I saw this subject listed on one of the Hunter sites but now I can’t find it. Prop walk is something every skipper has to deal with and here’s how to make it work for you.
First, let’s assume you have clockwise right rotation. If you have counter clockwise left rotation just reverse what I’m telling you. Secondly, increasing acceleration will just make things worse so go easy on the accelerator. Thirdly, what I’m about to tell you is hard to visualize sitting at a computer and also when you decide to practice do it in a turning basin until you get the hang of it.
PORT SIDE DOCKING: Approach the dock at slow speed with the bow slightly angled toward the dock. Center the rudder and put the engine in reverse. The stern will swing nicely and easily toward the dock. Here’s where skippers get into trouble in this situation. Instead of centering the rudder they turn to port with the engine in reverse. Nothing happens at first so they goose the engine. As soon as they do that the stern turns to starboard. To correct that they then turn the rudder to starboard and that is when things start to really get screwed up. What they should have done with the centered rudder is NOTHING.
BACKING THE BOAT: At my dock I needed to back out and have the stern turn toward starboard so I could exit the slipway to the turning basin. Here’s how I would do it. The first part is obvious but the second part isn’t. I obviously start with the rudder centered and the engine in reverse. Once about ¾ of the boat is in the slip way I use prop walk to my advantage. I put the engine in FORWARD. Sounds weird but the stern swings slowly to starboard.
Say something is happening in the slip way and I don’t have time to fool around. To whip the stern around, I’d still be in forward but I’d turn the rudder to port and goose it. The stern will rapidly turn to starboard.
On Catalina Island it is fun to watch how skippers get themselves in trouble with prop walk. One place is at the fuel dock where there is current and big fishing boat in your way. Another is picking up a mooring. The skipper approaches the mooring a bit too fast. His rudder is centered, which is good but then he floors it to stop the forward progress. I say to myself, DON’T TOUCH THE RUDDER but they always do and that is when things go from bad to worse. The skipper then over corrects and it ends up becoming a Chinese fire drill except the Chinese fire drill is better organized.
Spend a few minutes in your turning basin to get the idea of how the forward and backward motion of your boat is influenced by the position of the rudder. Also, you want to experience what happens when you goose the engine in each situation. You’ll find that if your rudder is not in the correct attitude things go badly rapidly.
First, let’s assume you have clockwise right rotation. If you have counter clockwise left rotation just reverse what I’m telling you. Secondly, increasing acceleration will just make things worse so go easy on the accelerator. Thirdly, what I’m about to tell you is hard to visualize sitting at a computer and also when you decide to practice do it in a turning basin until you get the hang of it.
PORT SIDE DOCKING: Approach the dock at slow speed with the bow slightly angled toward the dock. Center the rudder and put the engine in reverse. The stern will swing nicely and easily toward the dock. Here’s where skippers get into trouble in this situation. Instead of centering the rudder they turn to port with the engine in reverse. Nothing happens at first so they goose the engine. As soon as they do that the stern turns to starboard. To correct that they then turn the rudder to starboard and that is when things start to really get screwed up. What they should have done with the centered rudder is NOTHING.
BACKING THE BOAT: At my dock I needed to back out and have the stern turn toward starboard so I could exit the slipway to the turning basin. Here’s how I would do it. The first part is obvious but the second part isn’t. I obviously start with the rudder centered and the engine in reverse. Once about ¾ of the boat is in the slip way I use prop walk to my advantage. I put the engine in FORWARD. Sounds weird but the stern swings slowly to starboard.
Say something is happening in the slip way and I don’t have time to fool around. To whip the stern around, I’d still be in forward but I’d turn the rudder to port and goose it. The stern will rapidly turn to starboard.
On Catalina Island it is fun to watch how skippers get themselves in trouble with prop walk. One place is at the fuel dock where there is current and big fishing boat in your way. Another is picking up a mooring. The skipper approaches the mooring a bit too fast. His rudder is centered, which is good but then he floors it to stop the forward progress. I say to myself, DON’T TOUCH THE RUDDER but they always do and that is when things go from bad to worse. The skipper then over corrects and it ends up becoming a Chinese fire drill except the Chinese fire drill is better organized.
Spend a few minutes in your turning basin to get the idea of how the forward and backward motion of your boat is influenced by the position of the rudder. Also, you want to experience what happens when you goose the engine in each situation. You’ll find that if your rudder is not in the correct attitude things go badly rapidly.
