jet boats on lake. [Archive]

Riverat84

02-02-2006, 06:22 PM

Moneypitt

02-02-2006, 06:25 PM

I did once. Never again. I though the boat was going to break in half. Couldn't stay on top of the chop, 3 ft rollers and more with the ocean barges running around. Never again.............MP

Riverat84

02-02-2006, 06:30 PM

okay...thats all i needed to hear jeeezus!....thanx for the reply

BigBlockBaja

02-02-2006, 06:43 PM

I did once. Never again. I though the boat was going to break in half. Couldn't stay on top of the chop, 3 ft rollers and more with the ocean barges running around. Never again.............MP
I know my lake is not the size of Havasu, but its the busiest lake in Jersey. I WILL NOT head across the main lake with any chop in it. Had a splash come up, wet the ignition, motor started sputering, could have been a sitting duck. I would have went down if I stalled.

h2oboy

02-02-2006, 06:54 PM

Really?? This is the first jet I have every owned.... I have seen some jets out there.... Is it really that bad..... Damn better cancel the trip next month..... You all got me scared...

BigBlockBaja

02-02-2006, 07:08 PM

Really?? This is the first jet I have every owned.... I have seen some jets out there.... Is it really that bad..... Damn better cancel the trip next month..... You all got me scared...
What hull you have?

Riverat84

02-02-2006, 07:10 PM

yeah likewise...thank god the river is nextdoor lol

h2oboy

02-02-2006, 07:11 PM

I have a 79 southwind..

BigBlockBaja

02-02-2006, 07:13 PM

I have a 79 southwind..
Im not sure with Havasu, but my hull is about the same as yours and I stay in the coves and smaller sections of the lake the ocean liners stay out of..

h2oboy

02-02-2006, 07:15 PM

absolutely, but that does not mean you can not go out and enjoy all the females on Havasu!!! You just need to watch yourself... Right??

n8dawg

02-02-2006, 07:19 PM

We are looking forward to taking the boat ( 19ft Miller ) down to Havasu this year. It's not that bad, just don't go on the big weekends (memorial, 4th of july, labor day, and any regatta weekend and you'll be fine.)

h2oboy

02-02-2006, 07:35 PM

So March 10 (spring break) wil be ok... ha

Bigern

02-02-2006, 07:58 PM

Ohh yeah, were taking our jets on the 17th of march. went last year with my 87 kachina, were taking an 18 & 19 ft eliminator.

396_WAYS_TO_SPIT

02-02-2006, 07:59 PM

396_WAYS_TO_SPIT

02-02-2006, 08:00 PM

Ohh yeah, were taking our jets on the 17th of march. went last year with my 87 kachina, were taking an 18 & 19 ft eliminator.
And you forget me ern!!!!! Dammit :mad: :mad: :mad: :D Ill be there and so will bubba;)

Bigern

02-02-2006, 08:04 PM

I'll be gettin with you boys this weekend brother, count on it, that cheena of yours is a veteran of havasu. Were gonna have a blast.... :crossx:

h2oboy

02-02-2006, 08:05 PM

So like I was saying... it is not too bad out there for jets, unless the wind picks up.... RIGHT???? Thanks for the Help... i will be out there the 9-13 of march!!

396_WAYS_TO_SPIT

02-02-2006, 08:06 PM

I'll be gettin with you boys this weekend brother, count on it, that cheena of yours is a veteran of havasu. Were gonna have a blast.... :crossx:
The cheena is gettin stripped this weekend:( I am doing some serious BLING to her;)
THis weekend its on for the fight;) I will be sippn on some patron....

Bigern

02-02-2006, 08:07 PM

Vinnie and i just decided what weekend would workout the best for both of us w/kids and all.

sleekcrafter

02-02-2006, 08:12 PM

BigBlockBaja

02-02-2006, 08:13 PM

2 foot chop, and rollers are very dicey, in a low free board boat, better hope you can keep the bow over everything or you got a big problem. A stalled boat, is not an option during those conditions.
Sleek
Yup, as I said above, its a scary situation....

h2oboy

02-02-2006, 08:20 PM

BigBlockBaja

02-02-2006, 08:35 PM

So you are saying that Havasu has a 2 foot chop... Hey I have never taking my jet there, but I also have never seen a 2 foot chop at Havasu
here ya go. Let 396 sum it up for ya.
396 venting (http://www.***boat.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16784&highlight=havasu+choppy)

sleekcrafter

02-02-2006, 08:37 PM

So you are saying that Havasu has a 2 foot chop... Hey I have never taking my jet there, but I also have never seen a 2 foot chop at Havasu
Well I got caught 5 five miles down river from my trailer, on the Mississippi river last year, wind blasting right down the river, which causes nice big rollers. To top it off, the Baja dealer was hosting a poker run, they were blasting thru, at the same time we are heading back to the launch. We managed to stay on top of all but one roller, missed that one by about 2 inches, and got a nice shower :cry: It never stalled the motor, it did burp as the scoop was drenched. Made it back :220v: Another time was caught up in the 2 foot chop on the Hardy dam resivoir in Michigan, heading up the lake toward the river, I got between two shear cliffed shorelines, again with larger boats blasting by. endured about a mile of that. That required timed blast of gas to keep on top, I will never even try to do that again, once is enough.
Sleek

sanger rat

02-02-2006, 08:41 PM

So you are saying that Havasu has a 2 foot chop... Hey I have never taking my jet there, but I also have never seen a 2 foot chop at Havasu
And I'm guessing you've never seen Lake Michigan. Took me two years to get the balls to go out on Lake Huron. :cool:

BigBlockBaja

02-02-2006, 08:48 PM

And I'm guessing you've never seen Lake Michigan. Took me two years to get the balls to go out on Lake Huron. :cool:
Did ya reach Canada?
:crossx:

sleekcrafter

02-02-2006, 08:49 PM

And I'm guessing you've never seen Lake Michigan. Took me two years to get the balls to go out on Lake Huron. :cool:
"NO BALLS" not for me anyway, I bet that was a thrill!!
Sleek
And I should say conditions vary from day to day, weekends are generally worst than during the week.

h2oboy

02-02-2006, 08:50 PM

And I'm guessing you've never seen Lake Michigan. Took me two years to get the balls to go out on Lake Huron. :cool:
Well I guess we got off topic here... not to bust anyones chops, but in the begining of the thread we were stickly talking about Havasu.... Not Lake Michigan..... Maybe I just have been there when the weather and water have cooperated. Will let you know how it is in March!! I know the ladies will be there....

sanger rat

02-02-2006, 08:54 PM

Did ya reach Canada?
:crossx:
Tried but only had 20 gallons of fuel. :cry: Sleek that was the last time I had the boat out. Oct 2. 80 degrees out with a south wind. I'll do it again. :)

sleekcrafter

02-02-2006, 08:59 PM

Well I guess we got off topic here... not to bust anyones chops, but in the begining of the thread we were stickly talking about Havasu.... Not Lake Michigan..... Maybe I just have been there when the weather and water have cooperated. Will let you know how it is in March!! I know the ladies will be there....
Been there too(Havasu) I would not even think of it, too many variables, big boats, and winds. I rode on some nice rollers, with 15-20 mph winds, during the week, and minimal boat traffic. now you get into the river, thats a lot different than the open lake areas
Sleek

beerjet

02-02-2006, 09:04 PM

For the longest time I had heard stories of how choppy lake mead gets and I always replied "BS" . I go every year for (4) days and never seen it, UNTIL ! This last year friend of mine ran out of gas and I towed him 3/4's of the way through 2' chop before heading for the closest beach. Since I also needed gas I went to the marina and the chop got worse and I am not kidding when I say that the chop was over my bimini top and when moving at an angle to the waves they were breaking over my exhaust and needless to say I was seriously fearing for my life and thankin god that I talked the old lady into stayin on the beach. All the factors were there for really bad water like high winds, tons of big boats, I had never seen it like that and the next day (monday) , the entire lake was empty, gorgeous wheather , almost glass just like I always remember it.

beerjet

02-02-2006, 09:06 PM

Well I guess we got off topic here... not to bust anyones chops, but in the begining of the thread we were stickly talking about Havasu.... Not Lake Michigan..... Maybe I just have been there when the weather and water have cooperated. Will let you know how it is in March!! I know the ladies will be there....
I really think this applies to most lakes for the most part as all the same variables affect them the same way.

BigBlockBaja

02-02-2006, 09:11 PM

I really think this applies to most lakes for the most part as all the same variables affect them the same way.
When I got stuck having to cross the main lake, I have images embeded in my mind of watching my bow flex from the pounding of the waves...
:220v:

Squirtcha?

02-03-2006, 07:19 AM

Mr. Crusader 83

02-03-2006, 07:24 AM

i run in havasu all the time. love it!!! i usually stay up river, sandbar and up. or the smellannel.

SHIFTY

02-03-2006, 08:08 AM

TAKEN IN HAVASU, LAST MEMORIAL DAY.
http://www.dv-clips.com/images/rough_seas.jpg

Cole1313

02-03-2006, 08:22 AM

No doubt Havasu can get real bad at times. Busy weekends or Poker runs are the worst. You can still do it, but take it easy and time the waves. Try to keep fairly close to shore (not too close though, a buddy of mine ran aground a few years back and he was a good 100 yards from shore).The last time I went was on a bigass'd poker run weekend. We braved a run from Windsor Beach to the sandbar and back. It wasn't terrible, but not exactly fun either. We found ourselves either running in speed alley, or hanging out in the channel.
If it's good smooth water you're looking for...........look somewhere else. If you're looking to party while standing next to your boat..........It works fine.
This is all havasu is really good for. The boating aspect is not all that good regardless of when you go. When you have a 40 ft. Skater going by you at a 100mph, it can get pretty scary. We used to go from Topoc to London Bridge and back pretty much every trip, until the last time when we almost sunk the boat. The wind had picked up and the 2-3 foot chop was a little more then the boat could handle, it was all I could do to keep the bow up and not allow water to flood the engine compartment. Basically had the bilge running the entire time.
Like it was said before, if you want to hang with all the bling bling boats, havasu is a great place for that. If you want to have a relaxing weekend with friends and do some good boating and skiing, not such a good place.

Cole1313

02-03-2006, 08:24 AM

i run in havasu all the time. love it!!! i usually stay up river, sandbar and up. or the smellannel.
I guess if you consider the sand bar as havasu, then yea I run at Havasu all the time. I just do not like going in the bay.

Wally_Gator

02-03-2006, 09:05 AM

Last summer I hit the north end of Havi.. The big boats flying by and I was getting beaten in my 18' rogers.. Not fun.
I took it back up river for some better water...
If I wanted that kind of ride, I could have gone to Elsinore on a saturday afternoon in the wind.. (had one bad afternoon there taking water over the bow..)

MAINEVENT

02-03-2006, 09:18 AM

So you are saying that Havasu has a 2 foot chop... Hey I have never taking my jet there, but I also have never seen a 2 foot chop at Havasu
Did you have your eyes open when you went???
I personally would stay off the lake with a jet boat (havasu, mead, mohave) keep to the river if you can i've been to the three lakes above where i was in a 28+ boat and it was a focked situation cold'nt imagine it in a low freeboard boat...
Just my .02

79Challenger

02-03-2006, 10:26 AM

The first time I did Havasu, I was 18 and my girlfriend and I hauled out my parents sea-doo's. Getting to the sand bar was quite an adventure. Once we got there we motored right up to the center of the bar and anchored. Great time.
I have since been on Havasu in larger boats and had a blast, but my memories of traversing the lake at water level has kept me and my 18 away.

bradbigsley

02-03-2006, 06:07 PM

i learned my lesson after the second motor mount broke.. no more havi for me..

mares98

02-05-2006, 08:07 AM

TAKEN IN HAVASU, LAST MEMORIAL DAY.
http://www.dv-clips.com/images/rough_seas.jpg
Thats havasu alright, Have to replace my moulding every time out. I must enjoy the abuse I find myself there time & time again.

gunslinger

02-05-2006, 10:04 AM

My parents live there and I have spent some time on the water. My dad has a 22' Howard. I would not go out on the water in anything smaller. The scarry thing about Havasu is the water can be beautiful (very rarely) and before you know it you are getting beat to hell heading for the marina with everyone else that dos'nt want to go swimming.

396_WAYS_TO_SPIT

02-05-2006, 07:24 PM

here ya go. Let 396 sum it up for ya.
396 venting (http://www.***boat.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16784&highlight=havasu+choppy)
How did you know about that thread? Wow, that was an old one;) LEt me sum that up for everyone, I came home with a 2 foot crack on one of my strakes :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry:

BrendellaJet

02-05-2006, 07:33 PM

So you are saying that Havasu has a 2 foot chop... Hey I have never taking my jet there, but I also have never seen a 2 foot chop at Havasu
On a big weekend I would stay as far away from Havasu as possible. If the wind picks up you absolutely do not want to be there. Your boat will sink. Not a question of if...but when. Go out early, then go hang out on the river.

LVjetboy

02-06-2006, 03:40 AM

"Did you have your eyes open when you went?"
That is THE bottom line...no matter where you boat.
I've boated the River, Mead, Powell, Havasu and many lakes and rivers across the US. Most of my boating on deep water lakes like Mead and Powell in a low freeboard jet...
http://members.cox.net/lvjetboy/TempleWorshipOne.jpg
If boating Lakes or reservoirs with low freeboard was a problem I'd be dead by now. Someone posted I should've won the "Low freeboard" award at the first FBC if I remember...that on the river.
Deep water lakes like Powell or Mead can sink your boat in a heartbeat. That's a fact. Havasu's got nothing on that. That's also why some say the river's better. But consider. I fought TS waves from a cove near Callville Bay (Mead) back to the marina in the low freeboard Dragn with the divertor full up, at night. I survived because I payed attention to the weather and moved closer to the marina as the conditions got worse. With the jet I'm very sensitive to weather forecast and my distance from safe harbor.
Now consider this boat...
http://members.cox.net/lvjetboy/Cruiser2.jpg
A 27' Sea Ray...a bit more free board. I can tell you, the scariest time I've ever experienced in 30+ years of boating is with this cruiser. Beached in Reflection Canyon Lake Powell for the night. Wind calm and mild spring temperature. Perfect evening of food and spirits. Latter, I tuned in VHF only to hear, "There's a dangerous winter storm headed to southern Utah with winds in excess of 50 mph, eta 12 pm" Karen says, "should we go back?" I say, no we've been drinking, it's late, dark and over 60 miles back to Wahweap and maybe not enough fuel." I'm also thinking we're ok 'cause we're in this cove protected from wind and anchored.
I was wrong. At midnight I woke to a sound like bass hitting from a loud stereo, plus an erie spooky sound. I thought who's party boat is playing a loud stereo this time of night? That sound was wind through the deck rails.
Then all hell broke loose.
Our "protected" cove acted like a wind tunnel and funneled. Even though the surface water in the cove only rippled, waves not a problem, the wind blew the Sea Ray sidewards, tipping it on end and forcing the outdrive towards the rocks. The wind was so strong it sucked water off the top of the lake and funneled into mini cyclones misting up and over the surface. I've NEVER seen or experienced anything like that. And hope never to again.
I put out transom lines and anchors. Clouds streamed overhead and the surronding rocks only added to the unreal crazy feeling in pre-dawn darkness. Rain pelleted us. I got GPS coordinates and life vests just in case. I fought the anchor lines all night to keep the boat in place. Every gust tipped our boat sidewards staining the lines. Early morning the cruiser finally broke loose when I was on shore checking mooring then holding the bow with Karen on deck. No time for me to jump on deck. I yelled to Karen start and give her throttle. She said, "What about the bildge blower?" I said START IT NOW!, give it throttle and forget about the blower!!" I'm glad she did that saved our boat.
Finally with dawn I cut lines during a lull in the storm and headed for the main channel. We drove south to Dangling Rope marina for fuel only to find their fuel dock was destroyed in the storm so there was no fuel.
My point is, for most of my life I've boated Powell, Mead and others with my FBC jet and never experienced that. I've also boated the river in the jet and felt uncomfortable compared to the lake. Parker strip, Big Water, etc. The river has it's own hazards like rock bars and current. Low freeboard means I have to worry about wake boarders and jet skiers on both river and lake. At FBC I had to startup to avoid wake boats and jet skiers waves more than I've ever had to startup on Mead or Powell. At the strip you never knew what 100 mph cat was head-on just around the corner. At least the weather and water in some cases is a bit more predictable.
All that said, adapting boating behavior to the dangers of where you boat is better than settling for only lakes or only rivers. Low freeboard on a big lake? You need a good wind/wx forecast. Speed and direction as well as trends and wildcards...like thunderstorms. You need to know those conditions and time your boating so you don't sink.
If you live far away from a lake and plan a trip with a sketchy long-range wx forecast, then you gotta be willing to cancel or modify those plans when you have better weather info. I'm rambling here but my point is, lakes can work for low freeboard. Even Havasu, and in some ways lakes are maybe safer than a river. My jet's survived big lakes for many years. And it's home IS big lakes.
One last thought. Place diverters a recent thread topic. Race vs. lake. Bending vs. fixed so on.
Top end speed and et one thing. Rough water ride another. But nozzle trim can also help you stay afloat on the lake when all h*ll breaks loose. If you trim full up off-plane, you can take on waves 2' or maybe higher without water over the bow compared to a fixed nozzle. That's a huge plus to a lake boat (not race boat) yet rarely mentioned.
I took more than one wave over the bow before I learned, big water means full up PD and plow.
jer

kmcousins

02-08-2006, 12:40 PM

i've never taken my boat out on havasu...just the river...and i've never seen any other hot rod boats like ours on the lake...how do all of yours hold up in the windy chop? does anyone take it out there?...thanx for the info...
I had a 72 kona and took it there and that was the first and last time I went.I was out for about 10min and put the boat back on the trailer. But I'll tell you one thing the view was great if you know what I mean :)

Sanger Jet

02-08-2006, 02:08 PM

I just hate when I crush my NUTS :220v: in rough water or after jumping wakes

wright27

02-08-2006, 02:25 PM

Havasu is a great place to party. If you are in anything smaller than I would say a 23 ft boat and the wind picks up you are screwed. I think Havasu as a lake is concerned is a piece of shit.

Fast Freddy

02-08-2006, 05:17 PM

back in 1996 i took my 19 foot kachina saber jet boat to lake havasu on memorial weekend and labor day weekend. on saturday morning of my 1st day ever on lake havasu i dropped my boat into the lake at the very south end of lake havasu right by the dam. i drove my boat all the way to the north end of topock gorge and back in one day. i believe this was approximately 100 miles round trip. it sure as hell did beat the hell out of me and my girlfriend and my boat. my boat got stress cracks in the back of the hull and my motor mounts reemed out my stringers something awful. 2 foot chop the whole way was like the endurance test from hell.
funny thing is, here we are 10 years later and i now take my 25 foot nordic there instead and even though i have a bigger boat its still the same old shit on a holiday weekend because the waves have just gotten bigger (3 footers now). i was on havasu memorial weekend of 2005 when the wind picked up and trying to load my boat on the trailer at windsor beach at the end of the day with a million big ass boats churning up the water was a nightmare.
i have finally succomed to the elements and have resigned myself to only goin to havasu now on a regular non-holiday weekend in the spring and fall only with my nordic.
i only use my kachina at small local lakes near where i live on weedays now.

Bense468

02-08-2006, 05:17 PM

I don't even need to read all this. Question is are you willing to wait it out if things get bad? Are you willing to step up and make that choice if you have to...If you are, then you will have a blast 99% of your trips. Be smart...watch the sky, watch other boaters, be river aware...Its all common sense.

kaqster

02-08-2006, 05:31 PM

The nekid chickz in the cove made it all worthwhile to my fillings rattled out. Couldnt ski either. Not a great place for a Lake Rod.