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jaclasch
Navigator

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USA
104 Posts

Initially Posted - 07/08/2006 :  21:20:14  Show Profile
From the July 8 edition of The Spokesman Review in the “Huckleberries” column by D.F. Oliveria.

“Boat boors have worn out their welcome

‘Twas hard to say who was a bigger jerk at Cavanaugh Bay Resort Marina on Priest Lake during the Fourth of July weekend: the Big Boat Driver who cranked up his sound system when others at the dock complained about his engine noise or a Brother in Boorish Behavior who groused in the restaurant/bar about getting slapped with a noise citation. Both triggered a mild form of “lake rage,” a term coined by Berry Picker Findaddy/Spokane to describe “the boorish behavior of modifying one’s power boat so it makes the loudest possible sound come from the motor.” Among the printable things the crowd on the dock yelled at Captain Clueless was: “Shut that thing off” and “That boat is not welcome here.”

In the bar, Findaddy relates, the cuss-tomers applauded the ticket given to Captain Equally Clueless, prompting him to huff that they were jealous they don’t have the money to buy a big, loud boat and that he wouldn’t return to a lake where he and his boat weren’t wanted. The locals cheered the announcement, according to Findaddy, and said to the effect: “Spread the word the word that (Big Boat Drivers) are not welcome here.”

Or anywhere else on North Idaho lakes, for that matter.”



James
1983 FK/TR
Tiempo Dorado

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Lightnup
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1016 Posts

Response Posted - 07/09/2006 :  09:01:30  Show Profile
Personally, I like go-fasts and try to be out on the water when the poker runs take place 'cuz it's so awesome to see (and hear) all that power and spectacle of color. At least when they go by they produce much smaller wakes than the typical sport fish or Sea Ray and it doesn't take long for them to be out-of-sight. However, we're on the ICW at the Gulf of Mexico so there are plenty of places for them to go. If we were on an inland lake and they were constantly roaring back & forth, I'm sure I'd tire of the noise very quickly.

I went out the other day on a friend's 35-foot Fountain go-fast. 83 mph on the water is a real kick-in-the-pants. Would love to have one available to use but I wouldn't want to own one. He's got the ability to muffle his exhaust and does so when he comes into a marina or pulls up to a waterfront restaurant. Obviously, other boors don't.

Final thought: Given the choice, I'd ban Personal Watercraft a whole lot quicker than I would go-fast boats. The PWC annoyance factor is much higher, IMHO.

Steve

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existentialsailor
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1180 Posts

Response Posted - 07/09/2006 :  09:31:13  Show Profile
One of the contributing factors to my leaving Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire. I wanted to be on Casco Bay anyway, but might have given the lake another year if it weren't for the power boats and the fee increases.

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lcharlot
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Antigua and Barbuda
1301 Posts

Response Posted - 07/09/2006 :  19:28:11  Show Profile
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Lightnup</i>
<br />.. Would love to have one available to use but I wouldn't want to own one...
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

No kidding. I used to have a 17' tri-hull outboard runabout, with a 70 hp 2-stroke motor. The cost of ownership and operation, in particular the insurance premium and fuel it burned, was nearly $1000 a year. It had a twenty gallon fuel tank, and we would typically go through at least two tanks of gas in a full day. I would guess that to compare my small runabout to one of the big "go-fast" boats that Steve is talking about, you would multiply my $1000/year cost by at least four or five times, maybe even more now that gasoline costs three times as much as it did when I owned my runabout (20 years ago). That's way more than I can afford to spend on a non-essential househonld budget item. My Catalina 25 costs about $1200/year including the dry storage space, insurance, DMV fees, and personal property tax, and that's about as much as I can spare.

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">
.. I'd Ban Personal Watercraft a whole lot quicker than I would go-fast boats. The PWC annoyance factor is much higher, IMHO.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

PWC drivers just seem to be completely unaware of other boaters around them, even worse than powerboaters in general. On Folsom Lake, PWC's can often be seen roaring full-speed through the anchorage areas in both North and South Forks, which are clearly posted "5 mph No Wake" zones upstream of the 5mph buoy lines. And occasionally, PWC operators will pass so close to other, slower boats, that it takes my breath away. Isn't there a rule in the ABC's of boating safety that vessels underway should never pass within 50 yards, or 10 vessel lengths, unless the channel width is too narrow to allow for that much separation?. I've had jet skiers cross my bow, or pass alongside, no more than 20 feet away on a few occasions. That's too close for me to take any kind of evasive action if something goes wrong.

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djn
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1561 Posts

Response Posted - 07/09/2006 :  19:57:31  Show Profile
My slip neighbors are a young couple still in their internships at the local hospital. They are a 22' Donzi. It is a beautiful boat but I could tell they were getting bored with just motoring around the lake so I took them out sailing. I had them running the whole time and they loved it. I think I'll see them in a sailboat next year. They are already asking if I need a crew for the local races. Cheers.

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Tom Potter
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USA
1913 Posts

Response Posted - 07/09/2006 :  20:13:16  Show Profile
I think the gas prices are having a effect on the motor boaters. I was out on Lake Lanier(AKA "the blender") both Sat and Sun and I could not believe it was a weekend. There were just a few boats out, mostly sailboats. I didn't seen any of the GO FAST boats.

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ClamBeach
Master Marine Consultant

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3072 Posts

Response Posted - 07/09/2006 :  20:16:33  Show Profile
Powerful stereos and loud engines often amplify the idiocy of the owner.

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sailorman
1st Mate

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USA
69 Posts

Response Posted - 07/09/2006 :  22:49:14  Show Profile
I agree with Tom that there seems to be less power boat traffic on Lake Lanier. I see less sails on the lake also and it can be a result of higher gas prices too. For example: I live 55 miles fron my boat. When I bought the boat I upgraded my vehicle so I could tow. Bigger vehicle, bigger motor equals less gas milage. It now cost at least $20 just to run up and back to the lake each time. Now since I also need a vehicle to drive to work, this tow vehicle sucks my wallet dry on a daily basis. Most people do not live close to the lake, that is not where the jobs are. People cut back on driving and that includes driving to the lake- for all boaters.

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Dave Bristle
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
10005 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2006 :  11:15:52  Show Profile
Top Ten Requirements for having a Real Man's Boat:
1. Goatee
2. Pony-tail
3. Sleeveless t-shirt
4. Wrap-around mirror glasses
5. Tattoos from shoulders to hands
6. At least 20 lbs. excess beer gut
7. At least two lumpy blondes in bikinis, with shirts to cover some of the lumps
8. Black Dodge Ram Hemi Duely
9. Ex-wife
10. Subpoena for records showing where the money for the boat had been hidden during the divorce.

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Champipple
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
6855 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2006 :  11:23:05  Show Profile  Visit Champipple's Homepage
We call number 7 "Seat covers"

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Lightnup
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1016 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2006 :  14:46:21  Show Profile
#11 Gold chains

#12. At least one earring

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djn
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1561 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2006 :  14:50:58  Show Profile
I never thought about it, but looking at the list, I might be a powerboater. Cheers.

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dlucier
Master Marine Consultant

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Virgin Islands (United Kingdom)
7583 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2006 :  16:02:39  Show Profile
I couldn't be a powerboater...Too much talking about boating and not enough doing. At my marina, sailors get on their boats and go whereas powerboaters camp out all day under the umbrellas of the picnic tables and just talk about boating.

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djn
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1561 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2006 :  17:00:18  Show Profile
Hi Don, same at Markley, but you probably knew that. On a good day all the sailboats are out and the stink people are complaining about the price of gas. Cheers.

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Dave Bristle
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Djibouti
10005 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2006 :  20:03:20  Show Profile
"Real Man's Boat" is what I call the Cigarettes, Fountains, Donzis, Scarabs, and similar boats with a row of straight-pipes thru the transom. "Stinkpots" are what I call the floating family rooms with sliders to the aft-deck and widescreen TVs inside--often heard running their engines at the dock, but less often on the water. "Powerboats"... well, I have one--18' with a Honda 50, on a dock outside of my condo, and I love it! I patrol the Mystic River almost every evening--sometimes with guests, always with a beverage... I buzz over to Watch Hill, RI to meet friends who've anchored there... I run up the Thames River past the Groton sub base... It's my Harley, but a lot quieter--the water on the hull makes more noise than the engine at almost any speed.

Then there are the "Peenus Boats"--we have a migration of them going thru Mystic just about now--"Mine is bigger than yours!" They carry one or more "powerboats" on the third deck, or in the boathouse in the transom. The most absurd one I've seen had TWO helicopters on pads--port and starboard. Larry Ellison's 450-footer is probably a little too unwieldy to get up to the Mystic Seaport...

So, I'm a "powerboater" too, but not close to being a "Real Man."

Edited by - Dave Bristle on 07/10/2006 20:08:54
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djn
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1561 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2006 :  20:20:01  Show Profile
Hi Dave, I think all boats are cool. When I was 10 my grandfather sponsered Miss U of D (University of Detroit). It was a bull nose unlimited hydroplane with an Allison motor. This was before turbines showed up. We would hang out in the pit area all day. I could not even see over the sidewall when I sat in it. Cheers.

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Dave Bristle
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
10005 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2006 :  21:11:53  Show Profile
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by djn</i>
<br />Hi Dave, I think all boats are cool. When I was 10 my grandfather sponsered Miss U of D (University of Detroit). It was a bull nose unlimited hydroplane with an Allison motor. This was before turbines showed up. We would hang out in the pit area all day. I could not even see over the sidewall when I sat in it. Cheers.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
I watched the Allison aircraft-powered unlimited hydroplanes race on the Detroit River a few times... That noise is definitely allowed!

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jaclasch
Navigator

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USA
104 Posts

Response Posted - 07/11/2006 :  11:56:47  Show Profile
Throughout all of this discussion let's not forget a couple of things.

Maybe "all boats are cool," but are all boats appropriate for all environments? Of course not.

Whatever happened to the seemingly passe notion that one should always be considerate of others in any situation? The big-bucks oafs feel they are above any of this notion as well as above most laws.

I am happy to be in an area where folks are standing up to them.

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saribella
Captain

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USA
286 Posts

Response Posted - 07/18/2006 :  01:20:29  Show Profile
Not to be overly critical of PB'ers, but forgive me if I do. To some them up in a nutshell is that it does not take any kind of talent, skill, respect for the environment (audible & physical), respect for other boaters, or intimate knowledge of the water to own or operate a power boat. I, for one, could live without them as it would be a safer world for all. I hope gas hits $4.5o a gallon on the dock, then we might be seeing more sailors among us.

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indiejoe
Deckhand

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USA
23 Posts

Response Posted - 08/07/2006 :  21:28:58  Show Profile
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Maybe "all boats are cool," but are all boats appropriate for all environments? Of course not.

Whatever happened to the seemingly passe notion that one should always be considerate of others in any situation? The big-bucks oafs feel they are above any of this notion as well as above most laws.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

Boy was this ever illustrated this past weekend:

Me and a friend with a 40' house boat went to a yearly event on our lake called "Westerfest"...bands, kegs, food, tent camping, etc. The folks who put it on have a 1 acre waterfront lot, so parking is limited and arrival by boat is preferable. This event draws every kind of boat and lots of them. We arrived at around 1:30pm, my houseboat buddy set 2 anchors to minimize swinging in the crowded conditions and I rafted up to his boat. By 3pm, around 40-50 boats of varying size and type are all crowded around, with most people giving enough space around them to be considerate of others. Then, here he comes: 60 some odd feet of Hatteras yacht (complete with WaveRunner on the aft platform) shouldering his way in close and showing off the fact that his bow thrusters allowed him to do so. Apparently he was aquainted with a pair of Sea Rays in the 30-35' range, so he just rafted up to them (placing himself and his MASSIVE craft directly between us and the bandstand on shore). First, he ran off a raft of 3 little ski boats with his generator exhaust fumes. Later, apparently sensing that tying that monstrosity off to 2 (comparatively) little boats (with a pontoon boat rafted on the other side), he got on his jet ski with a friend and proceeded to haul his anchor out on about 120' of chain. Of course, the nearest boats (ours) are only about 40' away, and he traveled in about a half circle in order to let out that much scope, but that didn't seem to bother him. Nor did the fact that none of the boats in his "raft" had more than one anchor out. But, it's a dead calm day, everyone is trying to have fun, so we didn't make a fuss. Until he drifted forward and his generator fumes began collecting around <i>our</i> little boats. We complained and his "trophy" wife said she'd put on the anchor alarm so they wouldn't swing around.(???)
Well, as is often the case in this region, clouds began forming in the late afternoon heat and here comes the thunderstorm. Complete with heavy winds (30+ knots). Our 2 anchors did what they were supposed to do, we didn't swing, but the wind did push us out to the limit of the scope. But the anchors held and all was well. For a minute. As we're checking the perimeter, making sure we're still clear, to aft we notice this big Hatteras and his friends (who now have 3 WaveRunners and various floats tied to the aft ends of their boats) have swung around and are now bearing down us and screaming at us, "Your anchors are slipping! Your anchors are slipping!" "No, they are NOT! Yours are! We aren't moving!" So there we are, hanging off the back of the boats in a big blow trying to fend off tons and tons of overcompensation crashing into a couple of outdrives.
We managed to fend 'em off until they swung wide of us and watched as they swung into the next raft of properly anchored (right?) boats, yelling at us AND them the whole time. But at least we're safe now, right? Nope. While we've been repelling these bozos, another 35 feet of SeaRay has pulled it's lone anchor out of the weeds and is now approaching from the windward. With NOBODY ABOARD! As we're grabbing poles and anything else we can find to ward off this new threat, here comes the owner and a friend on jet ski to try and save his investment. They manage to get aboard, one of them helping to keep his boat off us and the other one goes inside to fire up the motor, which WON'T START! After about 3 minutes of frantic activity, the motor finally catches and they move off to a safe distance.
Finally, all the loose craft have now drifted off to the leeward and we ride the remainder of the blow out in relative safety. There was another few minutes of anxiety when the wind swung around as the storm passed and threatened to bring the Hatteras and friends back on to us, but by then, one of the SeaRays had disengaged and motored off, and they never swung back close enough for danger before the wind subsided. But the change in direction moved us just enough to foul the aft anchor in an outdrive so we had to cut it loose.
Then the 2nd storm hit, and now we are swinging, but the fore anchor held tight and we just pointed up and stuck. There was a few more minutes of puckering during the second storm, because by now, nobody trusted moneybags and his flotilla wouldn't come back on us again, and it got close again, with more yelling, but not close enough for it to come to blows.
After the second storm blew itself out, and we came up to survey the scene, all but 10-15 boats were gone. The skies cleared, the bands cranked back up, and dinner was prepared.
Fun, fun, fun!

The Hatteras Gang:

Edited by - indiejoe on 08/08/2006 11:58:16
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Derek Crawford
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3321 Posts

Response Posted - 08/08/2006 :  10:33:43  Show Profile
Me too, neither!
Derek

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indiejoe
Deckhand

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USA
23 Posts

Response Posted - 08/08/2006 :  10:38:08  Show Profile
I'm seeing it here.

???

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indiejoe
Deckhand

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USA
23 Posts

Response Posted - 08/08/2006 :  11:58:46  Show Profile
Should be visible now.

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delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

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USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 08/08/2006 :  13:27:51  Show Profile  Visit delliottg's Homepage
A few years back I made the mistake of taking my sailboat out onto Lake Washington in Seattle for Sea Fair. There were so many boats on the water vying for a "good" spot to watch the Blue Angels and the hyroplane races, you could nearly walk across the lake from deck to deck. I had rafted up with a friend's powerboat, and we were watching the spectacle, and participating in some of the friendly water games. The giant squirt guns and water balloons are fairly well accepted fun, and no one gets too excited about getting nailed by them occasionally, it's hot after all. Out in front of us was a 21' ski boat who were making pests of themeselves with a pump driven "gun", and a three man sling shot for heaving giant water balloons at people. Anyone within about 30-40 yards of them was fair game, and they never let up. A couple of older gentlemen cruising by in an older speed boat really got hammered by them. They took it pretty good naturedly, and stopped to back down on these guys to exchange some friendly banter with them. What the pests in the first boat didn't notice was the the old guys were trimming their I/O up the whole time they were backing down on them. When they got about ten feet away, the guy driving the boat did a hole shot, sending a one foot diameter or so column of water into the pest's boat, nearly swamping them. This got a roar of approval from the entire fleet surrounding these guys, and little sympathy for their whining about not playing fair. I wish I'd have had my camera with me when it happened, it was a classic shot.

Age and experience over youth and exuberance wins nearly every time.

David

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Russ.Johnson
Commodore

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USA
855 Posts

Response Posted - 08/09/2006 :  11:39:42  Show Profile
David,
Since you brought up Seattle's Sea Fair.
This year 100 boaters were arrested at the event.
[url="http://www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20060708152054ibinews.html"]Here's an article[/url]
Russ

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