Little RIB - Rough Water

[Boracay]

With apologies for being negative I don't think that a 10' rib with an 8hp outboard is going to cut it in rough water.

The standard RIB for surf rescue is 3.4m (11') but has a 25hp motor and a crew of two.



I found a reference to the Zodiac surf rescue RIB.

The extra power is necessary to find gaps between waves and to give control when running before them. The second crew member would be necessary for balance.

Using a RIB in rough water is dangerous so on surf rescue boats a propeller guard is mandatory.

[sailingaway221]

Drew... 6 foot breaking waves... unless you live inside a surf break should probably not be the place you go to learn how to drive you dingy mate. I did a lot of surf lifesaving in New Zealand and we used inflatables all the time in the surf.... however..... we would use the power ( usually 25hp on a similar size dingy ) most the time to stay away from the breaking waves.... I have found a lot more people get in trouble going with the waves when they have size to them.... dig the nose in and you stop very quickly... generally going into the waves as long as you are not flat out is "fairly" safe.... Best way to learn about it is to go out and use the boa t.... however in 6 foot breaking waves might not be the best place to go practice....... make sure everything is tied into the boat, tie the engine cover to the engine... and wear the safety lanyard... that way if you flip or fall out the engine stops.....

[ausaviator]

I'm an experienced driver of a 3.5 Zodiac (rigid fabric bottom) with 25HP.

Biggest issues are falling out of it in rough water if you are steering from the engine (non centre console model), so make sure you always wear the engine cut-off lanyard.

As far as weight distribution, not much of an issue as long as it gets on the plane successfully and quickly. It would take a good solid 2 metre wave to even come close to tipping you over if you hit it straight on.

What you can't do is have a wave hit you side on.... that's when things go bad.

Something else to watch out for is not sitting too far forward in rough weather, you will severely damage your back / spine, not pretty!

[Ita]

Once while doing rescues in surf conditions the prop of our 25 HP Zodiac cavitated in the foam , loose power for an instant and get turned over by following wave. One crew member get his leg chopped above the knee......a propeller guard is a must!