Throttle Control

[Bud Kennedy]

I do not have a hot foot throttle.  I have driven boats with them and really like the safety of the whole deal.   

Recently I heard a story about a guy out fishing alone had a heart attack while on plane.  He passed out and the boat ran at near full throttle into the bank where he received additional injuries.  Fortunately he survived the heart problem but now had to deal with a broken arm and collar bone.  His boat had a traditional throttle system and although he had a kill switch attached he simply slumped over and the kill switch did not get pulled.

This just reminds me that a hot foot style control would be a good safety addition to any boat.

[Princeton_Man]

I've never been a fan of the hot foot alone. I learned that the new ETEC controls allow you to have both hot foot and throttle remote and might opt for that in the future because the both have advantages.

With the event involving the heart attack, while there's no way of knowing, a hot foot probably wouldn't have helped.

[dgoss76]

I don't care for the hot foot when dealing with choppy water. Always back and forth speeds and I know that can't be good on the motor. I now have they traditional throttle and it seems better to me. I can also see where the hot foot can be safer though. Decisions, Decisions.

[Mike Cork]

I've run a hot foot for years. I guess I've gotten used to it. I don't have issues in rough water at all. In fact the only time it's an issue for me is when in long 5 mph zones. Sometimes I might have to idle a half a mile and it would be nice to stand up or retie a bait. Idle is 1 mph and in order to move through a zone quicker (still legal) you have to be behind the seat and give it a little gas.

In the heart attack case, unless he had a seizure with the heart attack a foot throttle would have certainly saved him from additional injury. Same goes for being ejected. However if you're wearing a kill switch being ejected is not a factor either way.

To me being able to keep both hands on the steering wheel is very important. Some will argue that at 70 + MPH things happen quickly, I argue that at 40 + MPH on the water thing happen quickly. Having two hands on the wheel and still have control of the throttle is helpful.

Long story short, I fish a lot of lakes with channel markers made from telephone poles sunk in the lake bottom. Because of an over anxious driver's wake, I was forced into the path of one channel markers. With both hands on the wheel I was able to decelerate and spin the nose of the boat over then accelerate and swing the back end of the boat to miss the pole. With a hand throttle this would not have happened.

If you fish a lot of wide open water with little to no cornering a foot throttle may not be a useful tool. For me when every trip on the lakes is like and Indy car track with a lot of turning like a following a river down a mountain, the foot throttle is the only way to go. This is just a matter of fact because we have very shallow lakes and you have to run the channels

All that said, a foot throttle is only half useful if you do not also have blinker style trim. If you have a hot foot but still have to reach to the throttle to change trim, you've defeated your purpose.

[Pferox]

I've never had a hot foot, does it completely eliminate the throttle, or can you use it in situations where the need arises?

I don't think they work well with center console boats, many of those are stand up to drive rigs.

[Mike Cork]

Right now the standard hot foot eleminates the hand throttle. You still use the hand throttle for gear shifting.