Driving with the tarp on?

[Darkbob]

Canadian here... I'm heading south to Arizona for the winter and I thought I'd take my Speedster 150 with me. Trouble is snow. Lots and lots of snow. All the way from Alberta to Montana or Idaho anyway. Once you hit Salt Lake City it should let up but before I get there I don't want the whole thing to fill up with slushy snow and muck. But can you drive with the tarp on? It's an OEM Sportster cover. What do you guys think? Take the tarp off or leave it on while driving. Remember Montana speed limits are 80mph.

 

[Macker29]

I would say travel with it off as much as possible. Perhaps keep an eye on the weather radar when traveling. Pain to take off and put on, but might be a good compromise.

What lake or waterway are you planning to take it on in Arizona?

 

[JPass]

If it's an actual tarp, I'd say leave it off. If it's a trailerable cover, then leave it on.

 

[Darkbob]

It's the OEM cover. Tarp. Whatever they call it. It's made by Bombardier anyway. But I have no idea if it's rated for highway speeds or if it's intended just for storage. Anyway too late to wait for further input... I'm keeping it on through the snow. I'll report back on my results. Wish me luck I'm heading into a winter storm advisory!

 

[mikidymac]

If it's older it will shred in the wind.

Also I have seen plenty of "trailerable" covers scratch the crap out of boats from the wind even with the vacuum hold and straps.

 

[Darkbob]

Welp... so far so good. Half way through the drive. They closed the highway so I'm holed up in Butte Montana. I guess we won't know how things are really going until I get it down to Arizona and hose it off. But it's protecting the boat. If it wasn't for the tarp the whole thing would be full of muck. If it doesn't survive then it's done it's job anyway and I'll grab a new one.

 

[JPass]

Definitely looks like it was worth it to cover it. I guess if I ever had to do this, I'd get our boat shrink wrapped before the trip.

 

[briancayko]

You came through my town of Great Falls! It’s been an incredible “winter” here already. Over 30” of snow here & double that up in the mountains! My 210 is tucked safely into our garage thankfully but you will be glad to have your speedster done in AZ when it’s 20 below up here. Good call on the cover [emoji1303]

 

[Darkbob]

You came through my town of Great Falls! It’s been an incredible “winter” here already. Over 30” of snow here & double that up in the mountains! My 210 is tucked safely into our garage thankfully but you will be glad to have your speedster done in AZ when it’s 20 below up here. Good call on the cover [emoji1303]

You bet! We made it through Great Falls. Weirdly enough I was the only guy on the road pulling a Seadoo through winter storm Aubrey! Sorry to say I didn't have time to visit the falls and see what's so great about them for myself. You do have falls in there somewhere? I did have time to see your world famous road cows but I'm not a fan. Cows on icy roads? What could go wrong...

 

[briancayko]

Yes, we do have several "great" falls here on the Missouri river. perhaps you can stop for the night on your way home and check them out. And yeah.......lots of cows. One of my friends that drives for FedEx (big rig overnight from town to town, not delivery) hit about 25 on the highway about the same time. They had somehow gotten out and weren't supposed to be on the road in that instance, i guess it was a gruesome scene though. Otherwise, open range cattle is fairly normal around different parts of the state. Speaking of covers though, I have 2010 that I bought in 2017 and it came with the original snap-on cover system. one for the bow and one for the rest of the top part of the boat. First trip at highway speeds and it shredded. It was just too old and had been destroyed by the sun and weather over that time period. I think a new cover, and the one I have now (Carvin cinch down system) works great on the highway. have a safe trip!

 

[JrFiero]

That stuff is happening in October? Yikes!
I'm surprised that cover stayed on with what few straps I see, My trailer(able) cover that I think is original to my 2007 Utopia has like eight straps on each side that hold it down to the trailer, each with a pad at the cover where the strap attaches so they D-rings don't scratch the hull. And a PVC hoop that keeps the cockpit end up so no rain (or slush) accumulates.
How did the rest of the trip go?

Jonas

 

[Darkbob]

How did the rest of the trip go?

Well... after the cows, snow, black ice, mountain passes, closed highways... smooth as silk. Made it to Arizona and had an awesome weekend on the lake with the daughter. This weekend... not so well. A few mechanical problems. But overall this is an awesome boat and it belongs in Arizona. Canada is no place for a nice little boat like this.

 

[timeman]

I tow my 06 Challenger from Phx to Lake Powell (5hrs) with the OEM cover on, never had a problem, but I would caution you that trailer rated tires should not see speeds of 80 MPH no matter the speed limit.

 

[JPass]

I tow my 06 Challenger from Phx to Lake Powell (5hrs) with the OEM cover on, never had a problem, but I would caution you that trailer rated tires should not see speeds of 80 MPH no matter the speed limit.

Radials are OK for higher speeds compared to the bias ply stock tires.

 

[Darkbob]

I tow my 06 Challenger from Phx to Lake Powell (5hrs) with the OEM cover on, never had a problem, but I would caution you that trailer rated tires should not see speeds of 80 MPH no matter the speed limit.

I agree. Very dangerous to drive a trailer at those speeds. On the other hand, driving at 50 when everybody else is going 80 is also dangerous. Fortunately (?) that wasn't an issue this time. With the ice and snow and terrible road conditions everybody was doing 30 or less.

 

[timeman]

Well... after the cows, snow, black ice, mountain passes, closed highways... smooth as silk. Made it to Arizona and had an awesome weekend on the lake with the daughter. This weekend... not so well. A few mechanical problems. But overall this is an awesome boat and it belongs in Arizona. Canada is no place for a nice little boat like this.

What lake do you use in AZ ?

 

[Darkbob]

What lake do you use in AZ ?

Mostly Lake Saguaro. It's just 20 min down the road. We have also been to Lake Pleasant.

A few years ago we took a trip up to Lake Havasu for "Winter Blast" with the old Jet Ski's. Winter Blast is a cool gathering of fireworks enthusiasts who get together each year and try to out explode each other. One of them accidentally nuked the parking lot and took out a bunch of car windows but otherwise it was a lot of fun. We may go again this winter.

Our trip to Canyon Lake didn't go as well as we had hoped - the poor boat died - but all is well now and we are looking forward to another try at Canyon.

 

[Macker29]

Lake Saguaro is a beautiful lake... as is Canyon Lake. We've been to Tortilla Flats a couple of times... even drove the Apache trail. Every time we visit I always think it would be awesome to have a boat here.

We've eaten at the "floating" restaurant on Lake Pleasant. Looked like it would be a great lake as well. Much larger than the other two lakes.

 

[timeman]

Lake Saguaro is a beautiful lake... as is Canyon Lake. We've been to Tortilla Flats a couple of times... even drove the Apache trail. Every time we visit I always think it would be awesome to have a boat here.

We've eaten at the "floating" restaurant on Lake Pleasant. Looked like it would be a great lake as well. Much larger than the other two lakes.

We now live closer to Pleasant, I kept a boat at Saguaro for years when we lived in Scottsdale, it's a beautiful lake but IMO can't compare to Pleasant in terms of amenities. Pleasant has two marinas with restaurants/ fuel/stores, has (2) 4 lane and even a 10 lane all paved ramps with tons of parking, even a couple of floating bathrooms. What ever lake we hit I always take note of the seadoo's, I'll watch for your boat, maybe some day say howdy!

 

[Darkbob]

We now live closer to Pleasant, I kept a boat at Saguaro for years when we lived in Scottsdale, it's a beautiful lake but IMO can't compare to Pleasant in terms of amenities. Pleasant has two marinas with restaurants/ fuel/stores, has (2) 4 lane and even a 10 lane all paved ramps with tons of parking, even a couple of floating bathrooms. What ever lake we hit I always take note of the seadoo's, I'll watch for your boat, maybe some day say howdy!

I'll have to check out Pleasant again! Canyon is next on my list if I can get up the nerve to try those sharp winding roads again. I'm from the prairies and absolutely not a fan of mountains!

 

[Macker29]

I'll have to check out Pleasant again! Canyon is next on my list if I can get up the nerve to try those sharp winding roads again. I'm from the prairies and absolutely not a fan of mountains!

If I remember right, the roads to Canyon are fairly nice. But once you get passed Canyon and get on the Apache Trail, that's when the roads get dicey.

 

[timeman]

Macker29 is right, roads to Canyon Lake are OK, its the road beyond Canyon to Apache and eventually Roosevelt that gets hairy, a good portion is still unpaved, the worst stretch is known as Fish creek Hill....

 

[Darkbob]

I guess I will have to call Canyon the end of the road for me. I'm not willing to try gravel roads with this thing on the back. But WOW is Canyon ever beautiful!

 

[Macker29]

I guess I will have to call Canyon the end of the road for me. I'm not willing to try gravel roads with this thing on the back. But WOW is Canyon ever beautiful!

View attachment 45273

how deep is Canyon Lake? I'm guessing fairly deep with the Arizona topography.

 

[Darkbob]

how deep is Canyon Lake? I'm guessing fairly deep with the Arizona topography.

Good question. Google says the average depth is 130 feet so quite deep. No danger of grounding your boat. Even driving along the banks of the canyon it seemed like it was very deep.