Towing with cover off

[jeremywatco]

Hi there,

Getting ready to tow the boat on a 5+ hour trek tomorrow... was all loaded and ready to go.. pulled my cover out... all dusty and falling apart.. ordered new cover and threw existing cover in dumpster...

Normally I'd just pull the seats out and put them in the back of my Suburban.. but all the storage bins are loaded up for the trip. I'd hate to have all that stuff blow out. Has anyone towed without a cover and left the seats in? I always tow with the window closed.. but always keep the door in the closed position.. closed meaning the storage compartment is closed and the bow is open.

Thoughts? I dont tow over 65MPH

2007 AR210

 

[sunbyrned]

I’ve towed ten hours down and back without a cover with no problems. I have a lounge/chair on the passenger’s side. I made sure to leave that in the chair position to put a little pressure on the cushion where the batteries are located. I do have cushion options for the step over into the aft area and the two cushions for the bow area that make a bed. I did not bring them along but pretty sure they would blow out if I did. I kept my window closed and the storage door shut as you’re mentioning. Hope this helps.

 

[jetboater4life]

I tow all short distances with no cover. I close the window but open the door so that it prevents wind from ripping through the area. I put a piece of velcro on the one seat that has been known to fly out and I have never lost a thing cushions or otherwise......eh I take that back I forgot to take out one of my flags on a short trip and it flew off and disappeared on the highway somewhere. Went back to look and never found it. You could try to ratchet things down and I'm sure it would be fine.

 

[jeremywatco]

When you say door open.. does that mean the bow is blocked off?

 

[jetboater4life]

When you say door open.. does that mean the bow is blocked off?

Yes the bow is completely blocked by the window and the port side storage door.

 

[BlkGS]

Very timely. My boat is going to be making the trip down to FL soon, it currently has a cover on it, not a great quality one that does need replaced, but its tied and clipped on. Is there any reason it'd be better to remove the cover to.have it towed down than leave it on?

 

[dgfreeze]

I’ve often had this debate with myself, and ultimately I went with cover off. Partly because my cover is starting to show some wear, and towing with it on noticeably accelerates that wear. Obviously the small rear center cushion has to be removed, they’re well known for flying out, and on a couple occasions I’ve had one of the large side seats behind my captains chairs end up on the floor. To remedy that, I made little nylon straps with button snaps, and simply snap the cushion down when I tow now. Two for each of the large cushions, at opposite ends. Works great, and I always tow with the cover off. Makes staging a lot easier, also.

 

[BlkGS]

I’ve often had this debate with myself, and ultimately I went with cover off. Partly because my cover is starting to show some wear, and towing with it on noticeably accelerates that wear. Obviously the small rear center cushion has to be removed, they’re well known for flying out, and on a couple occasions I’ve had one of the large side seats behind my captains chairs end up on the floor. To remedy that, I made little nylon straps with button snaps, and simply snap the cushion down when I tow now. Two for each of the large cushions, at opposite ends. Works great, and I always tow with the cover off. Makes staging a lot easier, also.

That's sort of my concern. I'm worried that I'll lose a cushion or something and nobody will notice. My current cover is past its EOL, pretty sure it was a lucky fit on an inexpensive one anyways, so I'm expecting this to be it's last ride.

 

[dgfreeze]

That's sort of my concern. I'm worried that I'll lose a cushion or something and nobody will notice. My current cover is past its EOL, pretty sure it was a lucky fit on an inexpensive one anyways, so I'm expecting this to be it's last ride.

Before I made the snaps for the cushions, I would try to set something sort of heavy on the seats to maintain a little extra weight. Nothing real heavy, or hard, obviously, but maybe a deflated tube in a mesh bag, or a soft cooler.... something like that. That worked well also, but it wasn't long before I did the snaps. Love them, would do it again in a heartbeat. At any rate, you do you, but in my mind, the only real thing that concerns me about driving without a cover is in the off chance a rock flies up from traffic, a cover could potentially soften the blow, reducing the chances of a broken windshield. It's the one thing that does concern me a little about driving without a cover.

 

[jetboater4life]

A small strip of velcro works.