www.iFourWinns.com

So last weekend I got "roped" into taking my admiral and kids tubing. I had bought a rope, a harness and a tube at on sale a while pack and hadn't even unpackaged the ropes yet. So I had to try and found out fairly quickly that I

a) need a mirror, spotter just wasn't enough for me.
b) need a holder for my ski flag
c) am doing something wrong?

To elaborate on "c" the rope connects via a Kwik Tek Airhead 4 Rider Tube Rope


and a

Kwik Tek Airhead Heavy Duty Tow Harness


to the two circled spots on the stern,


and I wonder if it would be better to attach to the two rear cleats?

see the rope will not come out of the water, so I am guessing this is because of where the rope is connected.

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Chris and Alicia
Las Vegas, NV
ALTIVA
1996 Four Winns 238 Vista Dlx 5.8Fi

Tubing with a boat that size...you forgot to include body bags on your shopping list for the tubers!!! Oh, to put them flying in a circle across that wake at 30 mph....

Regarding the rope, have you considered adding 1-2 in-line plastic floats part way down to at least keep it on the surface? I don't know if the cleats (and that high location on the hull) are meant to take the same stresses that the D-hooks are. I would be cautious with that....

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2007 Meridian 341
2008 SeaDoo Speedster 200 "Caliente"
1994 Larson Cabrio 280 "Liquid Asset"- Sold

Trust me, it's more dragging people around on a floating thing than "tubing" but that makes sense the floats. I'll have to try that. I only got up to 22, and then everyone was scared. The tube is a 3 seater so hard to fall off of, until the rope went under a wave and the cover came right off.

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Chris and Alicia
Las Vegas, NV
ALTIVA
1996 Four Winns 238 Vista Dlx 5.8Fi

I assume you don't have one of these built in?

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1988 215 Sundowner 5.7L OMC

Built in where? But no, no built in. Vista's I don't think were designed to pull tubes...or anything really.

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Chris and Alicia
Las Vegas, NV
ALTIVA
1996 Four Winns 238 Vista Dlx 5.8Fi

You are right to tie off to the stern eyes instead of upper cleats. The cleats are for dock ties not towing. Too much stress for a tube using cleats. Remember Jaws:-)

The stern eyes are very strong....couple issues to consider. The tie rope you have has a fixed center buckle. This means when you turn the squating side is pulling it under the much deaper and sucking the line under. I would imagine the main prob is in the turns. Try getting a stern tie line like you got with the pulley that allows the tie buckle to move side to side with the force. These tie buckles are a little more substantial and will ride on top a little better.

Then look at length of your tow rope...a little longer will allow tube to stay up better too. You just need a better rope rig and can tow all day long. The larger floating pulley will help float rope when stopped and boat drifting. When under force the floating ropes will not matter...they just help keep free floating rope from sinking and getting tangled with prop.

Riders weight needs to be more to rear of tube or it will plow. My boy has ripped canvass on several tubes by getting too far forward.

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http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o71 ... wqm355.jpg


08' H210SS
VP 5.7Gi

Like this

http://www.amazon.com/Hydroslide-Harnes ... d_sbs_sg_3

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http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o71 ... wqm355.jpg


08' H210SS
VP 5.7Gi

Thanks for the info! It's funny I meant to get the one with the pulley in the middle because someone had mentioned it for a vista...but when I went to order it, that one was only rated for two person tube, so I saw one for a four person for the same price and clicked on it without actually looking to see that it did not have the pulley.

Looks like I need to re-buy some things...

Thanks again.

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Chris and Alicia
Las Vegas, NV
ALTIVA
1996 Four Winns 238 Vista Dlx 5.8Fi

You might look at the "Booster Ball" by Sportstuff. $80 at Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001Q98TNY/?ta ... bauvxuls_b

Most Vista owners on this web site do not recommend towing by the upper cleats, although I have not heard of any being pulled out. This booster ball should help keep the rope out of the water. It goes about half way back on the tow rope. I saw one in use from a distance this summer and it seemed to work OK.

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Surface Interval: A scuba diving term for that time between dives to relax and prepare for life's next great adventure.

Current boat: '02 FW 268 Vista
Previous boat: '95 FW 190 Horizon

anyone ski with a 288 or bigger?

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GI Auz
2004 288 Vista
Twin 4.3 Merc


Previously:
Beneteau 411 Non-Stink

We tube behind my 248 but I mostly just pull the kids and I'm not really trying to throw them off real hard. I started on the bottom d rings like you and got tired of hanging upside down to hook them up on the lake. I moved the ropes up to the rear cleats and towed all last year without issue. You might want to plastidip or something like that the snaps. I have seen some small scratches on the cleats. You will still have issues with the rope in the water so the ball in the middle might not be a bad investment. I blamed it on the size of our wake.

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2001 Four Winns Vista 248 by rick2752, on Flickr

While we were on the Trent we pulled the kids from the cleats, no issues. That said, I didn't dare turn sharp to put them over the wake - it looked like they would fall off a cliff (the wake was something like 2-3 feet high as I wasn't on plane). They loved it, and it allowed them to get off the boat and have some fun through the lakes/rivers that we could do that in. Even with the dinghy on the platform, the tow harness easily went over top of it when connected to the cleats. You can't tell me that my two little kids on a tube exert more force on the cleats than my 12,500lbs boat in a wind storm. That said, I wasn't whipping adults around back there so, YMMV.

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1969 Chris Craft Commander 47
1999 Four Winns 328 Vista - SOLD

I know my H200 came with a ski ring attached to the stern high enough to get the rope out of the water. This may be what you are needing to install (sorry I don't have a picture of it). If you do go that route make sure you have good backing on it so it doesn't pull out. Works wonders for us, sometime I even get on the tube and never had a issue.

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1990 Four Winns Horizon 200
2005 GMC Sierra

I have successfully tubes with my two boys and friends behind our Vista 358. We used the under the transom U-Bolts to connect the bridal. Sometimes with two tubes simultaneously. Extremely expensive gas consumption while spending most of the time off plane. Kids loved the monster wakes - in fact humbled a few of the teenagers with spectacular wipe outs. Don't do it often, but a good time on the Sassafras River at the top of the Chesapeake Bay.

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Transcendence II
2007 Vista 358

I have a friend who used to slalom competitively in the late 80's and early 90's.

He asked about skiing behind my Vista 288, I laughed and told him he could give it a try if he wanted.

Then we took off and he took one look at the wake and decided he'd just hang out in the cockpit sipping a beverage with the rest of us.

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2005 Vista 288 - That's A Winner