2021 Walker Bay Generation 400 Tow Bridle

A good place to start is tow eye (.) com. Though the info focuses on mega yacht towing center consoles, the principles apply to towing smaller, lighter tenders. I tow an 18 Novurania RIB using a tow bridle based on their specs.

The tow length is important. You want the tender to ride behind one of the waves in your wake where it will plane and track smoothly.

A way to measure the required distance is to take 200’ of floating poly line and attach it to a small buoy. It’s a two-person job. One runs the boat fast enough to be on plane and the other lets out the line until the buoy is riding where you want it in the wake (mine rides just behind the third wave). Mark or knot the line at the transom even with where the tow line will be attached, and you have your distance.

There are three components to the tow bridle: V-bridle, hawser and painter. Typically, the length of the legs of the V are at least twice the beam of the boat (my beam is 15’ and legs are 35’). The V plus the hawser length equals the total tow length (the painter will add only a few feet).

Good luck!