Re: Holy mother of god
There needs to be a law that forbids a jetski from getting within say 250 feet or more of a full size boat. The penalty needs to be something like three strikes and you forfeit your ski.
I can't count the number of times one of them has either almost gotten run over or was circling around the boat while you try to fish. I have a buddy that was with us fishing on day, (he was always one of those guys that should have had gills), while on the river, there was a pair of skis running circles around our boat, a few choice words did nothing. The next thing we see is an arm pop out of the water and remove the skier from the ski, that same buddy then proceeded to climb on the ski and head off with it. He had slipped into the water and out beneath where the skis were circling and just waited for one to pass by. The skier was left swimming for the mud flats. The other skier ran off. We just left. After his having intentionally annoy us for nearly an hour, there was no sympathy left. We never bothered to find out what he did with the commandeered ski, but I doubt is was much good after he got done with it.
The skier probably and should have at least spent the night on the marsh, we didn't much care since he ruined our fishing and had followed us to several spots that day.
We were out another time and had the same thing happen, one guy laced up about a dozen treble hooks and a lead weight and proceeded to snag cast for a jet ski, it took the rider all of about one cast and part of his seat to realize that he had started something we were about to finish.
As far as wake jumpers that follow too close, we usually dump the chum bucket high in the wind, if that don't work a quick bail out of the throttle usually sobers them up pretty quick.
I have no patience or sympathy for anyone that can't respect another's right to be out there. There's plenty of places to ride those things and no reason to intentionally harass another boater. I've considered the flare gun trick, but never considered them worth the cost of the flare.
I did watch someone fire one into a balcony from which a bunch of drunks tossing paint filled balloons onto passing boaters during a late night boat parade years back one holiday weekend. It ended that problem in a hurry, and not a single person would dime out which boat it came from. The flare missed hitting any persons, but did blast right through the balcony door into the building. Two of the idiots jumped into the water, we just figured that the others were too drunk to react. I think the flare hit a barbecue grill or something, it made an awful noise when it landed up about three floors or so. It sounded like it hit metal and we could see the flare burning but couldn't see where it actually landed. All we knew was that they were too occupied with putting out the fire to continue tossing paint on the passing boaters.
Another incident that comes to mind was at a ramp in PA, I wasn't boating that day, but was nearby just watching the mayhem unfold one July 4th. I watched at three boats simultaneously aimed in reverse for the same two car ramp. There was a dock off to the right. The two to the left were alright, but number three didn't want to wait. He, with a jet ski on a trailer and a small front drive sports car decided that there was either enough room to the right of the middle boater and his truck and trailer, or he figured that the floating dock would work just fine. He proceeded to run as fast as he could backwards running the left wheel of his trailer onto the dock and out about 50 feet or so until the weight of the car on the dock tipped the whole trailer and ski sideways into the drink. The car was stuck, swamped with water, the ski popped up off the trailer and out from under the boat that was next to it. The idiot then began kicking the boat that his ski had hit and screaming at the guy who owned it as if it were his fault. That only resulted in what most likely was a visit to the hospital for the ski owner as the 300lb man with the boat slammed his fist into the skier about 5 or 6 times and proceeded to launch his boat and leave. I never heard if anything else ever came of it, but the idiot got what was coming to him. They towed the car, trailer and ski away and took him away in an ambulance. I really don't blame the boater one bit, and I don't think they made much of an effort to find him. I would have worried that someone would take revenge on my truck after I left, but I think he was pretty confident that he wasn't going to be able to.
Sorry in advance if I hurt the "legislator's" feelings. 
