Towing a Dinghy

[Maine Sail]

When towing I can hold the painter in one hand so it is not creating that much resistance. Once the big boat is on a steady course I will pay out line, snubbed around a cleat, until the dink is surfing down the front of the second stern wave.

This is how you properly tow a dinghy. I was taught this by my grandfather who was all about that last .1 knot. I was the kid constantly adjusting the dinghy painter to keep it surfing. I still see the vast majority of boats towing their dinghy UP the stern wave.

Two summers ago I used my digital load cell to measure the drag differences. IIRC there was about an 80%+ reduction in drag by properly adjusting the painter length so the dinghy was surfing vs. being towed UP HILL...... The funny thing is that I see tons of boaters who've spend thousands on fancy props only to be towing the dinghy UP HILL..... Kind of defeats the purpose of the $3000.00 prop.....

[Neil Gordon]

you can significantly reduce "Dinghy Drag" by adjusting the painter so that the dinghy rides on the downside of the second stern wave of your boat. That way it is always sliding down the wave as you pull it.

When there are "real" waves, the stern wave is nowhere to be found. I suppose what's best is to adjust the painter so that both boat and dinghy are going uphill at the same time and vice versa.

[seadug]

The February issue of wooden boat magazine has a section on dinghy selection. Looks like some good information.

[tjr818]

The February issue of wooden boat magazine has a section on dinghy selection. Looks like some good information.

Thanks Seadug. I used to subscribe to WoodenBoat, but I switched over to Good Old Boat. I'll have to see if I can find a copy of the February issue.

[Kevin Kaldenbach]

I have a portland Pudgy that I have towed across the Gulf of Mexico. It tows good. It is also a easy to get in and out of. I would say I might loose 1/2 a knott or less when towing.

[barfwinkle]

When I do tow "N Blew" I use pool noodles with the tow bridle ran through the noodles. I do this primarily to keep the bridle afloat (I know I should use floating line). I have often thought of buying the larger 6" noodles so that when its blowing and I think I need the dink up close to Rhapsody's stern in hopes that the larger noodles prevent the dink from ramming the stern.

Anyone else tried this?

Fair Winds

[Loren]

I have towed a 7 ft fiberglass dinghy for a few thousand miles. (Boatex) Found it very handy traveling the ICW and in home waters in fair weather. I do put it on deck in nasty weather and for offshore passages on trips. It fits with stern between the mast and stays on the sarbord side with bow on the foredeck.

The drag is minimal in the big picture unless you are racing. My dinghy tracks very well and I use a pair of floating lines

Fair winds,
Loren

[Paul D.]

I tow our nesting dinghy, a modified custom made "Nester" by Dave Gerr built by my brother and fellow CD'er John Danicic, only on short trips between the islands in calm waters. To me, part of towing the dinghy is never really trusting the painter and keeping a weather eye out for how she is towing. Good seamanship to me is making sure the painter is in good shape, protected from chafe, made fast and completely trusted. (Conflicting statements intended.)

I have heard that the height of the attachment point of the painter to the dinghy is a factor. Having a pad eye low on the stem or low on the centerline of the bow for a pram, supposedly makes for better towing. I have not set this up to my liking on our dinghy yet and currently have a high attachment. While this has worked fine for ten years, (with lots of vigilance) the armchair engineer in me reckons she would tow better with a lower attachment point. It would be a much more seamanlike option anyway.

Anyone have any experience or knowledge on this? Was it covered in that Woodenboat article?

Installing this pad eye is on the to do list!

The cedarstrip planked Nester dinghy in the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore

[Loren]

The towing point on my Boatex is well down on the bow. I made a second hole a few inches lower than the original. I attach two dinghy painters which is a bit of a pain at times but in my travels I've met a few who lost one so its my bit of insurance and in some conditions I use them to keep the dinghy more stable. (though I do my best to avoid those conditions while towing)

Loren

ps: nester