How fast should you go to pull up a wakeboarder?

Question

Should I use full throttle or gradually increase the speed?

Answer 1

Depending on how quick your boat gets on plane.  I give full throttle to get the hole shot which gives the rider a little extra lift and gets the boat on plane quicker.  I start pulling back on the throttle at about 12 - 15 mph and hold it at 21 mph.  Depending how many fat sacks I'm running, I may manually adjust the speed to shape the wake for the rider. I also adjust the line length depending on the amount of weight I'm running.  Typically between an extra 1000 lbs to 2140 lbs of ballast plus passengers.  If you don't have Perfect Pass or some other type of cruise control devise, practice without a rider to get perfect your ability to hold the throttle steady.  Depending on the riders ability, ballast weight, and shape of the wake you may want to run between 19 and 23 mph.

Answer 2

Unlike skiing, you don't need a lot of power off the start. A gradual pull out of the water is best for any level of rider.

Answer 3

to pull a rider up you should ease into the throttle. you never full throttle it unless your motor is very weak. doing so can hurt an inexperienced rider. on the other hand don't baby the throttle. once the rider is up the normal speed is about 18 to 23 however some riders like to go a little faster depending on the rope length. all in all you should use your judgement on pullup speed based on the riders experience.

Answer 4

uh, i like going about 20 or so, but more beginner riders probably prefer like 18 or 19. and you don't have to go all the way in the beginning, just enough to get the wakeboarder up.