Please be safe out there

Sadly, a longtime friend of mine drowned yesterday day out practicing for a tournament this coming weekend. Years back, we fished many tournaments together, then I moved on to other things, and he never lost his drive to fish tournaments. We still stayed in touch regularly, and I was just talking to him the day before. Sadly, he wasn’t wearing a life jacket, out by himself, and somehow fell in. Someone herd him calling for help and swam out to try and save him, but the boat was drifting away faster than they could get to it. It’s a very sad day not only for his wife but also all of us that knew him. There is a lot of what ifs feelings right now, but the only thing that really matters is that those of you that don’t believe you need a life jacket will think about my friend. Things happen, good swimmer or not. Boats blow away in wind, you’re wearing lots of clothes in cold weather. I am so glad my son has never fought me on wearing an inflatable or using the kill switch and just does it without me having to tell him. Please everyone, be safe out there, your friends and relatives deserve to be with you tomorrow.

Sad deal. Sorry for your loss.

So sorry to hear Ed.
Prayers to the friends and family for what should of never happened.

So sorry for the family, and your loss.

sorry for your loss and for the family! thanks for posting here and spreading the message on life jackets

So sorry for your loss.

PFD saves lives!

sorry for your loss. Just a sad story

Man that’s terrible…..thanks to all the reminders by the good people on IDO, I have taken this seriously. Sorry for your loss

I really appreciate everyone’s caring thoughts, and quite honestly I’m just not the type of person that believes in telling someone else what they should be doing, but this hit me pretty hard and I just wanted to remind everyone that safety does matter when doing what we love to do.

I feel for you, Ed. That is a terrible thing to happen to a good friend. That would hit me hard also. Thanks for posting and condolences to you.

Sorry for your loss. Prayers to the family and friends.

Putting a life jacket on should be as automatic as pulling your pants on in the morning.

A great first step would be if we all require our guests and passengers to wear a life jacket when they hop on our boat. We are responsible for them and should gently insist.

May he Rest In Peace.

Preventable deaths are difficult. I was on Minnetonka last weekend and there was a 14 ft aluminum boat with three adults on it going through big waves. No lifejackets worn. One wrong move by the tiller operator and the boat could’ve flipped.

We have so many great options with PFDs now that are barely noticeable when worn. Even without inflatables, the fishing ones with the netting around the shoulder area are so comfortable and not invasive. I feel like our entire generation got soured on them from having to wear the big bulk orange ones or even the fishing vest type back in the day. If we raise our young people with the newer, more comfortable type, maybe they will take to wearing them forever.

So sorry, Ed. That’s a very tragic and horrible thing. Prayers for your friend and his family.

Inflatables are one of the best things to come along in a long time. I wore mine all weekend. Even when we came back to the cabin and took a break it stayed on and I didn’t even notice. I wish those that don’t like wearing one would try one out. They’re mechanical and therefore not perfect, but they’d save virtually everyone who didn’t wear one and lost their life overboard.

Sorry for the loss Musky!!
RIP and prayers for you and the family.

Sorry for your loss, my thoughts and prayers are with you and the family.🙏🏻