Abstract: A system for starting from a dead start position may comprise a towrope winch, and a computing device configured to send and receive data to and from the towrope winch, in which the computing device is configured to operate the towrope winch and watercraft based on data inputted by the user to the computing device. A computer program product for operating a towrope winch from a dead start position may comprise a computer usable medium having computer usable program code embodied therewith, the computer usable program code comprising computer usable program code configured to prompt a user to enter data regarding the operation of the towrope winch from a dead start, and computer usable program code configured to operate the towrope winch based on data inputted by the user.