Thread: Boating rules

Originally Posted by bob10

Take a boat on the water as skipper you are responsible for the safety of all those with you. In a nutshell. If anything, I tend to probably over do it. When you get into trouble on the water you not only put you and the lives of those with you at risk, but the lives of those coming to your assistance. [ considering that circumstances often dictate such a situation ]. Cowboys like the ones in the news here are not only a danger to themselves.

I agree Bob but note the Navy had cowboys and incompetence or arrogance in some cases so I am not tossing stones at the odd quirky gent in South Oz myself. The Fines are fine of course. Hanging for this one would be overkill

Whether it was arrogance, stupidity or "mind your own business", what they failed to realise is that other people had to put their lives at risk, or put on hold, to go and look for them. And that is just is just the volunteers. The cost to the tax payer has not been published, but it would probably run into several hundred thousand dollars.

Many years ago the sea rescue group that I was involved with installed a small "letter box" and a stack of cards that boat owners could fill in with details of where roughly they were going, how many POB, and approximate ETA of return , etc. The box was right at the only boat ramp in town, and as normally a trailer would be involved, it was a simple matter at the end of the day for somebody to go and clear the box and check the cards against any trailers still at the ramp. Members of the group were rostered to go and clear the box, at their own cost and time, and there were always some boat owners that knew better and would not fill in a card. In fact, some members of the group were abused on occasion when they questioned an owner about not bothering to fill in a card. This of course was in the days before reliable radios.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-...-boat/12653378

No alert because they were 'not lost'

The search covered more than 120,000 square kilometres, with help from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, the Royal Australian Air Force and Kangaroo Island and Volunteer Marine Rescue, as well as police.
The Margrel did not fire off any flares or activate its Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIR, leading police to suspect it did not have the emergency gear on board.
But Mr Higgins said that was because they did not consider themselves lost and had "back-up plan on back-up plan on back-up plan".
He was fined $1,000 for having an out-of-date EPIRB and for only having expired flares on board.

Originally Posted by NavyDiver

$$$$Fine just one reason. Not being able to get help if it is 'really needed' makes me check my safety kit is all up to scratch before the motor starts every time. Its on my checklist. Bait, Rods, water, fuel, Life jackets, flares, radio and Epirp all date checked before I leave my house to be honest.


I am sure a few of us, have got to a remote camping site with to find some twit has turned up with no food, swag, sleeping bag or cooking kit or similar needs missing out trying to scrounge. Not a place I want to be in myself on the water or on land

Not being able to get help if it is 'really needed' makes me check my safety kit is all up to scratch before the motor starts

Motor? You have a Motor? Are you some sort of Posh Git James?



Edit. I believe that is the same area where a family of four Victorians?? disappeared in the last few years.

I called into my Dentist one day & there was a bloke in there describing to the Staff how he knew there was deep trench offshore & believed that is where they would be found. Apparently it doesn't appear on electronic gear (according to him). That sounded like a bit of bull**** but of course you never know.


One theory was, & I haven't caught up with anything further, that one of the adults had discovered they had a life threatening illness & they decided to take their own lives. Dairy Farmer Family from SW Vic if I recall. Supposedly a very tricky area

Haven't read or heard anything since then about them. Talk about going to Davy Jones Locker en masse.

[QUOTE]checked before I leave my house to be honest. /QUOTE]


You have a house as well? A proper house? You really are a Posh Git.
[

Originally Posted by 4bee

Motor? You have a Motor? Are you some sort of Posh Git James?

Got me there. I do like paddling with no engine or swimming speedo's and googles only a few km from shore. The Great Whites, Makos Thresher and Blues sharks I see when out with a motor on do make me wonder about that habit


Life Jacket now is worn now as well in my little canoe . I did used to frequently only wear a wetsuit only when in a very small boat several thousand km from shore at times. A habit I brought in to civilian life when sub 5km from shore still.

Originally Posted by NavyDiver

Got me there. I do like paddling with no engine or swimming speedo's and googles only a few km from shore. The Great Whites, Makos Thresher and Blues sharks I see when out with a motor on do make me wonder about that habit


Life Jacket now is worn now as well in my little canoe . I did used to frequently only wear a wetsuit only when in a very small boat several thousand km from shore at times. A habit I brought in to civilian life when sub 5km from shore still.

He is saying, in shark speak of course, "I'm gonna get you one day young Jim".


Why more people "who go down to the sea in ships" don't automatically don PFD as a matter of course I don't know. No good hurriedly scounging around amongst all the surplus boat **** when the ship is going down. "Oh **** how do I wear this thing"

Originally Posted by NavyDiver

Got me there. I do like paddling with no engine or swimming speedo's and googles only a few km from shore. The Great Whites, Makos Thresher and Blues sharks I see when out with a motor on do make me wonder about that habit


Life Jacket now is worn now as well in my little canoe . I did used to frequently only wear a wetsuit only when in a very small boat several thousand km from shore at times. A habit I brought in to civilian life when sub 5km from shore still.

No doubt that would scare off the hungriest shark, unless they fancied a sausage roll.

Originally Posted by V8Ian

No doubt that would scare off the hungriest shark, unless they fancied a sausage roll.

James it's not him you should be bothered about, just stay clear of Gibraltar.Killer whales launch ‘orchestrated’ attacks on sailing boats | Marine life | The Guardian

I would point out that I have sailed offshore for the last fifty years (but not to any extent in the last fifteen). In that period I have had two alarms about me, both by wives of a crew member. The first was actually on Moreton Bay, and when she raised the alarm, was informed that "If it is a sailing boat (it was) I would not worry - the bay bis like a mirror, and there is not a breath of wind".

The second was in Bass Strait, and we were a day late returning to Westernport due to adverse winds - this was before mobile phones, we did not have HF radio and there was no VHF coverage until well into the bay.

My only real experience of an actual emergency, was not our emergency, but that of another yacht which had lost its rudder in rough seas off the Glennie Group in Bass Strait. We took it in tow, and towed it to Refuge Cove on Wilsons Prom. By then VHF coverage had improved, both boats had VHF, as did the rescue helicopter which turned out not to be needed. If we had not been nearby, in another hour or so they would have been on the rocks.