A mistake too many make

IN THE photo of Grace going full speed and creating a wash, I notice that Grace is a hire boat, writes Jenny MacGillivray.

However I think that the driver of that boat is making a mistake that too many people make. They feel the boat 'sticking' and losing speed so they up the revs thinking to power through.

Creating more wash

This of course has the effect of digging the propeller deeper into the silt, creating more wash but no more speed.

Contrary as it might seem, slower is faster on shallow water, keeping the revs down lets you glide (hopefully) across the bottom, with less disturbance and damage to the banks. It's also less strain on your engine, uses less diesel and therefore less pollution.

A win win situation.