Towing an airhead inflatable

Igrant · Posted: Sun May 21, 2017 8:04 pm Post subject: Towing an airhead inflatable

Has anyone tried towing kids on an airhead inflatable tube behind their C- Dory? Anything to pay particular attention to? There have been a number of boats towing them in front of our place and Jackie thinks it would be great fun for the grand kids.

thataway · Posted: Sun May 21, 2017 9:39 pm Post subject:

When my grandkids were young I towed them behind several boats, including my 22 and Tom Cat on tubes very similar to the Airhead...No problems. Just be sure you have an observer, that the kids have life jackets, and are swimmers, as well as watching out for other boaters.

I think the biggest danger is other boaters!. Have fun...

Robert H. Wilkinson · Posted: Sun May 21, 2017 10:19 pm Post subject:

I've towed airhead inflatables with 3 different boats(not Cdory's). They do create a lot of drag - the 2 person one I have now - even more. Lot more drag than a skier. This drag places a lot of stress on the line to the tube and the point off attachment to the boat. My Stingray has a clip in the center of the transom for pulling skiers - rated at 300pds. max. Owners manual warns not to use it for pulling tubes. Just saying don't scrimp on the tow rope - buy one over rated for the job, and use a secure and strong point of attachment. You can fashion a bridle from a point on both sides.

Make sure the grandkids have a life jacket rated for water sports and it is fitted and secured tightly. They must have a spotter on the boat. The boat must be rated for all persons on it and on the tube.

Not recommended to exceed 15mph as the whip in turns can accelerate the tube to twice the speed. The Cdory with its low planning speed should be good for this. It looks like you have the 150 on your boat. That should be enough power but I found that switching to a 4 blade prop and dropping pitch down 2#'s worked much better.

You might find it helps to ditch any weight not needed on the boat - kicker, 2nd battery, etc. Full tabs might help. Play with different things and see what works best. The biggest PITA I found was trying to get the boat on plane without going too fast for the tube.

One last thing - be prepared to use twice the gas you normally use.

Regards, Rob

ssobol · Posted: Mon May 22, 2017 12:08 am Post subject:

I have towed an Airhead tube behind my 22. I have a bridle with a roller that can move along the line (also from Airhead). This keeps the load distributed across both hooks. I attach it to the rings for the trailer straps at the back of the boat.

I also use a tow rope with a booster ball. Because the tow rope attach points are so low, the tow rope will catch in the wake if you don't have one.

It is no problem to tow this with a couple of bigger kids on the tube. Of course, the faster you go, the better they like it.

Grumpy · Posted: Mon May 22, 2017 5:38 pm Post subject:

This topic had me worried for a moment.

Had diverse visions of someone towing an inflatable composting toilet. (Air Head).

Knowing how inventive C-Brats can be, I just had to look.

Laughing

JamesTXSD · Posted: Mon May 22, 2017 6:35 pm Post subject:

Joshlepell · Posted: Mon Aug 21, 2023 3:24 pm Post subject:

Has anyone towed an inflatable behind the Tomcat from the the trailer strap hooks? I have a Tomcat and want to tow the kids as well. Thanks
Josh 805-550-2725 Im open for calls as well to discuss a solution.

ssobol · Posted: Mon Aug 21, 2023 5:10 pm Post subject:

starcrafttom · Posted: Mon Aug 21, 2023 5:38 pm Post subject:

My only tip is to not use any metal clips, drings or fasteners when connecting the straps. Its quick and easy to use metal d rings but if the strap breaks then the d ring is coming back to the boat at a high rate of speed and can, and has, killed people. Only use knots or loops to make connections. We used to tow James and his friends around the lake in the 22cd. Lots of fun.

Foggy · Posted: Tue Aug 22, 2023 10:35 am Post subject:

When I was a productive human being, I treated injuries from all sorts of "fun"
activities, on/in the water and otherwise.

Oh yea. Inflatable tubes/sleds are big and puffy being filled with air - looking
fairly harmless. And sure, they're fun; like waterskiing and wakeboarding are fun.

The good news is accidental injuries from such inflatable towing activity is less
common than injuries from waterskiing or wakeboarding. The bad news is, when
injuries occur riding inflatables, statistically they are more serious.

Have a look:

https://boattest.com/article/tubing-more-likely-result-severe-injury-wakeboarding-or-water-skiing#:~:text=According%20to%20research%20on%20the,are%20the%20most%20prevalent%20injuries.

Aye.

starcrafttom · Posted: Tue Aug 22, 2023 12:59 pm Post subject:

I quit reading after fun. everything is dangerous but if its fun do it anyway. you cant hide in your house all your life. hell boats are dangerous.

ssobol · Posted: Tue Aug 22, 2023 2:31 pm Post subject:

starcrafttom · Posted: Tue Aug 22, 2023 3:46 pm Post subject:

Right so go have fun on the boat and be safer.

Foggy · Posted: Tue Aug 22, 2023 4:23 pm Post subject:

Yes, all life is full of risk and fun is fun.

I've done plenty of 'fun things' in my life. As I now look back, some were plain
stupid, but I got off unscathed. I don't know why. Maybe my escaping serious
injury in my younger years was recognizing the value of taking "calculated risks"
sooner rather than later.

"Know before you go" is not a bad mantra to internalize that seems to work,
evidenced by my elderly friends and cohorts who occasionally accompanied me.

Believe it or not. Either way, you'll find out.

Aye.