wrap it on the rocks too hard ...shes too purdy!

[Nanook]

The "fine" print says you really didn't buy it but rented it for six months! :grin: :grin: :grin: . My first drift was with a guide who showed me how to use the sticks and read the water. Anytime guy.

Rick