Hurricane
Well-Known Member
Its been a while since I've posted a pointless blog like this so here we go again - If you dont like the thread - skip it and read something else.
Most of you will know that our dinghy is a Walker Bay fitted with a 40HP Yamaha.
At the time I bought it, I was concerned that I'd done the wrong thing but since then, its been used it for a number of different uses. There have been some successes and some failures so I thought I'd share my findings with you.
It would be interesting to hear what jfm has to say as he has exactly the same dinghy.
Just after I'd bought it, I towed it to Swanwick to get Princess to make the adjustmants to chocks etc and to fit it to Jennywren. I left them with the dinghy on the trailer and returned later - the comment from the engineer who fitted it was that "this little boat doesnt like the water - it always seems to be trying to get out!!".
For those of you who havent seen it, this is what I'm talking about.
Last season, before we moved the boat to the Med we met up with some forumites in Whitecliffe Bay
Here's the dinghy being driven by some reprobrates infront of a well known forum boat.
So, now you all know what we are talking about I'll continue with my experiences.
As a general purpose dinghy, we often use it round the marina - its a great "run about" - to pop over to the boatyard and back amongst other things.
And then several trips out to the Xiringuito Restaurant (on stilts) - out in the Lagoon at Sant Carles. ( see here www.xiringuitodelacosta.com ) Thats nearly two miles each way. It just "pops" onto the plane and you throttle back - probably around 25/30 knots.
We've even been known to transfer the old dog before we lost him earlier this year at the ripe old age of 17. He never really liked the water.
Normally, the dinghy is stored up on the flybridge so most of the time we forget that its there.
So now to my dissapointments.
Jennywren has recently had a new neighbour at Sant Carles.
A Sunseeker Predator 52 named Warlock
You cant see it in the above picture but she has one of the new 4 stroke Avon JetRibs on her bathing platform.
A few weeks ago, we were rafted up together out in the lagoon.
So, I did a bit of a silly thing - I challenged them to a race.
Some readers of this forum may have remembered a challenge and gauntlets that were thrown down at the end of the summer last year.
It was to be a virtual challenge between my Walker Bay and jfm's 4 stroke JetRib but we didnt get good enough weather conditions during the summer in the UK and then later the time was taken up by JennyWren's delivery to the Med. So we never got round to the actual race.
With this in mind - I challenged Nick and Teresa (Warlock's owners) to a proper side by side race.
I have to explain that the conditions weren't in my favour - a good force 5 and not exactly a flat sea but I have to admit - the JetRib absolutely slaughtered me. I thought it might be a guy thing so I challenged Teresa as well and again - I was anialated.
I think that it might have been its light construction but it just didnt run comfortably in the conditions - so maybe next time Nick.
So a first failure for the Walker Bay
An so to the next failure.
In ordering a boat with such a power to weight ratio, I thought that it might be the answer to towing a toy that I bought a few years ago. "The Manta Ray". This is a 12 foot wide inflatable that is suposed to fly when it reaches 20 knots. The last time we used it was in Studland and Swanage behind our old 2 stroke JetRib which didnt really have enough grunt to get the Manta airborne.
As I said above, I havent done a long post like this for a while but I always think that "a picture speaks a thousand words" so a video clip must "speak ten thousand words"
Have a look for yourselves then - tell me if this is a failure or not.
Perhaps we could have done with a bit more speed - what do you think.
Click the pics to play the video clips.
Well, after that I was getting a bit despondant so we packed up the Manta and got the skis out.
Ah yes - thats better
And so here's a couple more video clips showing just how much fun it can be.
During our trip to SIBS this year we bought a couple more inflatables and I think that we will have a go at wakeboarding next year as well.
Please excuse the skiing style - we are really only novices.
Maybe it isnt as fast as the JetRib but remember that this little Walker Bay Dinghy is a fraction of the cost of the JetRib.
It should be much easier to maintain in the future and being of a conventional Rib/Outboard design, iI believe it's more manouverable.
So, maybe I did the right thing after all.
What do you think?
Most of you will know that our dinghy is a Walker Bay fitted with a 40HP Yamaha.
At the time I bought it, I was concerned that I'd done the wrong thing but since then, its been used it for a number of different uses. There have been some successes and some failures so I thought I'd share my findings with you.
It would be interesting to hear what jfm has to say as he has exactly the same dinghy.
Just after I'd bought it, I towed it to Swanwick to get Princess to make the adjustmants to chocks etc and to fit it to Jennywren. I left them with the dinghy on the trailer and returned later - the comment from the engineer who fitted it was that "this little boat doesnt like the water - it always seems to be trying to get out!!".
For those of you who havent seen it, this is what I'm talking about.
Last season, before we moved the boat to the Med we met up with some forumites in Whitecliffe Bay
Here's the dinghy being driven by some reprobrates infront of a well known forum boat.
So, now you all know what we are talking about I'll continue with my experiences.
As a general purpose dinghy, we often use it round the marina - its a great "run about" - to pop over to the boatyard and back amongst other things.
And then several trips out to the Xiringuito Restaurant (on stilts) - out in the Lagoon at Sant Carles. ( see here www.xiringuitodelacosta.com ) Thats nearly two miles each way. It just "pops" onto the plane and you throttle back - probably around 25/30 knots.
We've even been known to transfer the old dog before we lost him earlier this year at the ripe old age of 17. He never really liked the water.
Normally, the dinghy is stored up on the flybridge so most of the time we forget that its there.
So now to my dissapointments.
Jennywren has recently had a new neighbour at Sant Carles.
A Sunseeker Predator 52 named Warlock
You cant see it in the above picture but she has one of the new 4 stroke Avon JetRibs on her bathing platform.
A few weeks ago, we were rafted up together out in the lagoon.
So, I did a bit of a silly thing - I challenged them to a race.
Some readers of this forum may have remembered a challenge and gauntlets that were thrown down at the end of the summer last year.
It was to be a virtual challenge between my Walker Bay and jfm's 4 stroke JetRib but we didnt get good enough weather conditions during the summer in the UK and then later the time was taken up by JennyWren's delivery to the Med. So we never got round to the actual race.
With this in mind - I challenged Nick and Teresa (Warlock's owners) to a proper side by side race.
I have to explain that the conditions weren't in my favour - a good force 5 and not exactly a flat sea but I have to admit - the JetRib absolutely slaughtered me. I thought it might be a guy thing so I challenged Teresa as well and again - I was anialated.
I think that it might have been its light construction but it just didnt run comfortably in the conditions - so maybe next time Nick.
So a first failure for the Walker Bay
An so to the next failure.
In ordering a boat with such a power to weight ratio, I thought that it might be the answer to towing a toy that I bought a few years ago. "The Manta Ray". This is a 12 foot wide inflatable that is suposed to fly when it reaches 20 knots. The last time we used it was in Studland and Swanage behind our old 2 stroke JetRib which didnt really have enough grunt to get the Manta airborne.
As I said above, I havent done a long post like this for a while but I always think that "a picture speaks a thousand words" so a video clip must "speak ten thousand words"
Have a look for yourselves then - tell me if this is a failure or not.
Perhaps we could have done with a bit more speed - what do you think.
Click the pics to play the video clips.
Well, after that I was getting a bit despondant so we packed up the Manta and got the skis out.
Ah yes - thats better
And so here's a couple more video clips showing just how much fun it can be.
During our trip to SIBS this year we bought a couple more inflatables and I think that we will have a go at wakeboarding next year as well.
Please excuse the skiing style - we are really only novices.
Maybe it isnt as fast as the JetRib but remember that this little Walker Bay Dinghy is a fraction of the cost of the JetRib.
It should be much easier to maintain in the future and being of a conventional Rib/Outboard design, iI believe it's more manouverable.
So, maybe I did the right thing after all.
What do you think?
