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Chine Walking:

One of the biggest complaints of high performance boats - particularly V-bottoms - is that of the boat "chine walking". Chine walking occurs when the boat is running at high speed - usually at 65mph or higher - and because of the size of the boat trying to run on very little hull, it will fall off to one side, then flop back to the other, etc. etc. There are many myths to chine walking, i.e. "A four blade prop will cure your chine walk". Unfortunately, that is not true. True, a properly set up boat will be easier to drive and may chine walk less than a poorly set up hull, but chine walking occurs due to the laws of physics. The true way to reduce or eliminate chine walking? Learn to drive the boat.
Many dealers will sell you a boat cheap, then hand over the keys and send you on your way. You should expect the dealer to show you how to drive and handle your high performance boat. A tip to help eliminate your chine walking is this: Always keep the boat guessing. By just holding the steering wheel, you're going to allow the boat to get into a rhythm which will lead to chine walking. Start out by "tapping" the steering wheel to the left - against the torque. Then as the boat begins to fall to the left, release the steering wheel from the torque and turn the wheel slightly to the right. As the boat begins to lean to the right, return the wheel to the left against the torque.
Remember this - KEEP THE STEERING WHEEL MOVEMENTS SMALL.

By oversteering, you could do more harm than good. Try to imagine standing on a 2X4 with a ball underneath it. As the board leans to the left, you have to shift your weight to the right in order to keep the board from hitting the floor.


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