poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

[Tacklewasher]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

oops!.

Went under the bridge last night. First thing I saw was 2 other boats going under ignoring the posted speed limit (8 km/h). Big Larson (I think) going through on plane and a jet flea. Then came back under the shallow end. As soon as I was through, a ******* on a jet flea following us decided to gun it and soaked all 4 of us.

The rules are already there. The regulations as they exist are adequate. We need more enforcement. If you want to waste your breath talking to Cannan of Day, talk about the need for more enforcement.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

the rules are there. the idiots don't know what they are, and the only way they are going to learn them, is to force them.

when the car was invented there were not road rules or laws, licenses, tags. there got to be so many cars, accidents, deaths, they had to make the rules.

now the boats are getting into congested areas, the operators do no the rules.

 

[CATransplant]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

My Minnesota Driver's Licence has an endorsement for motorcyles. I had the same in California. Minnesota required me to take a 100 question test to transfer the endorsement.

Instead of a separate boating license, how about an endorsement on your driver's licence. To get it, you take a written test at the licensing agency, just like the test for the motorcycle endorsement.

That sounds workable. No test required until it's time to renew your current licence or if you're a new licensee. After four years or whatever the licence renewal interval is, everyone who boats has to have the boating endorsement.

Study the little booklet, take the test and you're done. Minnesota already has a boater's guide booklet that's free for the asking.

 

[ebry710]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

Politicians make laws. Law Enforcement enforce laws. In order to have both you need bureaucracy.
As most iboats people know, there is a large amount of smarts and time to keep up with and operate a boat. It is almost survival of the fittest or most financially committed.
My insurance company gives a discount if you take a basic boating class. California has a great program for boating safety which will lead to a boating certificate. All voluntary. At this time I think that is all one can do.
I have a boat to get away from bureaucracy, not to be forced into it.

 

[SS MAYFLOAT]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

I would agree to a mandatory license and proof of insurance just like a land based vehicle ONLY IF:

The money that was spent on the license went to fund more officers for the enforcement of the laws/rules that already exist.

Most inland lakes that I have visited in the past 30 years usually posts the ins and outs of the lake. Such as the ski zones, no wake zones, danger zones, and the required traffic pattern.

In Ohio, get caught DUI in a boat and you lose your operators license for your car. But it won't keep you off the water.........Sometimes things doesn't make very much sense.

 

[Firestar]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

There are enough laws and regulations on the books.
Enforce what is already there.
There is a minority of dangerous operators. The few should not ruin it for the many.
If and when you see someone blatantly disregarding boating safety, write down their registration number. Report them.
The enforcement agencies have enough power.

 

[TerryMSU]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

Not as an endorsement on my drivers license. No comparison between the two. I can drive a boat without getting a drivers license. Also, not at a national level. What Tashasdaddy in Florida needs to know is not at all what I need here in Michigan on the Grand River vs. on Lake Michigan (except at a very basic level.) For example, I do not need to know about damage to the reef or manatee that he should know.

Terry MSU

 

[bhammer]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

Well, here in the states, getting a license isn't that hard when compared to toher countries. Have to remember tht we Americans are "entitled" to a license. Even harder is to get one revoked and there are generally no retesting required to keep it.

I voted for Yes and As hard as a license but I have mixed feelings. I don't like government telling me what I can and can't do, to an extent and then charge me be big bucks just to alow me to do it or tax me. I am in the fan of trying to make the waterways safer but using as little government interaction as possible.

 

[MikDee]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

IMO, When you get a boat, jetski, or water vehicle,,, private, or from a dealer, everyone who is going to operate that watercraft, should be required to take a mandatory boating safety course online within 10days after registration, that expires on reregistration, requiring a renewal of the safety course & certificate at that time as well, (whenever that maybe in your state?), or when replacing it with a new, or used watercraft (Or if watercraft reregistration in your state is 2, or 3yrs, then that's as long as your original safety certificate should last, before requiring a refresher course).

1) This should provide manditory education for every operator.

2) This should provide a good refresher course, and also the most up to date, manditory education for every operator.

To me, this is the most effective, non-invasive way to get the message across to every new boater.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

first driving is a priviledge, not a right. my point on requirements before registration is to require them to get the basic knowledge of how to operate at boat. there are 4 or 5 post on the forum, about people who bought a boat, and no nothing about it or boating. they are a danger to themselves and to others. you can buy a boat, register it, and amazingly get into the water, finally figure out how to start it, and they are off. have no idea how to dock, and that boats do not have brakes. or how to get on the trailer. what side do you meet another boat, who has right of way. etc.

 

[oops!]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

there has been some fantastic comments so far. please ...keep it coming.

While it may be possible to come up with a set of basic "lake boating rules" it would be very tough to come up with a "comprehensive" set of rules. Certain operation may be appropriate for a large lake for example, but may be very inappropriate for a small lake. A wide, round lake may have features that enable certain activities that a long narrow lake does not an vice versa.

while thinking on basic rules for lakes.......this point has become a major headache.

Ayuh,.....

There's already Plenty of Rules,+ Laws......

It's a nearly total lack of Education,+ Enforcement is the Problem,....

Besides,.....
Even if they make being Stupid Illegal,..... Stupidity will Still be Prevalent......

education is 99% of it. and common courtesy.

our current boating licence is a joke.....i think we need to have a good edcutaional course on safety, including training before we take a test that is worthy of studing for.......

then.....at least the person is educated and will basically follow his or her training.....enforcement would not be as nessary in minor waterways, just the heavily congested ones.

btw....the pick td posted reminded me of the july 1st fireworks......i saw guys at full plane crusing thru an area that congested.

oops!.

Went under the bridge last night. First thing I saw was 2 other boats going under ignoring the posted speed limit (8 km/h). Big Larson (I think) going through on plane and a jet flea. Then came back under the shallow end. As soon as I was through, a ******* on a jet flea following us decided to gun it and soaked all 4 of us.

4 days ago i saw some very near misses at high speed going under the bridge.(shallow end)......it was so high spped there would have been fatatalities. i couldnt beleive it.......that was what got me thinking of a "hard to get" boating licence.

Most inland lakes that I have visited in the past 30 years usually posts the ins and outs of the lake. Such as the ski zones, no wake zones, danger zones, and the required traffic pattern.

we dont have any of these basic zones in canada......none.....not on any of the many lakes ive been on.....this is what im getting at by a basic set of rules...

unless it is a posted or marked area...it is perfectially leagal to blast past a croweded beach or boat launch at over 100 mph !

I voted for Yes and As hard as a license but I have mixed feelings. I don't like government telling me what I can and can't do, to an extent and then charge me be big bucks just to alow me to do it or tax me. I am in the fan of trying to make the waterways safer but using as little government interaction as possible.

i totallay agree....i hate the feds or law telling me how to enjoy my free time.
but the chances of getting killed or our kids getting killed are increasing.

as stated above....if boaters are forced into education.....(by a really tough, study hard boating licence and classrom education time......enforcement would only have to be done on heavy traffic areas.....

cheers guys
oops

 

[marine4003]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

Some are all assuming the government can offer courses and that will "fix" the problem of ignorant boaters,LOL...when has the govt. ever fixed anything ?all it does is cost me more,more paperwork...more stupid laws...more of my time and guess what...there's still going to be ignorant people on the water, look at drivers on the road...the people who want to learn,learn. The same people who drive like selfish idiots,are the people who..mandatory course or not, will still operate a boat in the same manner they drive,and we dont need the Govt. in our hair anymore than they already are, further screwing things up.

 

[Uraijit]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

I say Uncle Sam already has his fingers in enough pies. They charged me $150 for registration on a 27 year old boat... Then I had to pay another $75 for a pass to be able to use "publicly owned lakes". If that's not enough to fund their enforcement of the laws that already exist, then too damn bad!

I'm not paying more fees, or wasting any more of my time, just because some idiots don't have any common sense. The folks with common sense already know what they need to know. The ones without, aren't going to learn, and aren't going to use what little they might have learned anyway.

Government is NOT the answer. Never was...

 

[SnappingTurtle]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

Some are all assuming the government can offer courses and that will "fix" the problem of ignorant boaters,LOL...when has the govt. ever fixed anything ?all it does is cost me more,more paperwork...more stupid laws...more of my time and guess what...there's still going to be ignorant people on the water, look at drivers on the road...the people who want to learn,learn. The same people who drive like selfish idiots,are the people who..mandatory course or not, will still operate a boat in the same manner they drive,and we dont need the Govt. in our hair anymore than they already are, further screwing things up.

Thank You!

In many of the post, driving a boat was compared to driving a car, and a license is required for the last, so why not the first. Hum?

Will it be any safer on the water if we put more laws on the books and more restrictions in the hands of government bureaucrats? Hum?

Does driving among licensed drivers give me any feeling of safety when I am on the road in America? NO!

Do I fill like I am surrounded by experienced professionals when driving the streets of America? NO!

Do I see idiots on the road on a daily basis? YES!

Do these people for the most part have a license? YES!

Want a small taste of what you are asking for, move to Germany for a few years. You need a separate boating license for ever boat type, and for ever type of water. You must go to a State approved school for several months, and then take a written & a practical test for each one. You also pay out the *** for each step.

Who gets the money for all this? No one knows, it doesn't go back to the place where it is collected, the boating sector. It just sort of disappears into the system.

I have said it before, in Germany there are now three government employees, regulating the boating sport, for every single boater left boating in the country.

In Germany drink a couple of beers, take your bike instead of your car and get stopped. They “do” control, and you “will” lose all your drivers licenses, and that includes your boating license.

Do Germans drink & drive less than in the States because of this? Are you kidding!

Are they better boaters? Uh, NO!

Out of the half a dozen fatal accidents in the States, in which I have personally lost a friend, or loved one, none of them were at fault, and all the other drivers, had guess what, a driving license.

If you are just trying to remove all but the rich from “your” water, it is a really good way. If you think you will be safe from idiots, guess again. I saw several dozen idiots today on the river here. All had a boats license.

You can't regulate competence, or intelligence.

Be careful what you ask for, you just might get it. Bigger and bigger government!

 

[mainexile]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

Here in NH, you must take an online course or attend a day-long class AND pass a written exam to receive a USCG-approved certificate. That being said, the requirement only serves to make the conscientious and considerate operators better boaters. And as we all know, there are more than enough idiots out there to ruin anybody's excursion. So how do you prevent the untrained, inconsiderate #$%^ from turning your lake outing into a disaster? You start by having adequate enforcement of boating laws, regulations and customs as well as impromptu inspections to get rid of the "culls".

 

[204 Escape]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

When we bought our last 2 boats, the dealer took us out, and put us through the paces. How to back up, unload, use the blower for the engine, how to use the bilge pump, how to tie the ropes to the dock, how to attatch the ski rope to the tow ring, and the tube ropes to the same, how to install the plug, how to properly install the tie downs.

THEN, they showed us the various bouys on the lake, and told us what they meant.

And finally, they make YOU put the boat on the trailer.

I personally think it's a good thing.

I have actually seen the dealer give instructions/information to jet flea purchasers.

THAT IS MY BIGGEST GRIPE !!!!!!!!! Jet fleas that have no respect for anyone !!!!!!!!!

Last fall, a guy was pulling a single man tube, and cutting across in front of everyone on the lake that he could.

I personally stopped and told him how it was supposed to be done, and when he got crappy about it I took down is #'s and turned him in. The water patrol ask him to leave !!!!!!!!!

He was mad, I didn't have to worry about running over his passenger for the rest of the day !!!!!!!

(Sorry for the long post).

 

[Big Sarge]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

ya know I think that you should have to take a test and have a GED before you are allowed to purchase a boat. I think it would be somewhat more helpful.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

well there are many good boaters with out a high school diploma.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

So how do you prevent the untrained, inconsiderate #$%^ from turning your lake outing into a disaster? by requiring a certificate before the boat can be registered, and increasing the penalties. no registration no boat in the water.

 

[Tacklewasher]

Re: poll ....all regular i boaters please check in !

we dont have any of these basic zones in canada......none.....not on any of the many lakes ive been on.....this is what im getting at by a basic set of rules...

unless it is a posted or marked area...it is perfectially leagal to blast past a croweded beach or boat launch at over 100 mph !

Sorry oops!. But you are wrong here.

Look on page 58 and 59 of http://www.fedpubs.com/subject/boat/safe_boating_guide.pdf

10 km/h speed restriction on boats within 30m of shore in every province from Ontario to BC (inland waters only). There is an exception for pulling water skiers. The limit is not posted.

Again. The rules are there. The enforcement isn't.