Safety question towing tubes off tower

[jphdrake]

There is guy on our lake that is towing up to 4 tubes with at least 2 teenage riders per tube on his 2014 SAN 210. He has the ropes attached to the tower. I know my tower on my boat says max tow weight of 500 lbs. Are there any problems with this for safety reasons. Is anyone aware of examples of problems doing this. This is really not my business but seeing someone pulling 8-12 teenage kids on tubes with a back seat full of kids does not look safe to me. I just wanted to say something to him if it is truly a safety concern.

[Kmayotte]

Sounds sketchy at best. I would think an outright fail of the tower where it snaps back is unlikely but a bend of the tower (especially side to side when not pulling in a direct line) or snap of the rope attachment point could happen.

Is it legal in your state?

[nohlan_4]

Not safe for sure. Tow attachment failure, rope failure or tower failure could cause serious harm to anyone sitting in the cabin rear of the tower. Injury or death for sure. Tubes load the tower up much more than any wakeboard rider can physically do, multiple tubes is asking for it.

[Paxdad]

Video that set up the next time you see him and post for us to see.


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[jphdrake]

Guys thanks so much for the input. Your thoughts were the same as mine I just wanted to confirm. Since I don't even own a tube I wanted to make sure I was not just biased in my opinion. If anyone is aware on a specific example of a tower failure please let me know. After your responses I think I will mention this to the person pulling the tubes.

[DLafont]

With the amount of weight being pulled and resistance from the tubes dragging, I'd also be worried about capsizing the boat when turning hard. All in all, I wouldn't recommend pulling so many tubes from the tower. From the transom attachment point/hook, no problem, but off the tower... That's asking for trouble, or maybe I'm more of a worrier than that guy!

[hondaprlud]

Why not let Darwin sort it out? Lol


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