Which drift boat tracks the best?

This looks like it could turn into another hot topic! I have a Willie. and as you might expect I'll say Willie boats Track the Best. now everybody else has thar own opinion so the best thing to do is try a few and see what you think. this is just another Ford vs. Chevy topic,if ya get my drift. (no pun intendid)

I think a lot of it has to do with how you have the weight distributed in the boat. Any boat can track poorly if the weight in it is not distributed properly. I agree that the Willie's track well, but if not loaded properly, it won't track as well as it could. I have to agree with dcrz that this is a potential Ford vs. Chevy argument, but any boat you get needs to have proper weight distribution to track well.

Fish on...........

Dan S.

Wieght distribution IS the MOST important part in getting a boat to track. I'm amased how just a little bit makes alot of diference in the way my boat tracks and manuvers. I was told that the best way to balance my boat is to dump a glass of water in the boat and it should stay by my feet when I'm rowing. that's about middle of my boat. I was told that one of the reasons the Willie tracks so well is that they have a heavyer chine and acts more like a small rudder in the water. I've looked at the cutaway samples of the diferent boats and Willie defenatly has a much better looking system than many others I've seen.


dcrzfitter

dcrz,

I must admit that a properly weighted Willie trcks as well, with the least effort on the oars, as any boat made. I have an OLD Wooldridge and it rides really well on the center of the boat, but it doesn't have many of the features the new boats have. While rowing my buddy's Willie I was envious of how well it tracked even being a fully loaded comfort ride. It seems many other brands sacrifice the tracking by adding features at the expense of the boat's handling. Just my .02 worth.

I think I noticed you're from Olympia? I'm in Lacey, drop me a line sometime at

sandbergs@olywa.net

Fish on...........

Although you'll probably find that many guides do not like the way the Fish-Rite's and Alumaweld drifters track (Willies and Wild Hair have the biggest, sharpest chines) ... it isn't just the brand of boat that makes a difference - instead, you will actually find a lot of variation from boat to boat from the same manufacturer in how they track ... especially in the Willie's as they make the boats with several different rakes and DO NOT row the same at all ...

Dan S.


I actually live closer to Tumwater. I just have an Oly address. I live a few min. South of the airport. I live off Rich rd. You gonna be fishing the Nisqaully for kings in a few weeks? I've been floating it and will float it after work tomorrow. I wanna learn the river now before the fish start coming in. my E -mail is dcrzfitter@aol.com

dcrzfitter

I have rowed willie's and koffler's, both are excellent rowing and tracking boats. I think anybody who bought one would be pleased, but if you are going to buy, you owe it to yourself to try a lavro. I did and I am now the proud owner of one, and every time I float I like it a little more. The Lavro suits my rowing style and my particular needs in a drift boat. Some people have a misconception about fiberglass drift boats not being able to handle the rocks like an aluminum hull, and with some of the fiberglass boats on the market this is a fair and accurate observation. Not so for the hand laid hulls of the lavro, they actually have more tensile strength than aluminum hulls. this is not a subjective opinion but fact,that is alleged by the owner and designer of lavro, and supported by a good friend of myself who is a boeings engineer involved with composite tooling. Be that as it may I see that I am starting to cross over into the chevy vs. ford realm, and I dont think that will be very constructive, sorry. I would be proud to own any of the the afore mentioned boats, but if you get a chance, try a Lavro. They do track a little differently, I attribute this to the increased responsiveness Lavro's have over other boats I have rowed. For some rowers this may be a bad thing, but it sure suits the way I row and my style of fishing. GOOD LUCK !

[This message has been edited by sebastian (edited 07-15-99).]

[This message has been edited by sebastian (edited 07-15-99).]