I see you guys have pretty much summed it up without me having to chime in here. Fever Mike has the right facts on step bottoms. BH has driven them hard and also has good advice.

The only thing I can say is TRY not to drive it over your head but I know circumstances come up and it happens.

Matt has ridden with me many times and he said it all when I have run many, many boats run it slow at first and then push it up to speed and see what it does. YOU WILL feel it in your backside when running it if it's doing anything funny. How by the pucker factor you will experience. BTW Matt thanks for the compliment.

T2x the answer to question 1 is NO they are not but current market conditions constitute the building of stepped bottoms.

A school or mandatory licensing program should be instilled in the buying public. But what do I know I have been wet here and there myself.

Sean

...glad I started the thread...I think it will encourage new driving strategies and get everyone on the same page...this is the kind of material you would have expected to see in an offshore magazine a long time ago..

it has been in powerboat

Come on Skrock don't start ball bustin bro and give me a call please.

LPA check your PM box

just saved it in my phone...my last cell is somewhere at the end of the pier in st.pete...as i'm sure u heard in the underground rumormill!:rolleyes:

Hi Sean:

Thanks for your candor and honesty.


I rest my case..........


Years ago it was well known among performance car buyers that the Porsche 911 Turbo spun out with little warning in high speed turns at high G's. The car had marvelous handling but its adhesion went away ALL at once.....This caused dentists to spin into the "tulies" all over America......... However, it was a characteristic that was openly discussed among car buffs.

Today any boat manufacturer that admits to a lower control capability due to a specific characteristic is probably de facto guilty in a court of law should a liability suit occur, so such honesty is a definite no-no.

The point?......... We have a fad that, like some gaseous in-law who arrived unannounced and uses your wife as a shield to stick around, has now multiplied into absurd numbers. This gimmick is so common that even none high performance boats have it dimpled into their hull molds..... begging the question what "driving school" will these "Harry Homeowner" boaters attend? The impact on insurance is a given........ the very existence of performance boating is the risk....

All of this so that a handful of ego driven boat builders could claim that they "revolutionized" hull design....

What a joke...... but I , for one, ain't laughing.

Solution......? Simple....Mandate aft skid fin or oversized canted strake technology on all stepped hulls...... and let the same boat builders take the "credit" in marketing outlets............ otherwise it will never happen.

T2x

Excellent analogy. This post should mark the end of the discussion. There is absolutely NO reason to be out there doing high speed turns in an offshore powerboat, ever. I see morons doing it all the time and their day will come, stepped or flat.

These are not go-carts or World of Outlaw cars. They are not designed to crank the wheel at 70mph, AND NEVER HAVE BEEN. I pray for your passengers if you think differently.

Just don't crank the wheel to make race turns. Simple. And, wear your kill switch tether. That should solve 98% of it.

sorry PRG, you beat me to it.

I remember a certain Boy Genius taking the time to research and write up a "Offshore Powerboat Driving School" marketing plan. Lets see, I remember a tall, skinny, smokesalot guy agreeing with it and submitting it.
The plan was to take two ex-raceboats Formula 382's(Durability and driver and throttle man positions). Insure them (Lots of Release of liabilities would need to be signed but it is insurable). Get race drivers and High seat time educated drivers to teach the practical side. And, Well spoken booksmart individuals to teach the classroom portion.
Principles of rigging
Trailering and transport
Launch and docking techniques
Passenger safety and proper positions
Mid to high speed runs in allowable conditions training the practical side of Drive, Trim positions
Weight and Balance
Throttles
and Proper cleanup and longevity maintenance.

Who really needs to learn any of this stuff? Right?

I figure the program (When not being sold to prospective buyers, setting the CA dealership apart from any other dealership in the country) could be sold to large corporations as motivational incentive weekends for executives.
At this point I am sure that insurance companies would support such a program and allow boaters who have taken such a course (Who's curriculum could be mandated buy the insurance company themselves) to hold a policy. As I am sure High performance builders would donate vessels to the program (If they don't, who do you know that will put in an order for a new Skater next year?)

But what do I know?
Its a dumb idea, wouldn't you all agree?