My 54' Sportfish throws a pretty obnoxious wake. I'm always trying to maintain as much distance as I can from other boats and always being mindful of my wake. If I'm passing a crowded channel or narrows with tighter space than preferred I'll slow way down. Maybe part of this is because I'm in a small community and most people know me and my boat. I see all these videos on Youtube in Florida and other places of massive yachts plowing wakes at full cruise as they enter inlets or passing very close by others. It appears there is little to no regard for their wake and other boats close by. Is this as common as it looks? I see some of these smaller boats darn near getting swamped. Keep in mind, I'm not talking about speed or wake controlled zones. Curious how others manage your wakes or not?
My boat can throw a pretty good wake - thus I am very mindful of it. We try not to run on the ICW - but sometimes with weather we will. Lot's of rental boats on the ICW in our local area. I realize that I cannot count on the operator of a rental boat with a bunch of kids on it to correctly position their boat for meeting a wake - so I dial it back and watch it very closely.
Boat operators are responsible for their wake and any damage left behind. It is so sad that so many people do not understand this.. Not many think about this nor even look behind or even to the sides. These last few years up the St Johns river has been a challenge for us. Anything near and greater than hull speed we make a hell of a wake, So we fast idle along. Always a bass boat, canoe, pontoon boat or pram fishing along the shallow, river banks. Some times not seen till the last moment. Down river , north to Jax, the river gets wider so we can bump the throttles up a bit. Engine temp come up nicer and the exhaust clears from the back deck nicer. Many of these folks are neighbors, friends, know us or know of us. They know we slow down when we can for their tied up boats and while their out & about. Even then, we have to watch for the guy working the crab pots and small boats. Still here, I have to watch for passing boats,,, it is not a pretty sight watching a 45+ MPH bass boat stuff into the back side of my lil wake. Some river red-necks just don't understand a ripple in the river can really mess up there go-fast bass-boat. Then the aspholes; Ski boats are designed to make wake. Lots of folks run them around and never ski or surf; just motor around and rock the heck out of us and others. These issues we had in Jax, now suffering it up river. Seems these ski boats also look cool and have a super loud stereos. Many have been sold these last couple of years. Not any in our hood to go talk to (nicely?). Our dock is behind some lil islands and a creek. Not on the St Johns & main channel. Every now and then some asphole or ski boat must run by at an ugly angle and mess up a nice moment of the day. I entertain my self thinking; One day, I'll rock the sheet out of them. But Not, I'm not an asphole making rude wake. Until Karma kicks back, It is easier to go slow and not be the asphole. Now, in the big river and off shore, I may make some surf of my own. Then the U-Tube videos; Depth perception may be an issue, but it is up to the damaged to pursue. Law-enforcement is somewhere else on smoother waters, most always.. The rest of the time their following you..
I ve heard a lot of people complaining that slowing down for others waste a lot of time and fuel, especially the sportfish guys. It s all BS. In a narrow channel like the ICW Properly timed, coming off plane, doing a slow pass and getting back up takes less than a minute. The fuel used to accelerate again is balances by the fuel saved while slowing down…