Almost Sank - Question

[lakeeriejoe]

I put ski in the water for the first time this season using my davit. I had a specific task in mind of towing some logs out of the canal so our boat can get through. So, needless to say, I completely forgot about the drain plug. I made it a short distance to tie the line onto the log, started to pull, and the ski wouldn't hardly move. I didn't even have tension on the line yet. It felt like when the wear ring is shot...plenty of revving/rpms, no movement. That is when it clicked...fu#$c(*k! Luckily, using what little thrust I had to get to the seawall and then pushing myself along the wall to get back to my davit was enough to get hooked back up and pulled out w/ no damage and no sinking.

Here is what I am trying to understand....what was it about the drain plug being out and the bilge starting to fill up with water that caused the complete lack of thrust? I think this incident was enough to never let me forget the plug again, but I am curious. This is a 96 GTI.

 

[artr]

I had a 96 SP that developed a leak at the welch plug on the exhaust pipe. When I took it out, it became very sluggish and was sitting lower in the water than normal. I don't remember exactly how slow it went but got back to shore and pumped it out and patched exhaust. The only thing I can think of is that water weighs about 64lbs per cubic foot. A few cubic feet of water and you will be approaching the max load limit of the jetski. You probably took on more than a few cubic feet of water with the drain plugs out.