towing a tender

[gambit]

I
notice on my travels that when it comes to towing an inflatable dinghy while sailing along there are two schools of thought.
One school of thought says to tow the dinghy flat, while the other school of thought says tow the dinghy tied up to the rail at an angle of, say, 45-deg.
Although I believe in the second method, I must admit that most people tow their dinghies flat and some distance behind the boat.
I would welcome assistance or ideas on this subject.

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[maris]

DON'T DO IT. Inflatables have a habit of becoming a nusance when being towed in anything other than flat calm conditions.
They eather cork screw along behind you or fly into the cockpit.
If I'm going from home to my mooring, about four miles I haul it up stern first tie it off to both cleats so as only its bow is in the water. This seems to give least hassle. Otherwise I deflate or part deflate and take it aboard.

Donnie



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[anabel]

Depends on type of tender, sea conditions, distance to be covered and speed at which you will be travelling. Are conditions calm or rough. What distance do you expect to cover. If you intend to cover more than 10 or 15 miles then I would take it on board if possible, especially if you are sailing as it will make a considerable difference to your speed. Travelling over 5 or 6 knots you will most likely have to take it on board or at least haul it up tight to your transom. If conditions rough again take it on board or at least haul up tight. In not the tender is likely to upend it self or become airborne. If towing make sure painter is of adequate strenght and the securing point on the tender is the same. Use a bowline or some such knot to tie it on to your transom. Many is the boat arriving at destination only to find that the tender had a mind of it's own & went somewhere else! If travelling slow, less than about 5 kts then towing it up close or not doesen't really matter. Just remember, if you towing it well behind, to shorten up painter before you start manouvering at pontoon or anchorage, in case you should reverse over it.
Hope the above might be of some give you some ideas. Your own experience will eventually show what is best for you.

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[tcm]

You can tie up to the rail if it is soft (not a rib) and will be less drag than if a long way behind. If it is at all RIB or solid, then on a short line it will whack the boat so need a longer line - in fact a very much longer line to be out of wash and not fill with water. Either way, taking it on board for any distance is best as others say, or if still towed take it up to the mid cleat before anchoring. Towing a dinghy is easily the best way to get a rope around the prop sooner or later, even with a floating line.

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[Evadne]

They are pain to tow. I prefer to have a fast inflator and keep it on the deck. My highly scientific trials (!) showed that towing the inflatable took between 0.5 and 1 knot off the boat speed on our 29 footer.

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[jleaworthy]

Agree wholeheartedly with Maris. However my (unintended) solution was to buy a yacht with a junk rig, As an elderly sailor I appreciated the ease of handling, instant reefing, everything done from the cockpit etc. but had not realised that because the mast is about 3 to 4 feet further forward than on a bermudan rig I would have room on my 26' boat to lash a fully-inflated 2.4 m dinghy on deck between the mast and the spray hood. Having no kicking strap and being able to set the boom at any chosen height makes the whole thing very practicable - the best answer I have found in forty years of cruising.

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[Sybarite]

My tender sits nicely on the foredeck (30 footer) and does not interfere with mooring cleats.

When towing you should try pulling the dinghy towards you. I was amazed at the drag and would not want that slowing me down.

John

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[noname]

must confess all are right about the perils of towing,must confess still on odd occasions/calm conditions i do.
one thing i would suggest is second line attached but slightly slack as back up. another one to look out for but at least better than turning round to find your just towing your painter!

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[surekandoo]

The only thing I've learned is, if you've got to tow your dinghy, use a floating painter.
Last season I got my painter round the prop twice. Fortunately I've got an outboard, so recovery was relatively painless, but embarassing and potentially dangerous none the less.

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[seaesta]

If you are feeling reckless and really trust your crew you can get some really nice action pictures of your own boat under sail from a towed tender.
I DID NOT SAY THIS> I WAS NOT HERE>I ADVISE AND INTRUCT YOU NOT TO DO IT> but it is a fun distraction on a long leg in a steady wind

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[graham]

Re: towing a tender dont do it

Except in very sheltered waters.They tend to be a pain in the stern.If you do tow one remove oars outboard motor etc first as they flip over very easily with no one aboard.

A friend of mine lost one at sea and later got a slapped wrist from the coastguard for not informing them .The upside down tender floated ashore and caused concern as to where the crew where.

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[polarity]

Re: towing a tender dont do it

I agree avoid at all costs. Its a PITA

I bought a 5 quid inflator that plugs into a cigarette type socket. Blows up my 6ft Bombard in a couple of mins... Even with the dog sitting in it tapping his claws!

For every 5 times it was towed, have problems at least once.



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