towing ringo with inflatable

[uny1965]

hi everyone, have already posted this question on one of the other forums and it was suggested that if i posted on the mobo forum i may get a better response, so here goes. I have just purchased honda 3.2m inflatable with 15hp mariner and was wondering whether you people out there have had any experience towing ringos and other toys. i know the motor wont be powerful enough to tow a skier but what are your opinions on towing single or double man ringos. my main concern is where to attach the rope and would the transom be strong enough. look forward to hearing your views.

 

[Divemaster1]

Got Avon 345 SS with 30 HP ... towing skier and double ringo ...
Daughter 16 and when towing her and friend, we do need the 30 HP... and those girls are not large!!!

Tow daugther onto skis easy and ok running hard for mono ski...

Guess is that any skier + double ringo will be a challenge for a 15 hp, unless very light ... Single ringo shoild be OK and a very light skier, but forget the adult ones...

 

[geardownthreegreens]

Welcome.
I'd say you may struggle a little even with a single ringo,its quite surprising how much drag they create.You may be ok once your up and running but it will take every HP to get going.You would never move a 2man ringo,my last boat,a Bayliner had 210hp and that struggled to start with.
Try and get a 20-25hp motor for that size rib for a single ringo.

I thought there were small ski poles you could buy that are approx 3feet high.You see them in small 13-16 ft speedboats.
Perhaps you could fit 2 boat hooks,C shaped hooks,to the transom, 1 either side of engine and use a split tow line with float so the rope doesn't sink into the prop but it would perhaps stress that transom.I wouldn't say the boat was really designed for all this. Just a thought.

 

[skint_git]

Should be possible to tow the single ringo. With a 3.4m Avon and 15hp we can tow a 2.3m airfloor dingy with one occupant at speed. Your best chance is to have just one in the towing boat, and sit foward when starting off to get over the hump, then aft to trim and stay dry. With one up and not towing anything 23knots is WOT, decreasing to 19 for 3 up which is the wieght limit if you want to plane. Also secure the towing line to the transom as low as possible to minimise it's turning moment digging the stern in- I would'nt use a ski pole. I have seen 15hp aluminuim dinghy tow a wakeboarder using a bigger than normal (kitesurfing?) board.

 

[Nick_H]

I could tow SWMBO (8+1/2 stone) on skis or wakeboard with a 15hp on 3.1 avon RIB. No problem to fix eye bolts to transom.

 

[Wiggo]

Perfectly possible. We regularly towed the kids on a ringo behind a 2.7m airdeck with an 8hp lump on it. On one occasion I had SWMBO wake boarding behind it. We now have a 3m mini RIB with a 15hp 2-stroke and we tow a chariot with 2 kids, the kids water skiing or SWMBO on the wake board.

It's a crap tow if you're serious about skiing as the boat is so light you drag the thing all over the water if you carve hard turns, but that's not the point, is it? If you wanted a competition tow, you'd buy a Mastercraft and a lake...

 

[canoeto]

What happened, I am very interested to know as I have a 20hp on a 3.4 rib hoping to tow a double ringo. Sounds like it might just work, I would'nt get on it.

 

[John5]

Driving a small/low powered boat for a skier can require considerable skill to anticipate the skiers forces on the boat and ensure it tracks straight and stays on the plane. Driving for a donut to me poses two problems getting the thing up as double donuts offer a lot of resistance and after that looking out for where the riders are heading - they have no control of their direction as a skier has! Even with 60hp on tap on a 5m boat I have trouble getting a double donut out of the submarine zone (they tend to submerge) in a straight line but there is an easy way to tow:
Circle the donut with the line just taught while the boat gets onto the plane, expand the cornering radius once up to speed and you will pull a double donut with 2 heaviweights on it out of the hole no problem.
CAUTION: If not performed with care this method imposes significant forces on the riders.
This method may seem recklous to some but if you know how to handle the boat it can be great fun for the riders.

 

[canoeto]

I feel dizzy already, I think I understand the theory,cheers,rich.

 

[canoeto]

Think i'll try it with two sacks of spuds,first.