_Hey Yall: That other post just got to dang BIG!! Like others I never Plan to Fly My Xpress..It just happens some times. I have been know to jump ski boat wakes for fun but nothing like my Adventure of 2000 on Toledo Bend!!

_Here's My Last Real Flying incident: In the Spring of 2000 we had the 13th Annual Aviation Tournament. I had some fish located in the 1215 Road Bed area and was back around the small islands fishing. The winds were forcasted to be 5 to 10Mph and when I left San Miguel they were about 5Mph. As I was fishing the Islands when I noticed the tops of the trees started swishing around and knew it was time to head straight back.

_Toledo Bend can get Real Nasty... Real Fast and by the time I got to the boat E/W lane out of 1215 the winds were about 15Mph. By the time I got to the Main N/S Lane headed South back to San Miguel it was up to about 25Mph and getting Real Gusty. I'm in 6ft Waves and still about 12 Miles from my Camp. The winds did'nt take long to get up to the eventual 40 Mph top speed of the day and I'm in the Dead Middle of Toledo Bend with it. The waves topped 10ft and if you've ever seen 8ft of a tree shoot up out of the water then disappear...you know the pucker factor that gives you.

_The wind was blowing the tops off the waves in sheets worse than Any Rain I've ever seen except for a Typhoon. I had to Run Hard to the top of each wave flying off to keeping the bow high to keep from spearing the next one. Each wave I jumped was like getting dropped 12ft straight down...Bone Jarring Body Slamming...Sickening Impacts!!

_The 8 miles of Crushing Impacts took their toll on my equipment too! The Bow Mounted Lowrance LCR's Screen broke loose in the case and rotated 45deg. My console mounted Garmin 240 had the connector/Plug flanges broken out of the housing just from the weight of the Coax Leads wrenching on them. My Motor Guide Tour T/M was fine as usuall other than having to tighten all the thru bolts. Lost all 3 of my battery tie down straps..snaped in two...beat them batteries up pretty good too!!

_The real Kicker was the 2ft Cracked Keel Weld on the bottom of the hull in the lower bow crown. Xpress welded a 4ft section of 1/8" thick 6061 T6 extruded L angle at the factory to repair it!!!

_Due to other unseen internal structural damage they eventually replaced that hull (after I fished it for 1 & 1/2 more years) with a brand New 2002 Xpress hull I currently drive! Xpress Service and Life Time Weld Warranty is a good thing!!

_I was caught out in it due to an Inaccurate Forecast and Not Having a NOAA Weather Radio with me for Updates. I always carry one now and anytime there is threating weather near it sounds the alarm well in advance!!

_I feel fortunate to have had a Very Solid Boat Under Me that day... and for Marine Corps training that alowed me to remain calm . Remaining Calm is the best thing you can do in a Violent Boating Situation/Storm such as this.

_Good Luck and Leave The Flying To Airplanes Yall!!

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Bazztex<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<& lt;<<

Hmmm....
I figgered you were supposed to fly in an Aviation Tournament

Donnie

Here's that pic again in case someone that hasn't seen it comes in here. I thought that someone had done gone and gotten the post locked on us.

_Hey Charlie: I'm Guilty!! It was just getting Real Long..but still an interesting topic we can All Learn From!! Great Lakes I suppose?? Very Cool Flying Photo!!

_Good Luck and Enjoy Flying Hag Airlines!! :p

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Bazztex<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<& lt;<<

Lake Erie from what I am told. THe driver of the boat, Al Patton, was showing off for a Helicopter that was overhead.

No problem, Bazz, I should have looked.

That would have made a great video!

Bazz,

Ok I am surprised to say the least that there is any bass boat on the market that can move forward in waves of that magnitude. I used to live in S.California and would body surf in waves that size. I can't imagine a bass boat going into waves like that and making it from one wave to the next.

So here is my question that might help me someday and others. I have never been in waves like that. I have been in some huge waves but not 10' or 8' maybe 4-5' maybe. Anyway, do you want to run fast and keep throttling the motor? On big bodies of water I noticed that the waves are more swells rather then big white caps. They are usually further apart from each other too. So even the length of a 22' foot boat wouldn't span the gap between the waves I have been in at Sam Rayburn or other large lakes. So how do you stay on top of the waves?

What I do is go slow so that I sort of ride on top of the waves doing my best to keep from spearing the next wave. I can't imagine going real fast from the top of one wave to the next. But is that what is the best thing to do?

Thanks for the help. I would want to know what is the best thing to do in these situations. Please don't say stay home as this can happen to anyone. I have had nasty storms blow up on me within a 30 minute span while in Colorado with 50-60mph winds. Luckily I was on a small lake at the time. but it does happen. So any info on boat handling etiquette would be great in rough water like that.

Thanks.

Anyone cant get caught in a situation like that and they should be prepared. The best way to handle BIG water in a bass boat is to position the boat in a way that you run down the wave and allow the next wave to intercept your boat at a slight angle. If you can run down a wave to get to one side of the lake or another where there is calmer water to run in and then turn into the direction inwhich you want to go. Stay close to a bank in any situation so if you do get into trouble you wont have far to go to get out. If your fishing a tourney on an extremely windy day ask the director if they will allow trailering and take full advantage of it. You may loose a little time but not as much as you think when you consider the slow and painful ride on the water.
I have been in some tough situations and have found that if there is no other way out, go to the closest cove and try to wait it out because a lot of strong storm fronts are brief and will settle down pretty fast. Take yesterday for instance, a strong squaw line with straight line winds and then as fast as it was here it was gone.

Hey Bazztex, BPS needs to sell I DON'T WANT TO DIE HANDLES that you can use self taping screws and mount it on the boat drivers left shoulder. That might slow some people down. Sure seemed to work well when I told Lynyrd that!!

Charlie,

I would take a carrier arrest in 30-foot seas with a rookie rhino (F4 with short main struts) pilot anyday over what you went thru at TB!

The main problem with big waves on Toledo bend is that you are limited to running the boat lanes or risk impaling your rig on a big 'ol stump. Therefore, you don't always have the luxury of taking on the waves from the preferred angle..

IMHO, and that is ALL it is, from now on if I am fishing in a cove and notice the wind is getting up, but I am still in protected waters, I will go out to see the situation on the main lake. If it's anything and I mean anything like the storm last year, I am going back in that cove and bank it and wait it out. I've been know to carry plenty of drinks and eats when I go fishing so I aint gonna starve or anything like that, . Big waves made a believer outa this ole boy.

he almost lost me one time if you like flying bazz can do it hee!hee! I was hanging on by a tread.I got madd but hey it happens sometime right bud hee!!!!hee!!!!!

_Hey Kieth: To elaborate on the Toledo Bend situation. I was up in 2ft of water in a stump field when the winds first got up around 15Mph. I had to negotiate 300yds of stumps to get to the 1215 E/W boat lane. Once there I was commited to go back to camp with No Way to turn around. The lake was about 4ft low so I could'nt use the old N/S roadbead bouy line straight ahead. It all happened very fast and due to a Bogus Forecast and Poor Planing on my part I got caught off guard. I'm thankfull I was alone so I was'nt distracted by keeping tabs on a passenger.

_The winds did'nt get dangerous untill I got in the Main Boat lane about a mile from land on either side. The biggest problem with Toledo Bend is the timber out of the marked boat lanes. You cant just head across to land in any direction..you pretty much have to use the boat lanes. So I got stuck out in some Very Bad Stuff far from safety!!

_To answer your question about running in waves that large. I have a 200 V Max on a 21ft Aluminum Hull so I have Power To Spare, The Biggest Problem with 10ft waves in 40Mph Winds is they are very close together...unlike the swells in Progator's Photo of the Flying Triton. It was somewhat like Surfing in reverse order.

_What I found that worked was running hard up the face of the wave till I felt the boat start to tip forward...then Gunning it to Jump off the top keeping the Bow Up. This allowed me to hit the face of the next wave flat/bow up so I could start climbing it before it crested over on me.

_If I missed the timing I got tossed back and spun to the side towards the timber or I speared the wave sending the top of the wave over me. It was extremely slow going because I was getting proppeled back as I was riding on each wave. It took over an Hour to get 8 Miles!! Oh and about 3ft of the top of each wave's whitecap blew off on top of me as I was headed up the face!! Like someone standing on the front deck with a never ending supply of 5gallon buckets throwing water on me!! I had a BPS X-treme Gore Tex Suit on and got soaked too because the wind blew my hood off my head making a funnel down the suit!!

_If you want to know what it felt like have a large 250Lb+ person put on steel toed boots...get a large dictonary and hold it across your rear end. Have them kick it real hard for about an hour every 20 seconds. Or just duct tape it on and jump off the gable of your roof repeatedly!! Oh and turn on the spriklers or have your wife squirt you with the hose constantly. You'll get the General Idea of What Not To Do In A Boat!! :p

_Good Luck and Stay Out Of The Middle Of Toledo Bend In 40Mph Winds YAll!!

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Bazztex<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Staying calm & focused on that next wave is important.Bazztex,I've never been in waves like you mentioned & I'm in no hurry either.LOL It's important to respect the waters we're on, even smaller lakes alot closer to home.I've seen Hubbard get bad & wonder about the fellows I've seen hours prior to strong wind that were out in small boats with no life jackets.(Catfishermen).Think we've lost a couple here through the years ,locally as I remember.Good Topic