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View Full Version : Safety Skunkwerks for the Rally Season...



roadtrip se
02-26-2011, 12:34 PM
Well, skunkwerks season is upon us and I have talked to many folks who are working on significant performance enhancements for their Donzis in anticipation of rally season, which will be here before you know it!

At the Awakening the past couple of years, I have noticed folks doing significant safety enhancements to their boats, too. A lot more people are running hydraulic steering and investing in good, offshore performance-style safety vests.

Steering. Anybody that is trying to steer a performance boat at 60+ on a cable is living on borrowed time. If that cable or connecting hardware goes in a crowd of boats, you can lose complete control in seconds and watch helplessly as you plow into others in your path. Besides the safety aspects, steering just gives you more precise control of the boat in general. There are no excuses any more really, as more affordable and good quality offerings have emerged like the Zieger systems, which are top notch.

Safety vests. Ribbon or ski-style vests are not designed to protect you and your passengers in the event of an accident, period. A Lifeline or Mustang vest can be custom ordered to your size and supplemented with flak jacket material to protect your rib cage. These vests are also designed with a collar to flip you over in the water and prevent drowning in the event of an accidental ejection.

http://www.lifelinejackets.com/pleasure_jackets.cfm

Spring will be upon us shortly, but there is still plenty of time to engage in a little safety skunkwerks for rally rides. Please consider doing so, if you haven’t already.

See you at the runs!