Credit to our camera man, Richard Langdon of Ocean Images, for shooting this with handheld and drone in very challenging conditions. We hope you enjoy it!

The control and composure comes from being confident in your skills, but respecting the sea and conditions. A great lesson in how to stay safe whilst enjoying the experience. A brilliant video.

Helps when youre in a high-power RIB like that which has lots of responsiveness at the throttle. In normal boats that kind of throttle control is much harder because you have to be like 10 seconds ahead of the game

Nice. Pro tip 1: On these throttle controls there is a button "1 lever", in rough sees I prefer that one and drive with the "palm support grip". More body support and better feel for the boat that way. Pro tip 2: Fill up your tanks, fuel and water and consider adding ballast up front. 90% of boats will be more stable overall in heavy sees. Pro tip 3: Get good ski googles and wax them with car wax. Visibility is much better in heavy spray conditions than sunglasses.

Trim high, power to control attitude, keep reserve power in case things go wrong, etc. With only a few changes you could just as well have been talking about a stabilised approach for landing an aircraft. It never ceases to amaze me how much crossover there is between Maritime and Airitime.

Always remember that driving like this will use significantly more fuel thus it is important to accout for this when calculating range.

This guy knows his stuff and puts it across very methodically and with calm logic. Thanks for the video. I’ve been powerboat ing offshore for years in various craft, but there is still much to learn and tips t pick up. I was fortunate to have a fast rough ride with Steve Curtis in a Honda powerboat over a 5-6 in a choppy Solent. Throttle control and anticipation was very impressive. Thanks.

The power up as the bow dips is a top tip, initially you naturally feel you should power down as the bow digs in. I did that once in some rough sea around Trinidad in a rib tender, it dug in proper and partially submerged boss and family and luggage went for a swim. learnt a valuable lesson that day, not least always wear a kill cord if I hadn’t I could have seriously propped them. Take care out their stay safe have fun ⛵💨

VERY helpful video. I'm a reasonably experienced powerboater but, I'm always looking out for tips. Never too old to learn. Great job & thank you ... 🇬🇧

Thanks for the lesson. Always good to see a pro work his boat.

Hi Jon. A real time lesson to keep safe at sea. Great video thanks 😊

Always a pleasure watching you, Jon. Thanks for another great video.

Brilliant video Jon - thank you. A public service.

Thank you for the lesson. This has been the best display of rough water boat handling I have seen.

Thank you for this very useful video! I live on Cape Cod where the sea can turn rough at a moments notice. This was a fantastic reminder of the fundamentals. I make it a point of going out there and practicing whenever I can.

Great video, thank you. Next time single engine 6m rib in similar conditions please 🙂 Have a 6m rib with 175 Hp outboard which is used in the med. Weather & sea conditions can change pretty quick, have had a few nervous returns from early morning fishing (flat and calm early morning then very lumpy as temp and wind increases). Have had small boats for years, but still not too confident in the rough stuff.

Excellent video again... Thank you for taking the time to share your knowledge on boating..

Excellent tutorial!

Great video. Thank you for the info.

great camera angles and of course your expertise.thanks for being out there.there are plenty of people need your teaching expertise.im not one of the but its been too long without going to sea on my own.i think ill treat myself to it for my 50th.take care.;)

Wow you explained it perfectly. I always did something similar with the head sea. I liked how you said you might miss a couple waves and then you’ll be wearing it. Cheers!

Life saving instructions, saved! Thx sir.

Great video! There are endless videos on UKposts of boats entering and leaving Haulover Inlet in Florida where they have some quite severe swells at the entrance to the harbour. Not only is it fun to watch some beautiful boats, but one can clearly see the competence or complete lack of it of the skippers in trimming the boats and using throttle to ride waves in, or knowing when to keep the bow up. Very often boats nose dive into the water turning the cockpit into a jacuzzi, it's very funny to watch.

Thanks Jon, excellent video and some good tips

I did the rya powerboat 2 course to drive our dive club 7.5m rhib. Hellish bumpy ride. A very experienced member took over and we barely felt a bump. I noticed how much he adjusted throttle compared to my Clarkson technique of "POWWWWER".

Yet another excellent ‘how to’ 👍

Great tutorial, and great video production work. Thank you, I always seem to learn something new.

Great piece of education 👏

“When storms shut down entire ports, we go out..”, well done, Captain! 👍

We had a frightening time off of Old Harrys rock on a 60hp rib, got back ok, but wish i had seen this video first. Very informative thank you.

Good to see someone who knows what he's doing. Horse power is your friend to ride the waves which is fun if you know what your doing.

Nice to see you back again Jon, really enjoy your "how to" videos. Thank you for that one, very useful information.

Finally someone on some waves, most videos they are pretty weak. Thanks mate.

Thank you sir, nice video.

That was very helpful

amazing techniques we use the same techniques

Thanks for the video sir.

Thank you, I have a high powered JetSki but don't have a lot of knowledge on boating.

Thank you kindly sir...

Great instruction!

Well done video, just found it and watched it thanks. Kudos to your Captain and I like the boat, although if I owned it I'd install a windshield!

Great useful video, thanks

Thank you Sir.

Excellent instructions and good video. Enjoy it sir.

It is like taking a navigation class with Mathew McConaughey!!! Great tips, thank you...

I love the drone shots... it's like Jon is about to single-handedly take Port Stanley. ;-0

Great vids mate , thanks

OH , for the Solent chop and the waves over the Christchurch ledge where it changes from 70 feet to 25 approx . like to see the Cobra matched against a Scorpion of the same size , in that weather an see who came out on top. Ran two Scorpions for nearly 20 years and glad to say never got wet , a bit of spray off the sides in a cross wind , fun all the way , but a force 6 was enough for me and watch you get wet in a force 8, well done to the camera man as you had the steering wheel to hang on to . Bravo and thanks for the video .😉

Great info 👍🏾

Fantastic video, really felt the excitement but also the risks

Can we discussed the trim levels at each movement?

Awesome video, thanks for doing this one and I love the way you use the English language (9:02) 👍❤️🇬🇧

Nice Video John.

Great video, and well done Richard on the camera and drone shots, how did you manage to land the drone?

Great video and content. Good presentation and channel. 😊

Thank you for suffering for our education!

Best boat tutor on UKposts. Thanks so much for creating these videos. I'd love to come to the UK and sit your courses face to face. Nothing like that here in Western Australia that I'm aware of. This video in particular is such an essential one as everyone can do it on a nice day, keeping calm in rough seas, not so much

i find i hit the waves at eleven o clock angle works great

Any chance of a similar video for a displacement motor yacht?

seems like you were powering up when the bow was up to get over the wave, I thought when the bow was up you power down and as you're dropping over the wave you power up, I know it's simple enough but it just looked like that to me. I appreciate this video because I'm on my second boat my first one was only on a major river, My second one has been in restoration for 2 years but has been out in the bay and on the river and I'm working my way up to the big water for tuna fishing. so thank you for the video.

Busting though it mate👍

thanx

@motorboatyachting First video on rough seas where their boat is actually in Rough Seas ! Thank you for getting wet out there for us :)

I think the continual adjustment of throttles going into the wind introduces a risk of mechanical breakage in the cables / unions. I prefer to run beam on or downwind and end up where I end up. Easier to get a taxi home and pay visitor fees that snap a cable and end up with no power. Great video.

Can you tell me what could weather gear you are wearing? Do you recommend it?

One thing to point out. If you are in rough seas, you have to be careful with power up when you dropping down a wave. If you go too fast and start to surf and you may hit the next wave with a bow. At that moment stern is going to have a momentum and a rapid water flow will push it. This may result in capsize. For more check "ship broaching".

Felt the spray, not the soaking others get when navigating the waves.

I surfed for 25 years, including Hawaii for five years, before I started boating and fishing avidly. I can't tell you how. It was just instinct how to go up, over, down, across..... when to gas, pull off, bob or weave.... I have been in waves that were 4 feet in my 12 foot flat bottom skiff with a 9.9 and 25 mph winds. Probably should have stayed home that day. Glad I made it home.

Thems we’re the days Jon.

Jon assessed me for Advanced powerboat CoC. Properly thorough but nice guy. (I passed, opinion may have differed had I not haha!).

With river boats I’d use half a tank out, half a tank back with 1/3 a tank in gas cans as a back up

Is that The Sconce behind you in the opening shots? A few minutes in that’s a yes and the Yarmouth ferry looms into sight with Fawley Tower in the background. That’ll be before 31/10/21 then. I feel for your camera man, great work by both of you.

Great video. Thing is, that's some boat you're using!

What's a "Beam Seat"? (in the timeline description)

Good video. What size seas you estimate those to be? I've seen so many people in two foot seas claiming they're in ten foot seas, so it's hard to see on video. I'd say you were in 4-6, with a few bigger rollers mixed in. You mentioned a force 8 wind? That would make for some big waves! Anyway, will forward video to others. Thank you.

this is a great video thank you for sharing. 95% of the time Im on small shallow inland lakes but once or twice a year I hit Lake superior and feel quite confident in my 19' bowrider when the lake gets grumpy.

Masterclass in surfing with a boat 😄

Just here to say DO NOT TRY THIS IF YOUR SMALL BOAT IS NOT A RIB OR A STABICRAFT. And even so be cautious. I've own both. It is very fun to be out there in a proper boat, but you are always riding a thin edge and the edge gets narrower the smaller your boat is. Especially if your boat is not designed with positive buoyancy. Surfing waves and powering up and down into the sea is very dangerous in a small light weight boat. Digging in your bow or having it flipped over your head is a dangerous reality in a small tinny. Just look at minute 8:52 when he digs in the bow. If his boat were not a positive buoyancy boat, that mistake could have taken 1/3 of his boat or more under water and very much so capsized it or stranded him.

Hero.

If u got the "power" its easier to deflect or must the waves, otherwise nice tricks and ticks good job

what microphone did you use - such a clear recording with no wind sound?!

Good work recording this. Next time take it out in something rougher please.

Which jacket is he wearing?

I understand the ideal place to be on a wave is riding the back until it dissipates, but I am not clear on what the ideal technique is if you get caught up high but in front of a wave and start surfing it. I usually try to power out of that position. Thoughts ?

3:05 Hahahah classic couldn't have done it better myself satched!!😂

I don't actually disagree with what he is saying but kind of laugh as there are those who go out (a lot) for fun in twice the sea size in a 1/3rd of the size of boat and have a real go at it. Safely I might add. But throttle, timing, and direction of attach is the key. Personally, I seldom go straight into a wave as 30 degrees off will allow a softer landing. But if it's breaking onto the boat, straight into it.

Great Video, thanks

Is it same tactic lets say 6 meter long aluminium boat?

RIB’s really are the 4 x 4 of the sea !

Staying just below plane helps alot too, the speed of lowest fuel economy is also the smoothest because your cutting waves instead of moving at their mercy.

Superb as ever but may we request a ‘big Jon Mendez’ outtakes video?

Little Johnny one note here, but do have a plan if/when you lose your engine. Even a new engine can suck up a plastic bag--and shut down. Now, you immediately begin to wallow and turn broadside to the swell--what now? Do you know? If you are counting on the engine never letting you down, you have not planned. Same deal with water suddenly pouring in, and no, no, the "bilge pump" will not keep up--in a real crises, it is not designed to keep up. And--as an important side, both of these emergencies: engine loss and water pouring in is one of many reasons to not be out there, alone. Boats should have redundant systems, whenever possible--two of everything, including two people.

So hard dto do in a 100k rib

Продемонстрирован удовлетворительный ход на попутной волне. При развороте в обратную сторону и движении на на эту же, но встречную волну картина будет печальной, с сильными ударами

Forget trim going into them?

Sorry for typos ( power up bow down bow up power down)

Glad u stuffed the nose 😁 even in that big boat. So much water enters the boat no good in Fiberglass boat. Ribs all the way for me. Next vid on big standing waves on bar crossing pls. I stuffed my rib and was up to my knees now I have 3 bilge pumps ready for next time. 👍

You no you had fun

Never do this if you are not prepared. It’s way more difficult than taught in this video. I personally make trips on rough sea on a daily basis. Every day the sea is different. Current, wind speed and intervals that you have to adjust to. So bow up going downwind and throttle handling going upwind is true for the vessel shown in the video. Not for less experienced boaters in normal single engine boats. Some good basics but this video is way to simple. And compared to where we boat not even a rough sea. First times in rough seas get help from experienced boaters.

Nice Boat.. how much does that cost? What kind is it??