Biggest practical boat for skiing?

[ster1]

Folks, looking for opinions here. I have an 18 foot bowrider which I love but the family is growing and it's getting crowded in there. I am considering moving to the "dark side" and getting a cuddy. My question is, what's (usually) the biggest practical boat that still planes and can pull a skier? I know it has all to do with power but most of the cuddies im looking at have 250 hp 350 V8s in em. These days I'm only pulling a skier once or twice a year (close friends of the family, I dont ski) but the oldest kid is starting to show interest so it might be more as days go by. The problem is, I want everything. I wand the ease of handling and low cost of my bowrider and the roominess and size of a big ol clunker. Not to mention a potty. I just want it all, thats all. Maybe a better way to rephrase the question is, if I'm looking in the 24 to 26 range, can I still pull a skier, and what kind of power would I need at that size? Cheers.

 

[jestor68]

Re: Biggest practical boat for skiing?

You can't beat a so called "deck boat" for room, comfort, and water sports performance. If you're looking for roominess, you don't want a cuddy.

I have a 23ft "deck boat" that has no trouble pulling up an adult slalom skier with the typical 5 folks in the boat. Most boats of that size have small block V-8 power and top out in the mid to upper 40 mph range. Most have an enclosed "head" compartment.

A good site to explore is the Hurricane Boats web site. Deck style boats is all they make. Just about all of the major boat builders offer a deck boat in their line up.

 

[oregoncruiser]

Re: Biggest practical boat for skiing?

I went from a 19' open bow to a 23' open bow this year. The 23'er is equipped with a VP5.0, and pulls skiers fine. I would think though that I would want at least a 5.7 for anything any bigger. Heck I wish this one had a 5.7!! More important observation for me though is that my 23'er is just not as nimble as the 20'er. It just requires a larger swath to turn around. Just does not feel as "Sporty" I guess you'd say. It rides way better, but that is part of the trade off I guess.

Just my $.02!!

 

[Scorpion210]

Re: Biggest practical boat for skiing?

Maybe 190'+
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VNAIGWtUmA

Maybe 112' if you want to slalom
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUoqLC7OEos

 

[ster1]

Re: Biggest practical boat for skiing?

Scorpion thats damn funny! The ONLY problem I see with that is my F250 would have trouble pulling those over Vail Pass . Thanks yall for the input, I don't care too much about handling and yeah maybe a cuddy is not what I'm looking for. It's not like I would overnight on the thing. Wife and daughters don't approve of camping anyway. I'm going to consider a deck boat or maybe just a bigger bowrider.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Biggest practical boat for skiing?

As I read through your question, I see that the title, a question about a ski boat, is not really what you are asking. I see people pull skiiers and other stuff behind ridiculously large boats. For once a year, anything gooes.

On the other hand, if you may increase your frequency, you are going backwards by also buying a bigger boat. Not that you shouldn't; an 18' I/O bow rider isa very crowded design impractical for activities and teens/adults.

If you are going to 24-26' feet for other reasons, fine; you will probably want to keep it in the water. But why not seize the opportunity to make your "oldest" into a boater, and also get an inexpensive 16' that he/she and friends, and other children, can use for water sports?
Having several boats is usually a better strategy than trying to get one boat that does several things, none of them well. And there is nothing better you can do for children than get them on the water, the sooner the better.

 

[haulnazz15]

Re: Biggest practical boat for skiing?

If all you are doing is pulling a skier a few times a year, most any 21-25ft bow rider will do it with ease. Get the 5.7L at a minimum for any boat 20' and longer. How many people are we talking about here? I'd say skiing behind a 23' runabout/deckboat with a 5.7L should be easily done with 5 or 6 in the boat. You start loading the boat with 5-6 adults and a few kids, you're going to need a big block to haul the weight around. Still doable, but you need to define what your typical person/gear load is.

A cuddy isn't even in the discussion IMHO. There aren't many "cuddy cabins" that can accommodate more than 5-6 people in the cockpit unless you start getting into day-cruisers 26-28'+, and they aren't going to be much for holeshot or heavy slalom-skiers.

 

[four winns 214]

Re: Biggest practical boat for skiing?

Don't buy a cuddy unless you need a cuddy cabin. And don't get me wrong (I own an older 21' Sea Ray cuddy), there are many uses for a cuddy besides sleeping- clothes changing, storage, nap spot for little ones- but if your primary mission is carrying more than 4-5 people, a 21' or larger open bow or deckboat sounds like what you need.

I also own a 21' Four Winns Funship deckboat that will comfortably hold eight adults, ten in a pinch. With a mixture of adults and children, I've had 12 onboard. Its limit is 13. It has a small enclosed head that comes in handy on occasion. My boat has a Volvo-Penta 5.0GXiB with duoprop outdrive. A 5.7 or different prop would be a better choice in my particular boat for towing a water skier when loaded with lots of people.

 

[djspady]

Re: Biggest practical boat for skiing?

We have a 25FT Cobalt bowrider with a Vovo DP that seats 12 with tons of storage. I have no trouble snapping anybody (s) out of a deep water start- even the really big guys. It has a 454 in it which is pretty good on gas and handles rough water easily. I would never own a cuddy again

 

[sstone]

Re: Biggest practical boat for skiing?

I pull skiers and ski behind the 24' sea ray sun deck with a 5.0L without any problem. It gets a little bogged down out of the hole with more than 8-9 people but still doable

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Biggest practical boat for skiing?

I pull skiers all the time, no problem at all 25' Crownline, and your F250 will pull it ok too my Dodge pulls it no problem(Sorry I had too)