🔍 Key Concepts

• Towing bridle geometry and how angle between legs affects load on each leg • Basic vector resolution of forces – how a single towing force splits into two components • Difference between total towing load and load on each bridle leg

💭 Think About

• If the towline is pulling with a certain total force, how is that force shared between the two bridle legs as the angle between them changes? • Think about the extreme cases: what happens to the load on each leg if the legs are almost in line with each other versus spread very wide apart? • How does increasing or decreasing the angle affect the horizontal components of tension in each bridle leg?

✅ Before You Answer

• Visualize or sketch the force triangle for the towing force and the two bridle leg tensions • Compare the angle between bridle legs in each option and relate it to how much each leg must pull to balance the tow load • Confirm which configuration would result in the smallest tension in each individual leg, not the smallest total towing force