Surfing an I/O

[KG's Supra24]

Has anyone else seen this trend develop. It needs to stop!

Saw 2 boats this weekend trying this with kids and I really wanted to go say something. I'm sure they would think I was a complete snob. One was the new chaperalle (however you spell) which the salesman tried to convince me was the same as an xstar but cheaper and same wake without as much ballast so I'm sure he is telling people whatever they want to hear. The other was a crownline.

I feel like this is scary dangerous.

[tg0824SSVGG]

It is -- and it should be stopped. Someone will die.

[03bamaGT]

I have seen a few I/Os trying it where we ride as well...CRAZY!

[michael hunter]

Isn't that a form of population control

[tre]

I saw it on our lake too. The problem is that theose idiots will ruin it for the rest of us. The law makers will outlaw wakesurfing because people are getting killed. Those same law makers will have no idea about the difference between an I/O and an inboard.

What are people thinking? Those I/O surfers must think it is ok to do since they see others doing it (again, not knowing the difference between an I/O and an inboard). I just don't get it - at all.

[wotan2525]

Yes, it's a bad idea but I'm not sure I can agree with the "people getting killed" stuff. I haven't read or heard of any reliable accounts of people dying while surfing behind an I/O. It's certainly more dangerous and I would never do it -- but most of the new-style I/Os have a pretty large swim deck over the engine and with the boat moving away from you it's going to be pretty damn difficult to fall into something pushing water away from it.

Dangerous? Yes. Bad idea? Yes. Are people dying? I doubt it.

[dusty2221]

I've seen the Chapparal boats doin it too. One guy over on a motorcyle forum I visit and I had a little heated discussion a while back over how stupid it was. He even admitted one of the reasons they bought it was for surfing behind it.

[KG's Supra24]

I wish I could have recorded the conversation I had with the salesman for the chaparral. He argued with me for what seemed like forever about how much better that boat is than an inboard. I finally just said I'm going to sick with an inboard, see ya.

[tre]

Ha ha ha. I would have loved to hear the arguement about why an I/O is better than an inboard. I can think of only two things that are better:

1) easier to navigate the boat at very slow speeds (not that an inboard is hard).

2) faster

Nobody usually goes 60mph in their I/O anyway - most lakes are too crowded. I can think of about 20 things that are better about an inboard.

The funny thing about surfing behind an I/O is that the driver must not even be able to see anything. I don't know how people drive those things off plane - you can never see anything. Of course most I/O drivers that I see are looking backward at the guy tubing anyway so I guess they don't need to see:rolleyes:.

My disdain for I/O's comes from years of experience. Me or my family have owned them for 20 years (just sold the last one last year) while I have owned inboards the last 10 years (we had both for the last 8 years).