I agree with you 100%. I only recommend the 2nd gear thing to make it stupid proof. As long as the wheels are spinning and in the box, everything is fine. You can tell people that until you are blue in the face and they will not listen.
Good point about 2nd gear deal Rusty rat. Most people see guys burning out of the water which is fine with a glide' so they think this is the way to do it.
It's a simple habit to get into, just burn out in the water till you feel starting to hook, let the RPM's drop, then drive out.Our track sucked (black top starting line), so I did a small easy dry hop to make sure it was going to hook making sure the tires were not still wet (we had bad water box control also). I hated doing that, because it was a nother hit on the diff.But it all worked for me.