NW_Jim

So sad

I hate regulations but by the very nature of these vessels, a safety course of some kind should be mandatory. These things are too affordable to the masses. And the majority of the masses know nothing about the rules of the road on the water. I equate some of the stupidity I've seen to having a dirtbike riding on the shoulder of the freeway going about 50mph thinking he has to be going faster than anyone else, couldn't be any car or truck that could go faster, so he takes a hard left into 65 or 75 mph traffic. If they would only think about it that way they might stay alive longer. The actions taken by most people and these "Toys" should be limited to closed course areas, not main vessel traffic areas.

It's too late for these two young girls. Very sad.....

WARPAINT

so,so sad.i hate to hear things like this!

vagrant

We were there that weekend to ,we spoke with the water patrol policeman that actually had to go tell the parents .He said that was one of the toughest things he has ever done.God be with the parents of the girls.
David

sean stinson

This may not be a time to mention this and all my respects go out to the families of all involved....but isn't it about time that we put some required boating safety courses in place along with certain licensing requirements????? As I said no disrespect intended to the families grieving over their losses......Sean

Vyper340

Sad to hear. In my humble opinion, that's why those water nats have to be regulated better. They are just another boat and people think they can just jump on and go without any real training or understanding of the rules on the road and water. Perhaps these types of incidents will wake up those wo use them before the insurance companies start to make it cost prohibitive for us all to enjoy watersports! USCG should require training for all just like a license is required for driving a car. I know that would be a pain in the ass but it could help save lives!

Griff

Foul, we never went back to Shooters at all, so sorry we didn't get any T's.

ragtop409

Not that it mater becase I will never have them but my insurace company WILL NOT rite a police for them. But it is sad how many will die or be seriusly hur before something that is not over kill is done? Charlie

27mmLoto

I am on both ends of this discussion. I have a 43' boat and have had to make many emergency moves to avoid collisions with PWC's usually when they make a sudden stop in the main channel or turn without warning. It is not always PWC's either I have seen some boats do the same dumb things, but boats usually keep more distance between themselves and others.
I also have SeaDoos and enjoy them very much. Since I have been riding motorcycles on the street for 32 years I tend to look at everything as a potential danger and this mild paranoia has kept me alive.
I have also seen people pulling tubes down the main channel on the busiest weekends and wondered if there was any way the tow boats could protect them if they fall off. I dont think that a head bobbing in the water is going to show up well enough to avoid getting hit by a large boat.
As our waterways become more crowded education and licensing will happen it is just a matter of how and when. Unfortunately this will cost us some money and time but there really is no other way to insure that people know things that some of us consider common sense.
Will accidents still happen? You bet. Will people still do things that put them in harms way? No doubt. Will education and licensing help? We wont know untill we try but it will never replace a healthy dose of paranoia.
Steve

LutzParty

Any time a life is lost in a senseless accident it is tragic. My heart goes out to the families of the 2 women.

Perhaps our Missouri legislators will stop worrying about Party Cove and start focusing their attention to other more pertinant issues around the lake.

Education and licensing to be able to drive a boat or pwc
Perhaps there could be a water / boaters safety and operation class that is required to have a license to operate any watercraft with a motor. Raise the age to operate watercraft to 16 just like automobiles.

Business's who rent pwc's need to be licensed and regulated, most of the places that rent them have kids handling it. These business's need to be responsible to make sure that whoever they are renting these to KNOW the rules of the lake ie: who has the right of way, distances from docks, boats etc. And to pay attention and realize they are one of the smallest and most powerful (hp to size and weight ratio) on the lake.

Todays pwc are so fast and powerful and can turn on a dime, We Parents need to think again about handing the keys over to our kids and sending them out on the lake without first educating them on how to operate them safely and respect other boaters.

No wake bouys also need to be addressed. It seems to me that as the pwc population has exploded so has the no wake bouy sales. I read about people complaining about the Big boats tearing up their docks and this is true in some cases however when you get a dozen or more pwc in a cove (which is pretty common) they can churn that water much worse than a 42' boat going in a straight line.

Just my .02 you may agree or disagree. But our legislators need to look into making our lakes safer

LutzParty

We were out to see the fireworks at 4 seasons on Sunday night and when they were over .................It was like a mad house. Idiot and irresponsible boaters laying into the throttle to head out.

A relaxing evening of watching fireworks with our neighbors from our boat became a nerve wracking event.

I have been driving boats on LOTO for 30 years and as the lake population and watercraft population grows the respect for other boaters and safety has diminished greatly.

Lets not ruin our waterways lets improve them by educating boaters.

again my .02