Re: Speed Limt Law on Winnipesaukee!!!
 

When it comes down to Speed is not the real problem. The accident that is spearheading this hole thing, has nothing to do with speed. A rich spoiled guy that has no respect for maritime rules, or for anyone else but himself is the cause. He had just come through the canal and dropped the bow on the transom of the other boat when he was planning out. Then left the seen and tried to cover it all up. That's got nothing to do with speed, if the limit was 45mph it still would of happened....( besides the Broads are big enough to rip along at high speeds)....

Re: Speed Limt Law on Winnipesaukee!!!
 

Sorry man I missed that this was a quote from another board.



Jon

Re: Speed Limt Law on Winnipesaukee!!!
 

If you organize and act responibly, unreal things CAN happen. Case in point.

I live in Nokomis, FL on the EAST side of US 41. I live in a small neighborhood on a penninsula where all the homes are on a canal. Some are on Dona Bay. There are approximately 250 homes that are east of 41 that are on the water. There is plenty of water here and five minutes from the Intracoastal on the WEST side of US 41. The problem was the bridge. They had less than 6 ft. clearance at high tide and only about 11 ft. wide. FDOT scheduled them to be replaced as part of a larger "revitalation plan". FDOT along with the support of the Sarasota County Commissioners, possibly the most inane local govt. body in existance, decided with basically no public input, and by falsifying info to the USCG, decided to rebuild the new bridge with the same basic demensions. We formed "RaisetheBridge" and petitioned the Coast Guard to revaluate the info submitted for the permit. We asked that the bridge be raised to accomodate emergency vessels if needed because of an accident for safety reasons. :rolleyes:. A 20 ft. bassboat with a T Top couldn't make it under the bridge. So we were extremely limited to what boats would make it under the bridge, mine could with about two inches clearance.
The media was against us, the FDOT was against us, the Sarasota County Commissioners chastised us, The Sarasota Herald "Fishwrapper" just crucified us in their editorials, the Venice Chamber of Commerce bemoaned us, the Nokomis Civic Area Association was against us, EVERYBODY was against us. BUT, the USCG came up here and spent three days videotaping our entire area and came back and made the decision that the small bridge "did not meet the reasonable requirements of present day boating for the area". The FDOT submitted info that made the area appear like a trickle creek with five houses on it. The Coast Guard (who has final authority over the decision on whether to sign off on the permit or not) just slammed the door shut on FDOT and all the others. When all the smoke cleared we are getting 12 ft. clearance bridges with a horizontal clearance of 80 ft. It took us a year of fighting them, we funded the fight ourselves with about 12 "core members" and WE WON....

And what was even MORE amazing was how fast some of the "naysayers" jumped on the bandwagon after the decision was made by the Coast Guard. The Sarasota County Commissioners are PISSED that they didn't get their way. So when the new bridge is completed at the "grand opening" ceremony, three of us who were the most vocal are going to go under the bridge in our boats and unfurl a big flag and wave it, along with signs that will state:

Raise the Bridge: 1
Sarasota County Commissoners: 0

I posted all this that if you do it smart and have patience and most of all dedication and perserverence, sometimes, just sometimes, "you can fight city hall".

Good Luck guys and all of us should post on that poll.

Re: Speed Limt Law on Winnipesaukee!!!
 

Here ya go ..This Guy Merrill Fay owns the largest , dirtiest marina ont the lake oh ya its blowboat heaven ..Theres maybe one go fast in the place .. Here he is presenting his enviromental concerns when he is the Biggist contributor ..I will take some pics of this DUMP later today so you all can see what Im getting at .. Hes the one that brought up the idea of the speed limit ..Hes a big fan of sailboating and earlier this summer spoke out about his sailboat people complaining about all the fast speedboats ..Im also going to include the accident totals ..

http://www.uscgboating.org/statistic...dent_stats.htm

Taking the initiative: Marina pushes for cleaner lake
By RICH BERGERON

Staff Writer

GILFORD — Merrill Fay, owner of Fay’s Boat Yard on Varney Point Road, is pushing for more responsible use of Lake Winnipesaukee and is calling attention to the need to keep non-point pollution out of its waters.

Fay described the problem of pollution leaking into the lake and blamed improper draining setups at other marinas in town. He pointed to what he is doing at his own boat yard, noting that he is installing some filtering equipment ahead of the requirements he anticipates coming from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the next few years.

Some pollutants have nothing to do with local businesses, he noted. Poorly designed septic systems are the biggest threat to the lake, he said, adding that the older outboard motors on some boats can produce excessive spilling of chemicals into the lake. As a result, he said, the yearly schedule of bass fishing events on the lake in the summer can have a tremendous effect on water quality.

Fay took issue with a $500 donation from a bass fishing group which the town accepted at a meeting of the Board of Selectmen last year. He said the newer bass fishing boats are fine, but he maintains that the older models are a detriment to Gilford Beach when the fishermen hover just offshore with smoke pouring from their outboards and fuel dripping out into the water and drifting up on the beach.

"I don’t think they’re good for the lake," he said about the flurry of tournaments that take place throughout the summer. He also noted that Bass taken in the tournaments often are brought back to the weigh-in station and are released from there. The move prevents them from making it back to their original habitat, he said.

He also recommended that a few portable toilets be placed at Gilford Beach for the winter season so ice anglers do not use the lake as a toilet. "It wouldn’t be that much of an expense," he said. "Meredith has one."

As for his own boat yard, Fay said his current design includes plenty of sand for drainage and a land pitch that directs water to a central drain where it is filtered.

He said he attended a meeting last February with EPA officials who informed him that the agency will design a system for how holding areas are constructed for boat washing. He noted that the agency will require that boat yards "build to their specifications."

Despite the fact that the EPA has not yet mandated any changes, Fay has installed two cement cylinders for drainage. The catch basins are designed to hold and then filter the water completely before it gets back into the lake. He said his is the only marina on the lake to implement the system and has one more basin slated to go in before next summer’s boating season.

He noted that the EPA is going to marinas all around the country to promote the kind of change he already has made. He spoke of a special "clean marinas" award and said no yard on the lake could get that award.

Dean Mason of Mason Marine Construction will install the other basin for Fay. Mason pointed to Shep Brown’s Boat Basin in Meredith as another responsible example to follow. There, the place where boats are maintained is far from the water and features a huge pad of stone and sand. The stone is replaced every two years or so, he said. He reported that he also will install three drains like Fay’s at Shep’s this summer.

"Everyone benefits from preventing pollutants from going in the lake," said Mason. "It’s nice Merrill is going after it voluntarily."

Fay also is concerned about boats used on the lake that are not designed for use in any lake in the state. Boats which discharge waste water into the lake cannot legally be launched but he pointed to manufacturers skirting the rules and selling ill-equipped boats for use on lakes.

"The boats should comply before they get to the dealer," he said.

He also called attention to the "one inspector for the whole lake" who checks boats in slips and said he would not mind water testing right at his docks, as that kind of testing should be done regularly all across the lake.

"If they come around, they might be afraid we’ll kick them out, but it’s to our advantage," he said. "We’d like to know what’s going on, too."

Fay has called for a speed limit on the lake. He said it is going to take a "real bad accident" for people to realize the necessity for speed control on the waters. He said Lake George in New York has one.

He also suggested that a horsepower limit might be a good idea. He pointed to "cigarette boats" as the main offender and said, "there aren’t many marinas who sell these boats."

Dr. James Pilliod, a state representative, asked Fay’s help with a bill currently in the legislature to set a speed limit on the lake. Pilliod said he spoke to Fay at a Lakes Region Association meeting in The Weirs. He said that Fay approached him to tell him, "Boy, we really ought to get a speed limit, and would you do something, so I put it in."

Pilliod said the call for the change also emanated from a death caused by a cigarette boat on the lake. "There are noise concerns, and the speeds represent a danger to other smaller craft trying to enjoy the lake," said Pilliod.

He also noted, "I don’t think it has a whole lot of support, especially from boaters. They want as much power as they can get out of their wallets."

Still, he said, he appreciates Fay’s concerns, and reported, "We’ve had near misses a lot, and I know the annoyance and noise is horrendous when those boats get wound up in the Broads."

Although the bill may not pass, Pilliod said he remains committed to the effort and remarked, "Why do we need something that fast, and why not enjoy the lake instead of ripping over it?"

p p p

Rich Bergeron can be reached by calling 524-3800 ext. 5932 or by e-mail at [email protected]

Re: Speed Limt Law on Winnipesaukee!!!
 

This may not be far fetched... it has happened on Lake Lanier I think?... A group of powerboaters... yes from Sea Rays to Fountains to Cigs to Ski Boats hired an attorney to represent them in the fight against the speed control proposals. I am not sure of the lake it was done but it worked ... I am trying to dig up the article... maybe someone knows more details on the board.....

Re: Speed Limt Law on Winnipesaukee!!!
 

When is the next hearing for the proposed speed limit?

Re: Speed Limt Law on Winnipesaukee!!!
 

Wednesday, January 19, 2004 at 11:00 am in Room 305 of the Legislative Office Building in Concord.

This is not the first attempt, it has happened in different committees at least twice in past several years.

Re: Speed Limt Law on Winnipesaukee!!!
 

Pantera Awsome info. Showes fatalities going down and boats registered going up. Not what I would have expected to see. I would certainly bring that info with you as it CLEARLY shows that boating has become safer. The only thing that I did not see on a very quick go over was non fatal accidents and accidents involving speed. Wish I could cut and paste parts of it hear for some odd reason it was not letting me. I will work on trying to pull that info out later.

Jon

Re: Speed Limt Law on Winnipesaukee!!!
 

Good luck guys....

Just received notification that my "registration" has been "validated" on the main Winnipesaukee.com website. Going to respectfully add my two cents and vote on their poll.

Re: Speed Limt Law on Winnipesaukee!!!
 

I am still dumbfounded that they can have a meeting like this in the middle of the day. Seems unfair. If they post another please let us know and perhaps DoTheMath and I will head up from Bahston. HOME OF THE WORD CHAMPION RED SOX AN D PATRIOTS :D:D

Jon