I wanted to pass on this note I sent to my Bass Club members. Many folks on here don’t know me personally, however this hits very close to home to me and makes me think. The folks on this board fish the MS River primarily, and that can be one of the most dangerous waters out there.
******************
Guys,
Wanted to pass on some sad news from back home. Last Sunday my good friend, and the gentleman who got me in to fishing, had a club tournament on Norfork lake in AR. Many of these guys in this club took me fishing when I was in college in this area. Great group of guys. Sadly, 2 of their younger members (who I had not met personally) drown during the tournament. The included articled give some details, but I wanted to share what I heard as well.
Weigh in was at 4PM and this boat did not show up. Nobody was too worried as this guy has had motor problems in the past. Weigh in wrapped up about 4:30 and a few of the guys left for home. About 4:45 3 boats decided to go look for these guys and help them get back to the ramp. Norfork is a HUGE lake, but they had an idea which area they had went to that day. About 30 minutes into the search, they found the boat against the shore and the big motor was digging into the gravel and keeping it there. They found a pair of tennis shoes, 2 FishHedz masks and a jacket turned inside out near the boat. The guys called the rest of the group and then 911. The club guys search into the dark and the water patrol and authorities kept searching until the bodies were found. They were able to trace the GPS trail. The boat was coming out of Float Creek and made a hard right turn, then looked to make 2 small circles before what seemed like the boat floated to shore. The boat was in gear, the key was off (??), the kill switch was still on and had looked not to have been used, life jackets were under the consoles. The only damage to the boat was the trolling motor. It was up, but looked to have been bent to the side, far enough that it hung off the frame.
THey haven’t been able to determine exactly what happened other than it looks like one or both were thrown out when the boat made the sharp turn.
http://www.baxterbulletin.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061024/NEWS01/610240312/1002
Guys, MANY of us get so comfortable in the boat because we’ve been doing it a long time. I wanted to share this story to you for 2 reasons. One, please keep these family’s in your prayers as they both had small children. Secondly, BE SAFE out there. We all need to remember not to loose respect for what we’re doing. No matter how long you’ve been boating, accidents can happen. ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS wear the kill switch. We all know that sometime we dont’ wear life jackets. But please remember to be smart about that as well and get that thing on when you should.
Take care fellas, and be safe.
Chuck
************
. I am going to make it a point to wear my life jacket a lot more while the big motor is running next year. I am certainly guilty of not wearing it all the time while running (during fun fishing…I always wear it in a tournament). 