Can't catch the wake

[G-MONEY]

I tried surfing this weekend for the first time and I could not catch the wake. I'm 6'8" 245 lbs and I was on the brodcast 5'6" with 800lbs of ballast and 4 people in the boat (24V). I tried moving the people and sacs around and every taps and speed combo you could think of and still had the hold the rope the whole time. I thinking I should have got the landlock 5'11" but the guy in the pro shop at TIGE WATERSPORTS said that the brodcast would be fine and I should have no problem with catching the wake.

Should I add more ballast or get the landlock or do I need to do both??

Can you stack the fly high side sacs on top of each other??

[Matt Garcia]

I would first try the landlock and see if that makes a difference. For bigger guys like you and myself (6' 1 210) it takes a lot more work to stay in the wave on a smaller board. The increased board length does make riding easier and less work.

[talltigeguy]

I have the 5'6" Broadcast, and at 230 pounds I have found that I need to have about 1200 pounds on the port side of my 24V to make it rideable with any consistency. The best I have had it was with about 2000 pounds on that side. I usually put the TAPS up and ride at 11 or 11.5 MPH to achieve the best wake. I too was surprised at how much weight I needed.

[Surfdad]

Big boats do require a bunch of ballast to get them to list. Something else, once folks get the mechanics down they can ride a smaller board. When I first started I couldn't ride anything less than a 5'6" and I'm in the 170 lb range. Now, I ride 4'2"'s and 4'6" boards. Personally I agree with Matt...longer boards are easier to learn on and then once you get your skills down, you can step down in length.

[G-MONEY]

Surfdad

How much ballast was in your boat when you started?

[Surfdad]

We literally started with no extra ballast at all, just the 23V, taps on 8 and everyone on one side...miserable wake. Then we stepped up to a single 750 lb fat sac in the rear locker, filled...probably to about 550-600 lbs. This was the setup we used the entire first year. Then we added bags everywhere, probably as much as 1,200 pounds, but in 5 seprate bags. Then last year we had the custom fat sac that probably holds 1,300 pounds, in lieu of all the separate bags.

For me, personally, I couldn't surf well until the end of the second season and now when we travel to competitions I pretty much able to surf any wake - pitiful or not on my 4'6" board.

[Paublo]

The wake can make a difference but I have also found that position or balance on the board can make a huge difference. If you are too far back on the board, it can be impossible to keep up with the wake. By moving forward, the board is flatter to the water and is easier for the wake to push. The downside is that it now becomes easier to put the nose too far down and take a dive. A bigger wake is more forgiving, but not the cure-all. You know that your position is right when you can shift your weight by how you lean and you don't have to move your feet. Keep trying and good luck.

[derekbell23]

i have found that the position of your feet on the board is the most important thing for me. i ride the broadcast and on it you want your back foot to be almost on the back of the board and you also need to keep your knees bent. it will wear you out, but you'll find the sweet spot in no time.

[G-MONEY]

Thanks for all the info I'm going out this weekend and I will have more people in the boat maybe this time I will get it.

I still would like to know if any on has stacked the 400lbs pro X fat sacs on top of each other??

[talltigeguy]

G-Money,

I have done that exactly and it worked well for surfing. I got a pretty solid wave with that.

I did have one semi-serious problem with that however...

I'll take a pic, but the essence of what happened it that the bag on top slid back and damaged the back wall of my storage compartment. If you take out the 'window' to get to your battery, you'll notice that there are about 2 inches of wood that are on the middle side. The weight of the sac broke that 2 inches of wood. So now my back wall does not articulate properly with the engine compartment wall. Really it is not a big deal, and most people don't notice the wall is bowing backward, but it bugs me.

I actually did it many times before I had that happen, and didn't have a problem, and have done it since. Just make sure that the bag on top does not fall onto the engine wall (it usually will naturally fall to the outside wall) or fall into the back wall heavily.

[Surfdad]

Hey Tall, did you ever do anything to reinforce the wood around your engine compartment after you installed that large custom sac?

[Paublo]

Just to be technically correct, it isn't "wood". You could call it grey plastic material, composite material or anything else, just not wood. And in some cases it is too bad that it isn't wood because wood has some properties that are better in certain applications. But after all that Tige went through to get rid of wood, we should try not to mention that word.

[Surfdad]

Not to be argumentative, but the box around the engine on my '03 IS wood with a carpet overlay. I'm not referring to the stringers, but the frame around the engine that separates the storage compartment from the engine, as well as, the guides that it slips into...are ALL wood. Did that change subsequent to the '03 model year? I also purchased a "photo boat", is it possible that the production models were different? Not to get off topic, but I'm still wondering if Tall reinforced that "part" of his boat.

[dogbert]

Originally posted by talltigeguy
I actually did it many times before I had that happen, and didn't have a problem, and have done it since. Just make sure that the bag on top does not fall onto the engine wall (it usually will naturally fall to the outside wall) or fall into the back wall heavily.

One thing to consider would be to use smaller bags on top. That's what I do on mine. LaunchPad makes a 150 lb that you can move around (it's got handles on both ends) after it's full. It's pretty easy to position those on top of another bag so you can avoid what talltigeguy is talking about.

I would be interested to know from someone at Tige about the thickness of the side of the boat in the area of the engine compartment on a V-Drive. I don't know how much weight you can have pushing on the side of the boat before it becomes a problem. Nick Howard, you have any thoughts on this?

[talltigeguy]

I did not reinforce the walls - hence my breaking rear wall. I have seen where surfdad reinforced his. I think that his custom sac completely fills the rear compartment. I left a little space at the top so I can still fit the life vests in there.

My custom sack is 24 inches deep and does not seem to want to flop into either wall, so I have had no further problems with wall stress.

The wall is wood. I do need to get a picture. All you have to do is break it and you can see.

I am not worried about the outside wall at all. The fiberglass there is well supported, it's also partially under the water line, so it has some pressure coming back at it.