How do you ride in your dinghy

[Jason Flare]

I almost got creamed once on a dinghy. I came out beyond the end of a jetty into the outer harbor/anchorage and a powerboat at high speed was running parallel to and just off the jetty about to enter the “No Wake” channel.

He was careless with his speed but I was careless in not anticipating that someone could be coming through there at high speed. I take responsibility (have the ability to respond) in this instance and from then on I’ve been very careful coming around the end of that jetty.

As for riding in the dinghy we ride on the tubes. I on the port tube, with the outboard engine’s tiller on my side with Mrs. Flare on the starboard tube. She watches my back, I watch her’s and we both look aft and forward.

[Shrew]

When we see people standing in their dinghy underway, we jokingly refer to it as a "Washingtonian Crossing", in reference to famous painting "Washington Crosses the Delaware" by Emanuel Leutze.

The funniest thing we ever saw was a party of four. All four were standing. Two in front, two in back. Ridiculous. We laugh whenever we see it. If someone then tries to use the excuse that they can see better, we laugh even harder.

[Shrew]

Incidentally. We sit on the tubes. If it's rough sometimes we sit on a pfd on the floor.

[Jason Flare]

Originally Posted by Shrew

When we see people standing in their dinghy underway, we jokingly refer to it as a "Washingtonian Crossing", in reference to famous painting "Washington Crosses the Delaware" by Emanuel Leutze.

The funniest thing we ever saw was a party of four. All four were standing. Two in front, two in back. Ridiculous. We laugh whenever we see it. If someone then tries to use the excuse that they can see better, we laugh even harder.

I have always been a “North up” kind of person having studied maps and the globe from an early age. It wasn’t until much later in life that I realized that the perspective of that painting is facing south. I actually had Washington going from NJ to PA which wasn’t the case at all.

I was taught as a child to never stand up in a boat, owing to the fact we had only small boats.

[Fence Man]

Originally Posted by FSMike

You sit on the port tube and control the motor with your right hand? In decades of boating you are the third person I've seen do this.
How did you manage to react quickly and turn to starboard wihout pulling the engine's control arm into your body, or leaning so far back that you are in danger of going overboard?

The Bahamian habit of trimming their bows extremely high so they can porpoise their outboard powered rocketships across the harbor is a subject best saved for a sunset and a few cold Kaliks.

Glad all is well.

Right handers should always run the tiller left handed.......Leaves the strong side free for delivering a few ounces of lead to the sassy bandits.

In all seriousness, we were almost run over from behind a couple of summers ago, and it has changed the way we operate. On the lakes, it's more apt to happen at night.....no matter how brightly you're lit. The drunks sure know how to ruin a good time.

[ArmyDaveNY]

Originally Posted by Vasco

Standing up doesn't prevent you from looking around. Sitting or standing you have to keep a good lookout. Don't understand what the OP is getting at.

The OP's comment about standing is a concern that he and his passenger would likely have been knocked out of their dinghy if they were standing when the wake hit them. Because they were sitting, they did not fall out of the boat.

[akprb]

There is something about the standing position, in the extreme with a piece of 2” pvc tiller extension, that just looks to my eye “insert adjective”

Same folks who wear full weather gear">foul weather gear and inflatable pfds while anchoring in G Town.

Rant over.

Control from port? My brain can’t process :-)

[keepondancin]

Always thought it would be entertaining to see the “stand up -look how fast I am going” dinghy people hit an oyster bar. YouTube material, as long as the only thing injured is pride.

[boatman61]

I stand and use an extension.. my passengers sit..
Left leg forward knees slightly bent to flex with shocks.. all round vision and no bodies limiting visibility.. another bonus is conversation is near impossible so no distractions from my duties.

[Cheechako]

Yep, never understood the stand up thing. I guess that's why they started making the the "wrist band overboard key thing" on motors! Boneheads are unpredictable.
I sit on the tube, in rough water I squat down on the floor lowering the CG and staying out of the spray.

[Kelkara]

I row ... I spend most of my time looking backwards.

[Tayana42]

Some folks like to ride sitting down some like to stand up. It’s all good.[ATTACH]
That’s me and the Mrs. back a number of years on Hawaii.

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by Kelkara

I row ... I spend most of my time looking backwards.

At least let us know where to send your body parts when the OP's instance happens to you.

[Fence Man]

Originally Posted by Tayana42

Some folks like to ride sitting down some like to stand up. It’s all good.[ATTACH]
That’s me and the Mrs. back a number of years on Hawaii.

I love it! The ol' Roman honeymoon!

[skipgundlach]

Regardless of which dinghy - the Porta bote or the Walker Bay Genesis - we sit on the seats.

I always use my left hand on the tiller. I can sit centered on the seat and have full control. It's also very counter intuitive to me to have going faster by pushing my hand in a rotation forward rather than the typical motorcycle grip which has the hand rotating toward you to accelerate.