Peter Eikenberry

Sorry I haven't been back to this forum in a while. The formula is based on boat centerline length, transom width and transom Height. The weight of the engine is taken into account in the calculation of load capacity and how much flotation the boat must have. But the weight has little to do with the HP rating. The formulas for HP vary depending on the type of boat and whether or not they have remote steering. This was all determined by research done by the boating industry back in the late 50's and 60's. Yeah a lot has changed since then, but the formulas haven't. In the EU they use a maneuverability test and the Coast Guard and the American Boat and Yacht Council have conducted tests comparing the two. They are comparable, and in some cases the formula is more liberal. So it all evens out in the end. Research has been done looking for other methods but none were as good as just using the formulas. Peter

I have been wearing an inflatable life jacket for about three years now, in all kinds of weather including rain. I am in western Washington and as has been mentioned, it rains a bit. You do not need to worry about it. As was also said do not wear a jacket over the lifejacket. If you go in the water and it does inflate you are going to be in serious trouble. However, depending on the jacket and how it fits, it may not inflate at all. I fell in the water in the Strait of Juan De Fuca many years ago (won't do that again, too cold). Wasn't wearing a lifejacket (big mistake). It was about 100 feet to shore. Fortunately I was warmly dressed with a good snug winter jacket. I swam to shore. The inside of that jacket never got wet! If an inflatable were under your jacket it might not inflate at all. And as i said if it does inflate it is going to strangle you. Keep it on the outside.

Thanks. Interesting forum.

needs2hunt; I too fish American lake. Mostly for trout but smallmouth are good if you fish near the shores. I have never caught any ones of any size but a lot of small ones, and I have seen a few other fisherman get some 2+ lb fish. they are rare but they're in there. Lots of perch too. Perch will bite at almost anything. Just dangle a worm in 5 -10 feet of water and they hit. Of course the Fish and Wildlife people stock the lake with about 60,000 trout every year so they are the dominant fish. But there are also Kokani (that's landlocked salmon) but they are very hard to catch and pretty much require a really deepwater trolling rig.

This is the straight scoop on overpowering. I am a retired Coast Guard officer and engineer and spent 20 years working in the Office of Boating Safety regulating boat manufacturers. The Federal regulation applies to boat manufacturers. They must rate their monohull outboard powered boats under 20 feet in length for maximum safe horsepower, using a formula published in the regulation. They must put this on a label with the maximum safe loads and put that on the boat. The regulation does not apply to boats 20 feet or longer. Yours is 20' 5" . However manufacturers may voluntarily put a label on their boat using the industry standards published by the American Boat and Yacht Council. These are the standards that the industry has adopted to regulate itself. The ABYC standards for HP applies boats up to 26 feet in length. Neither of these applies to the boat owner. So under Federal Regulation the owner can do what he wants and will not be cited by the Coast Guard for overpowering. However, if the boat is operated in an erratic or dangerous manner because it is over powered the Coast Guard can cite the operator for negligent (a misdemeanor) or grossly negligent operation (a federal felony that can carry both a fine and jail time) The catch? Many states have passed laws saying you cannot exceed the values on the label. And by the way, in 20 years of dealing with boat manufacturers I have never encountered one that will give you an uprated label. That would violate their liability insurance so they just don't do it. In those states that have this law (I don't know if Tennessee is one) you can be cited for overpowering. Every state has an official called a Boating Law Administrator. Check with them. As for the comments above about accidents and insurance they are on the money. Many insurance companies don't check your boat when they insure it, but if you have an accident and the accident adjuster discovers the boat is overpowered, sorry, you will be denied and the insurance canceled. I have worked with many insurance adjusters in the boating industry and they all say the same thing. If the boat is overpowered, too bad, you lose. If you get sued, you are screwed. All they have to do is show the boat was overpowered and the jury will give the other guy bags of your money. One other thing that must be considered, under Federal regulations boat manufacturers must put flotation in their boats less than 20 feet, and if the builder follows ABYC up to 26 feet. One of the most critical factors in determining the amount of flotation is the weight of the outboard. So if you repower with a motor that weighs considerably more than the one rated by the manufacturer then you have defeated the flotation and compromised the safety of the boat. Also the engine weight is subtracted from the maximum safe load to determine the weight of the people you can put in the boat, so if the engine weighs more, that reduces the number of people you can safely put in the boat. So all these things have to be weighed against your desire to go a few miles per hour faster. Frankly I think you could probably gain those few mphs by getting rid of weight, changing props, and blueprinting the bottom of the hull. trim tabs might help too. Hanging a bigger motor back there may ruin the handling of the boat, make it susceptible to swamping from it's own wake, and greatly increase fuel use.