brojms

Hey all
New here, new to boating and here is some questions
Just bought 180 Challenger was this a good buy, I read so many things about it and all of it was good. Have not got it in the water yet

This is our first boat as my wife got tired of the waverunner

1-Would we see diffrence in speed?
2-how is this boat for tubing with 5 people in it?
3-how is this boat for wake boarding with 5 people in it?
4-How well this boat will perform on great lakes
5-can I run the engine (after breakin period) for lets say 8 hrs with out breaks
6-how is this boat on fuel(full out, how many hrs will it run)
7-how close to shore should I stay on larger lakes

I think thats it for now.
Hope you can help me with some of those questions
Matt

Matt:

We just bought a 2007 just like yours a couple months ago and have had it out 5 times now.

The first three times out we just cruised around to learn how to properly handle and steer with the jet boat controls and get some launching and retrieving experience since this is our first boat too. Fuel economy was about 3 gallons per hour of lake time. We kept speeds around 30-35 mph (still in break-in period). With stopping and starting we went through about half a tank in 5-6 hours (less than two "boat hours") each trip .

The last two times out we pulled towables with 3 adults and 3 teenagers. Performance was excellent in my opinion. We had a SeaDoo Big Kahuna tube which we took back since it was a very uncomfortable ride. We just got a Super Mable from Costco.com which gave a thrilling and comfortable ride for up to three at a time. We use a Airhead rope (Wal-Mart.com) with a 5ft. bungee section which eliminates "jerks" in the ride.

We kept speeds around the recommended 20mph (the tube can go airborn at about 25 or so on turns if you like picking up riders). Fuel economy jumped to about 5 gallons per hour of lake time. The low fuel light came on after about 6 hours of tubing.

The ride, control and performance still make this boat a good choice even though it will burn a few gallons more than most others. I am sure with experience fuel consumption can be managed to get the most out of each boat trip and still have a great ride.

James

The guide posts are mostly to aid in backing down the ramp . They allow you to know the position of your trailer when it drops out of sight down the start of ramp . They will keep boat from side drifting if you are in too deep . If you get trailer just right depth the boat will contact bunks just as it noses to winch post . Thats at most ramps some have crazy angles. practice makes perfect . anywho here are some sites , http://www.overtons.com/ http://www.basspro.c...ROLLERSBRACKETS

Thanks for the info. I'll work on getting the right depth on the ramp first and look further into guide posts if I still feel they are worth while later.