Skater video
 

My buddy Mike is running a buck 10 when he jumps the wake

http://www.bavarianimports.net/Skate-n-fly_0001.wmv

Glad they have helmets and gear on......She'a a little light in the nose........ A little less trim maybe.......... Looks awsome though!!!!!!! What motors are on there?:D

300 Mercs, upgraded to EFI, with these monster intakes, changed port timing, built by a guy called madman in Alabama. It tops out around 115---did 118 gps on a lake in bama.

Sweet boat!! Sounds like it was still pulling when it goes by. What's the top speed of his rig??

:eek:

F That :eek:

Thats a blow over waiting to happen:eek:

Click the pause right at 22 seconds and tell me that wouldnt have been a blow over if he had a hair more speed. :eek:

Okay, an incremental increase in speed will not cause this boat to blow over. How much would it take to accomplish this is not possible to speculate, but I doubt that the boat has enough speed in it to make it blow over. The water it is landing back on is flat and there appears to be no severe winds to create any handling problems.

Other than the wake jump, it looks like the typical 28’ Skater running. There are quite a few 28’s Skaters that run over 120 and they have not blown over, so a run at some 80-90 is not nearly enough to blow the boat over.

To say a bit more speed would cause this boat to blow over seems a bit strong to say the least.

Boatless - My friend, you couldn't be further from the truth. You DO NOT know of what you speak. I speak from the experience of a blow over in a 28' Skater.. and I guarrantee that a 28' skater with 300s will blow over at those speeds and in those conditions. This is a guarrantee from somebody who has experienced a blow over. Why do you people who think you know it all act like you are the masters of the universe and come on like you are the authiority on this subject. This really frosts my butt. On this subject, you know sh*t!

I don't know, looks like a precarious situation.

Mike is an awesome pilot. He's had this boat for several years and knows it inside out. He is on the edge, and knows it. That's how he drives it, right at the edge of the envelope. He knows exactly how high he needs the bow to get enough air under it for speed. It's a blast to watch. Last weekend when I had my bud and his fat gf with me I junped on the Skater. Wild watching that boat come by me WFO at 100+ :D:D:D

You sound like old ladies!
He hits one wake and you guys are acting like he's in 10 footers. The boats are built to take that at speed. It's not going to blow over. Nothing wrong with having a little fun! Cool video!

I've got to agree... it would have taken a lot more to get that cat over.

I dont use as much trim as he does, but then again that water is like glass.

I am unable to download the video here at work, I will do it when I get home. However, based on the pic you posted this is NOT a precarious position to be in at all. A bit unnerving for the un acquainted certainly, but the pic you show is a bit bow high yes, but FAR from going over. When a 28 Skater is trimmed correctly it can run in rough water all day long and fly flat as a pancake. The boat looks gorgeous.

I have seen BIG vee bottoms, Sutphens in specific get MUCH more VERTICAL than that and not go over. Not that it is the proper way to run a boat, but vertical nonetheless.

You people obviously did not read my previous post on this subject. The 28' Skater with those heavy 300s is geometrically out of balance and is capable of flipping at 70mph when you hit a boat wake from behind. The nose starts going up and keeps going. The next thing you know, you are over.... and it happens in a split second. The 28' is more stable with the lighter 2.5s with bass mid-sections and even more stable with 15" midsections. With the 300s with 20" midsections and running in the upper teens in calm sticky water, the boat hunts for air and gets very squeemish. Anybody that's says different has obviously not driven a 28' at speed in calm water. Running a 28' in 2-3 chop is no problem. It loves that kind of water and can do that all day long. Coming up from behind a boat and then jumping its wake is totally another story! I know, I flipped my 28' and I am an expert Skater pilot.

For you guy's in the "know", maybe this boat "is" far from going over but....
The conditions that he is running in are better (flatter) than I would ever see during daylight hours. The wake that he hits cant be more than 8 inches high, so to my inexperienced cat eye it looks a little excessive.

When these boats (28 Skaters) run offshore on the APBA circuit, what speeds were they running?

Even to me the boat is very aggressively trimmed but I just cant imagine my AT ever getting that bow high off a wake 4x the size.....of coarse I also cant imagine my little AT running a buck 10 :crazy:

Cool video :cool:

Also y'all note he's showing off for the camera, yeah he's way overtrimmed to make that big ass roostertail. I asked him yesterday if they were 15" or 20", he said 15.

I know nothing and can prove it:p Just looked scarier frame by frame. Really cant tell how fast he is going from a video of the boat passing either.

This boat is a lot more stable than his old Talon with a nitrous blower BBC. He sold it because it got weird at speed. I used to have pics of the Talon I'll look for em.

Spectra Man
What is the weight difference between the 300's and 2.5's?

What kind of speeds can you safely run is 2-3 foot chop?

I ask because I have been considering going over to the other side :hammy: . I would be running in Barnaget Bay which can get snotty on the weekends with 1-2 foot washing machine chop from boat wakes.
I also run the Hudson River which can have very calm water with enormous tug and yatch wakes that can come out of no where and create huge holes behind the initial swell. This is the type of water condition that has me a little leery of a cat and where I boat.
Your experience would be helpful to me in making a decision.

Another question to all
What do you think the best set-up for a 28 would be?

Oh yeah, you're such an old scaredy cat. Didn't you used to have a motorcycle? A Suzuki Hayaboogie or something like that? :D:D:D

The 28's with the 2.5's are really nice. My friend had one that ran 105-108 (Props) all the time. I love the 28 Skaters.

Here's my favorite one. Anyone know who owns it?

Spectre Man,

You are ABSOLUTELY right about the flat water vs. the 1-2 chop as well as it "hunting" for the bumps AND the added weight of the 300's vs the 2.5's etc. However, do you know this specific boat? I do not. I am not certain if this boat has had the CG adjusted to compensate for the additional weight. Many cats have had rigging components moved forward in the boat to adjust its attitude. Some have even been known to add sand bags to the bow when running in super rough ocean conditions or when rigging with the heavier 300's. Keep in mind Skater does make ballast tanks for the 28 to compensate for the added weight and conditions, as well as sponson and tunnel tabs. Although you are correct from a macro or theoretical perspective, keep in mind that unless you are certain as to the specific set up of THAT particular boat, all you are doing is generalizing.

Yup,

A guy on Long Island named Eric. That is the old Mobil One boat, world record holder, then was bought and set up and run by as Secret Agent which won several nation and world titles.

Tantrum,

Skaters like the chop/rougher water better than the mill pond stuff. A 28 would be purrrrfect for where you run:hammy: :D . He is trimmed WAY to high in the picture and my 24 would not get like that. He is showing off for the camera. Also, keep in mind that the 28's, like the 24's, like NEUTRAL trim at max for optimum handling and speed. Positive trim creates the bow high situation you see here. Additionally, in ocean racing the 28's can run over 100, as with any boat it depends on HOW rough the water gets, is it washing machine type water, swells, wind chop etc.. Again, when a 28 is set up AND operated correctly, the above typically does NOT happen!

For your application, 300 Pro Max's, 15 inch mid sections, sponson tabs, NOT tunnel tab, and IF needed POSSIBLY a little BOW weight which can be done by moving the batteries forward in front of the drivers bullhead and or sand bags.

Spectre Man, you set a 28' Skater up incorrectly and had an accident. While this is unfortunate, it is more a reflection of you than the boat.

You have such a negative outlook here and the issue of a 28' Skater jumping a wake and blowing over is more than a bit far fetched.

As "Shane" stated the boat could be balanced well and this boat might not have the same problems you uncounted. The cockpits of the later 28’s are different because of the 300’s and the weight balance issue.

While it is hard for you to accept, there are well balanced 28’ Skaters with 300’s on them that do not blow over at 70 mph.

Also, it’s a bit weird that the boat can handle rough water fine but not a small wake…

Best setup for a 28’ Skater is the 300x’s short shafts and the boat properly balanced with a driver that knows how to drive a catamaran boat.

Well said. Also, note how he continues to hold himself out to be an "expert". Most "experts" I know do not call themselves such.

My Skater was set up properly, first by Ocean outboard and later refined by John Vanderstahl at Lake X. As for my driving abilities and experience, you may contact Peter and speak to him about me. I would agree with Shane that a balanced 28' runs great. I still say that a standard pro max with 20" mid sections is too tall for this boat. BTW - Boatless, do you have or had a 28' Skater? If so, have you ever jumped a boat wake from behind? There is a big difference in coming up on a boat wake from behind than heading straight into one.

I'm sure
 

I'm sure Peter H. wouldn't't be impressed with this type of boating. I'm not an old man, I like to show off with the best of them, pushed the limits, been less than a model boater ....I have made dumb decisions in the past, and I am not a hypocrite ...however the more I see the more I learn... seeing this will make me think about my actions in the future.

one thing comes to mind when I watch this....Why? Fun is fun but this stunt seems somewhat foolish. Peter has spent years building a fine company with a tremendous product ...Ultimately some joker showing off to his friends in one of his (peter's) boats flips and kills himself leaving a grieving angry family that ends up suing the boat manufacturer and f%$@ing it up for the rest of us.

This post is not meant to criticize the exp. or talent of the driver I'm sure he knows how to handle his boat.


Tell you what.. send the video to the mgmt of Douglas Marine and post back what they say.



Maximus

A lot of theory here.

Does it help;
-The Gentlemen with the Specter in Tampa Bay?
-The Gentleman's in Maryland in the Skater?
-The Gentlemen in Biloxi in the last weeks?

Not to mention the video from the shootout last year were the gentlemen pulled thru.

And most of these were experienced cat drivers.

A cat at high speeds seems a very dangerous proposition. And the consequence affect all of us...IE; all those tragedies mentioned in various threads here and making our sport a lot less palatable for insurance companies.

No matter who's right here in those arguments seems trivial when people end up in boxes.

No cats for me thank you, sorta like motorcycling. Call me a whimp if you want.

Guys - I am not saying that a Skater 28' is not a great boat, when in fact it is a great boat. When I say I am an expert on this boat, I mean that I flipped my boat doing the same stunt that Mike did (approaching a boat from behind and jumping the wake). I am not trying to be a wise guy here. I had my wild days on the Great South Bay of Long Island Jumping ferry boat wakes in my 32' at 90mph. When I think back on those days it was fun, but I must have been nuts to do this type of thing. Well, I guess I was somewhat nuts then. I don't want to see anybody get hurt. Please get the right setup and be careful.

GLH,

Foot for foot, mph for mph, the ride, stability and safety in a properly set up and operated cat exceeds that of a vee. Nothing negative toward vees here at all. Just a statement. The analogy of the of Randy's death is out of context as he was running a boat in race trim, trying to get the very most out of it. I submit that running a vee in the same capacity all things being equal can just as easily yield the same tragic results. You are not a wimp and would not call you one. A CRAZY Canuck? Yup. :p ;) A wimp no way.:) However, until you run in a properly set up Skater or comperable cat, i.e. MTI, Spectre, Nor-Tech etc. rigth after running an equal size vee in the same water, you, like all, will have a difficult time understanding this phenomenon.

There are certainly exceptions to every rule, i.e. a driver/operated that does not know what he or she is doing etc. Again, all things being equal.

Spectre Man, are you saying the boat was at fault or your driving was at fault?

It is one or the other and you made the decision to jump, run or whatever you did to cause the accident. The wind might have been calling but you drove the boat.

At this point, the driver/owner/idiot in the video has not crashed his/her boat. So currently the facts are that they are certainly crazy by their friends and the collective OSO consensus but they have not done anything detrimental to the boat, themselves or Skater's reputation.

I commented that the boat is not going to “Blow Over” at the speeds he is traveling which you state will.

Ask Mr. H about your driving capabilities, why? I’m certain you told him how good you are and he was at fault correct? What more can he possibly add.

No I do not own a 28’ Skater and there is nothing to add to that that can add to this thread to make a difference to whether the boat is about to blow over.

UMMMMM......errrr....Shane Ol' buddy...... Merc does not make a 15" 300x.

T2x

SM:

Please note one of my flips below.........

The conclusion I reached was quite different than the one you reached. I concluded that I was not an "expert" in driving Milesmasters....the brand of tunnel hull shown, and that I had, in fact, F'd up big time....

I never flipped the damn thing again.... I barrel rolled it about a month later.... and even though I was in racing conditions in both incidents (driving at 10/10ths)..... I concluded that I would never learn to drive that English built nightmare and switched to Molinari's and Seebolds from there on in. I found that those hulls......like my 28' Skater,...... were a lot more predictable and forgiving....

Going upside down does not denote "expertise"....in fact, it probably proves the reverse.

T2x...............

Part 2......... "The big Ouch".

T2x

T2x,
You must of flipped a few times for all the hair to be wiped-out on that pointy headed melon of yours.