What not to do with an airboat

With the November freeze up of our lake I decided to take the airboat out on the ice to see how it performed. I did some pre-ice testing in the snow to check the controllability of the boat before venturing out on the ice. In the snow the boat handled great so I took it out on the ice (which had 1/2 inch of snow cover) and made a few runs before asking my wife to make a short video. I found the boat to go nearly twice as fast in snow as it does in water and in trying to impress the camera, I made a fast pass and didn't get off the gas fast enough. I tried to turn and the boat went sliding sideways and continued until crashing into the neighbors dock, smashing my gunwale and dislodging my rudders.

LESSON LEARNED ... BE CAREFUL ON ICE !!!!!

Although it's difficult to actually see the crash in this video, I completely annihilated a 1 1/2" steel pipe and dock corner in the far bay :sad: Note the sagging rudders at the end!

http://youtu.be/8IWh_sWtj_o

Kirk
Glad your ok.
I bet that was a rush when the boat just kept sliding.
Ron

Holy Cow!!! You were flying !!! I think your wife said it best...Glad you're OK...I never really thought about the speed increase like that on the ice...Looked like it jumped quite a bit when you hit its good you stayed in the seat...If you'd have hit head on you would have needed the red cape and the big S on your suit...So how bad is the gunwale ??? Is it something you can fix ??? Don't be discouraged with a little practice you still could have fun on that lake but I might consider a seatbelt for the frozen fun...

That is a good example of the panic and letting off the throttle. It's just our natural reflex to let off the throttle. Had you spun it and kept on the throttle you may have saved it. I ran into the same deal on the water and slid out. By the time I realized I should be on the throttle I was headed straight for a tree. The tree still has marks on it now from my bow hitting. Hope it's not an expensive lesson.

I actually realized the bad situation I was in quite a few seconds before the impact but didn't want to tromp on the throttle for fear of starting an immediate spin. I let it go sideways until just before impact and then got on the throttle with opposite rudder to try to dodge it but the engine balked. I was really lucky to stay in the seat as you said Corky and as it turned out, the damage was incredibly minor (the rudders went right back into their mounts with no damage). About a foot of the rubber gunwale bumper was smashed but the fiberglass was only slightly weakened at the top edge. The hull sustained two minor gouges from the sharp dock corner but a little bit of fiberglass resin is all that's needed to repair it. I was planning on putting slick bottom (Quick Slick) on the hull this winter so I'll just remove the structure and turn the boat over this Spring (as if I need slick bottom to slide better :)Love that Marty Bray Hull !!!

Wonder how much difference there is in a spinout on water and ice?
Ron

You slid a lot more on ice, there is no chance at all for an edge to dig in. Even the reaction to get on the gas has less affect because it will still slid in the direction you were headed until the thrust is enough to overcome the momentum. A boat with more thrust would recover better than a mini.

I I had and easy lesson with this, I was on snow going down a hill in an open field when I discovered how long it takes to stop.

You are one lucky Dude! Glad you were not injured. With that kind of luck, I hope you went out and bought some lottery tickets.

Wow that was scary. Glad your ok. Atleast you built it once and you can build it again. But now I imagine itll be some glass work.....I have fiberglass....