Jetting Resources

Boating and fishing on a river is quite different than it is on still water. Jet powered crafts operate differently than those powered by prop and require a season or more to learn both the potential and limitations of each specific craft. Ask anyone who owns a jet powered river craft, bumping shallow rocks and ledges is par for the course. The following is a brief list of River Tips intended to make your time on the water more enjoyable. Some of these River Tips are so obvious, you may wonder why more people don't put them in practice. These not so common bits of common sense were passed down to us over the years, so we're just passing them along to you. 

Launching and Loading Tips

There are quite a few people who enjoy heading out to their local launches each spring. They sit on the park benches or picnic tables and watch people launch and load their boats for the first time of the season. While this activity was never for me,  I'm sure this can be a sight to behold. Seeing some poor guy at the launch with a possessed trailer that goes every place but towards the water is not my idea of fun. For this reason, if you are unsure or new to towing a boat, it is always a wise to practice backing your trailer in an empty parking lot rather than at a crowded boat launch. Beyond practicing, there are a few other launching tips that will make trailer control easier.

• Remove transom straps, check the transom plug, prep boat and transfer gear from the auto to the boat in the staging area, NOT on the ramp itself.

• If trailer lights are not waterproof, disconnect light harness to keep bulbs from shorting out.

• Pull through and start backing with your trailer as straight as possible. This makes maneuvering  easier and helps maintain the trailer position if there are multiple launch lanes. 

• Small or narrow trailers are hard to see, consider attaching a trailer flag or PVC post to improve vision. If your tow vehicle is a SUV, raise the hatch or lower the tailgate to improve vision.

• Until you get the feel for it, which will become second nature, one tip is to place your hand on the bottom of the steering wheel, if you want the trailer to go left, move your hand to the left, if you want it to go right, move your hand to the right ( Give it a try! Move your hand in the direction you want the trailer to go. )

• Back up slowly and do not over turn the steering wheel. 

• Use the current flow to your advantage, when possible, angle your trailer down river. This allows the current to help slip the boat off the trailer when launching. When loading, the current  flow works to hold the bow steady as you approach the trailer from down river.

• Adding a catwalk to your trailer will keep your feet dry and greatly assist the Launch & Load process.

• For bunk style trailers, applying a silicon spray or installing plastic polymer bunk pads will assist launching in low water.

• Learn to use a launch rope to guide the craft to the mooring area when launching solo.

Running Rivers

Running Your New Jet Rig:

Consider the words, "Steady as she goes". The last thing you want to do is to damage your hull or engine the first time out. Many are under the delusion that the jet craft does all the work, just push the throttle forward and she'll do skinny water, no worries. Jet powered hulls maneuver differently than other crafts. Discovering this while in the middle of a shallow, rocky, obstacle course is not the best time. At Snyder's, we test run every craft with the customer. The day you take delivery, we'll spend time on the water with you. Here are some tips for wetting your jet craft on your first outing alone.

• Head back to your home turf.

Simply stated, select an area of you home river that you know well. Being familiar with the launch, the channels and the safe zones will add confidence. Leave the rods at home or in the rod box, spend a few hours at the helm. Get a feel for how the craft comes on and off plane, how tight you can turn, how to throttle into and through a turn. Play around before you head off to skinny water.

• Have the boat anchor out and ready for use.

In my opinion, this should be a vital part of the pre-launch practice. Having the anchor ready to deploy at all times is a good habit to get into. Those new to power crafts tend to make more mental errors that those who have logged a few seasons. Seen many set their crafts afloat, prior to running or warming up the engine. Scrambling to get the anchor out of the locker as your craft is heading into the rapids is not the time. It's a scene right out of the Bugs Bunny Roadrunner Hour. Something as simple as a cold engine, flooded carbs or even a flipped lanyard switch can catch to the best of us off guard. Reduce some of the stress and deploy the anchor, then address the problem.

• Bring your craft on and off plane as quickly as possible. 

More often than not, hull and intake damage is caused while the boat is coming on or off plane. By gradually coming on and off plane, the hull draft suffers and boat and intake remain in the danger zone too long, speed and poor draft don't mix. When in doubt, ride it out! You are far more likely to cause damage when you panic or drop your speed in shallow water.

• Spend time drifting and get an idea of your draft.

It's a simple rule, if you can drift through it, you can run through it. Sounds like common sense but even those who have experience running jets, dismiss it because draft on most jet crafts is so poor. We build our jet hulls to draft as little water as possible, the wide bottom and sharp bow entry give our hulls a shallow draft. We'll likely change the way you look a jetting, but draft off step is important too.

Story time; My first summer with my 1760 Snyder hull found me on the water with Mike & Tom Snyder for a photo shoot. Afterwards, I was introduced to some new water. I was not new to jetting, in fact I had nearly 8 years under my belt. Following them on the way back, Tom went through a real shallow riffle and at the head waters I bailed.  I cut the throttle and the momentum grounded my entire hull on a dry gravel bed. After we slid my craft off dry land, I drifted and polled my way down through the same shallow water I was too afraid to power through. The rocky riffle was at best 6" deep and rolling, so at times it seemed half that. The only damage was to my ego, while embarrassing, a valuable lesson was learned. 

 

Running New Stretch of River:

Running the familiar sections of my home rivers has become second nature. This of course, has not always been the case. I spent years drifting, wading and running a tiller prop through much of these areas. I have learned the hidden boulders, know where the low breaks are in the ledges, and can judge the water level by familiar rocks that rise above the surface. While nothing can take the place of experience, we don't always have years to spend learning each stretch of a given river. This being the case, there are some general guidelines you can follow to assist in reading new stretches of a river.

• When possible, Launch from a down stream ramp and work your way up river.  

  Doing so, assists in learning a new stretch in several different ways;

  1. First, it is easier to read the water running against the current, i.e. running up river. The greater slope in grade, the harder it is to view  structure based on line of sight. Shallow channels and ledge cuts are easier to detect from the down river view.

  2. Second, boat control traveling up river is more forgiving. The overall reaction time is increased as the current is working in your favor. You are able to approach a potential problem area without fear of the current pulling the craft into or onto the obstruction.

  3. Third,  is just common sense.  If all else fails and you make a mistake, the current will carry you back down stream to the launch. 

   

• Know the Basic Channel Guides. 

While there is always exceptions to the rules, deeper water is often found in the channel cut areas. The deep water is usually on the outside edge when the river bends. This is less true with very large rivers, but channels still follow suit.

• Follow the "V" Markers. 

Covered in Reading & Navigating Rivers located on the Resources page, rough water caused by ledges or boulders is hard to read. Finding the deep water can be done by looking for the "V" marks that appear when water is channeled between obstacles.

 

Proper Anchoring:

Just a few tips to assist in safe river anchoring. Anchoring in current is quite different than in still water. Done incorrectly, the craft and all aboard can be placed in jeopardy.  The current flow, size of the craft and even the river bottom play into the type of anchor used. Rivers that had soft bottoms, such as mud or sand require different style anchors than those that are hard bottomed. Our focus here is anchoring in predominantly hard rocky bottomed rivers that run across our tri-state area. 

Without dismissing a cement block, our topic surrounds three river style anchors for hard bottoms. Moving left to right, a 10 to 15 pound River Anchor, 10 to 15 pound Navy Anchor and homemade Grapple Anchor. The first two are weighted and can be found plain or rubber coated. The grapple is usually made with rebar and can be quite large depending on the size of the craft. A three to four foot length of chain is required to add weight and ensure this anchor style flips and grabs fast. The rebar hooks are strong enough to hold, but will bend to break free upon retrieving.

• Do not anchor any craft in strong current, never underestimate the force of heavy current.

• Always anchor off the bow of the boat, anchoring from the stern in current can easily flood or sink the craft.

• Use plenty of anchor line. Anchoring in moderate current requires line that is 5 times the depth of water the craft is in. To properly anchor in a depth of 5 feet, 25 feet of anchor line is suggested.

• Anchor line should be in an open or slip cleat for easy release in case of emergency.

• Keep an eye up river for floating debris.  Large debris can work its way up the anchor line and sink the craft.

• Do not block shipping lanes or channel chutes.

Right Size your Trolling Motor:

Maneuvering a craft in current takes more thrust than in still water. If you're a fisherman, a trolling motor is a vital part of the total package. Most anglers spend considerably more time on their electric motor than with their gas motor. If this describes a typical river outing for you, the best tip we have is;

• Select a 24 volt trolling motor with a minimum of  65 lb thrust, nothing smaller for rivers.

• From our experience, steel shafts are more likely to bend, than composite shafts are to break. We're not playing favorites with the two major brands, it's just something to consider.

We hope our short collection of River Tips offers value on your next trip to the river. Be safe, courteous and enjoy your outing.  

Co Written by Chris Gorsuch & Tom Snyder 03/2000 - 12/2002