Call On TowBoatU.S. New River for Assistance Wherever
Your Travels May Take You

During late January, the yacht towing experts at TowBoatU.S. New River were called upon to tow a 160' motor yacht from the entrance of the Ponce Inlet in Daytona Beach, Florida to AquaMarina which is located approximately 10 miles north of the inlet. TowBoatU.S. New River's Director of Operations, Kevin Collins handles the logistics for tows such as this one. He commented "We had to do some planning to be sure this tow was executed safely due to local navigational hazards, tide restrictions and the need for strong tugs. We began by permitting two of our twin diesel tugs for over dimensional transportation by trailer with the Florida Department of Transportation. We used one of our triple axle trailers and one of our 1 ton diesel dually trucks to transport both tugs to Daytona." Once on scene, Captain Mike Knecht spent several hours surveying the route making plans for the Motor yacht's arrival the next day. Mike noted "There are a couple of tricky spots for deep draft vessels in this port, we planned the timing to ensure we were at the highest tide possible and put divers in the water to survey areas of concern. We wanted to be sure that there were no hard obstructions that could potentially cause damage to the vessel."

When the yacht arrived the following day, Mike met with the captain, noted his concerns and discussed the possibility that the vessel may touch bottom but assured him that divers confirmed that the bottom was composed of mud and the two agreed that the risk of damage was minimal. The vessel was safely towed into her slip at AquaMarina and towed back out several days later without incident. This operation illustrates TowBoatU.S. New River's unique ability to help yacht captains make informed decisions reducing the likelihood that they will get into costly trouble. Collins adds "having tugs that have power to tow motor yachts of this size that can still be trailered over the road gives us a lot of flexibility in meeting our customers' needs. We have the advantage of being based in the yachting capital of the world and get a great deal of experience towing large yachts as a result. This blend of the right gear and an experienced crew has given us the ability to respond when our customers have requests like the one described here."

TowBoatU.S New River routinely provides large motor yachts with inland towing, docking assistance, long distance towing, ungrounding, salvage and crane services throughout South Florida and the Caribbean. Please give them a call if they can assist you!