THIS Memorial Weekend 2021

I was just reading Steve’s post about rookies on the water and the increase of new boaters and fisherpeople.

We will need to be extra…extra watchful over this holiday weekend for the newbie that does something… well, wrong. From what I’ve seen on the river and stories like Steve’s, we could be set for the most fatalities over a holiday weekend ever.

Wear your PFD, use your lanyard and >>Watch Out For The Other Guy<<

And as mad as you or I get at these people that lack experience (or common sense,) take a deep breath and a few moments to explain what they did wrong. (easier said then done, I’m well aware).

Have a great Memorial Weekend!

X2

Great reminder BK. Thank you sir.

Great reminder.

I try to operate under the assumption that everyone I meet on the river, lakes, etc. is out there for enjoyment. Don’t be the person who ruins it for someone else or their family. If you have to wait at a launch, alter your course because someone doesn’t know the laws of the water, help someone load a boat, take a deep breath and do it with a smile. 99% of people are not trying to inconvenience you or are unaware that they are doing so. Life is too short to ruin your day over something minor…or to ruin someone else’s.

Quick Story:

A few summers ago I was waiting for my wife to meet me at the launch on a Saturday after she was called into the ER. I noticed a lady in her early 60s hitting the slip pretty hard pulling out a nearly new tritoon. I was parked well out of the way of other traffic in a side lot so I decided to get out and see what the issue was. When I walked up to her she was visibly nervous and backing up other boats as she repositioned in her slip right off of the main launch. I helped her get back into her slip and positioned out of the way. After chatting for a couple minutes I found out that she was trying to pick up her daughter, son-in law, and their 2 kids at the main dock across the marina for a cruise. It also turns out this was her first outing solo after suddenly losing her husband a few weeks earlier. The poor lady was frustrated, embarrassed, and emotional. She was hesitant about ever using it alone but wanted to try and still enjoy the river. After talking and waiting for launch traffic to pass, I gave her some pointers and helped her get out. I am on the river pretty regularly so I also shared my number if she had any issues. Fast forward a couple years and we’ve gotten to know her fairly well. She always tries to pay for us to top off our tanks at the gas dock whenever we meet.

Great story Bucky. We all should try to help like that. Good on you bud!

99% of people are not trying to inconvenience you or are unaware that they are doing so.

When my gut and fists tighten up… I really try to take a breath and remember the above. Keep Calm and Fish On.

Well done Bucky. That first traumatic experience could have ended that lady’s time enjoying the water.

Thanks for the reminder BK.

This post really hit home for me. We’re not always experts. Most of the time embarrassed to ask for help or pointers. I for one can’t back a trailer worth a crap and am always nervous when asked to do it. Assuming that the other person is a beginner, and maybe could use an extra minute to back up, or would appreciate a pointer on this or that, would probably make the lake an even nicer place.

put your hand at the bottom of the steering wheel and turn the wheel the direction you want the boat to go.

As always BK good advice.

Memorial Day weekend last year on the lake was very quiet, not near the amount of pleasure boats or fishing boats either. Yes this year might be different, we will see. Definitely keep any eye out for others!

I now have a kid who’s a new boater. 13 yrs old, passed his boater safety last year and now goes out on the cabin fishing boat (14 ft Lund/20 HP motor) by himself – with a few restrictions on time and distance. I’ve been around water and boats my whole life but never really had access to my own until my mid-20s. And even then I made stupid rookie mistakes. I don’t doubt that he will too, and I hope he will come out of them unharmed and better for the experience. But I’m most worried about other people and him not being able to recognize a bad situation, or how to handle it when a situation turns bad. We’ve had countless talks but nothing really sinks in until reality smacks you in the face. Makes my weekend a little less relaxing.

Two or three years ago heading upstream out just out side of the upstream no wake zone a large cruiser was slowing down. Outside of the no wake zone he was clipping along pretty good.

We were passing each other at idle speed, port to port when out from behind the cruiser came a jet ski jumping what little wake was still coming off the cruiser…Directly In Front Of Me. I doubt it was 30 feet away when the ski zipped past me riderless…

The kid was so scared he jumped off!

Since I was going at idle speed resting my hand on the throttle, it was a fast move to put the Skeeter in reverse.

I was right next to the kid in the water, I told him to jump in and I would give him a ride to his drifting jet ski. He turned me down and swam over to it.

What I learned from that experience is to not pass other boats that I can’t see around so close. It was a tight area and the cruiser was in the middle of the channel but I could have moved over another 10 feet or so.

Hopefully the kid learned something.

Very humble of you Brian! For sure the kid was being reckless, but good on you to ask “What could I have done differently?” Most situations are probably like this and it’s easy to just blame the other guy. Also very human of you to focus on the kid first. If we all acted like this on the water there it would be awesome. And I’m just as guilty of pointing the finger as everyone else sometimes. We could all probably do a little better. Be safe this weekend evryone!

Just a quick story about patience that I ran into last week… I had to get a few small bolts and hdwe for one of my projects at the condo… I went to ACE on my lunch hour and found the bolts… I walked up to the counter just as a guy just finished up. Another guy walked up from the other way and said “Hey I was in line”.. I said “Oh sorry, I thought I just seen you walking up right after me, go ahead, I have all day”… he had about 20 items… the lady behind the counter said to the man, “you should thank him, I have you on camera walking up as he said you just did”… the guy said nothing and she checked his stuff out and he left. She smiled at me and said, some people….

More patients. Remember bar and wait staff are hurting too!

-J.

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Good one JJ!

https://bringmethenews.com/minnesota-news/watch-boats-throttle-gets-stuck-crashes-into-launch-on-lake-minnetonka

If there were a draft to see this sort of thing, Gray’s Bay has to be #1 seed. Thankfully there were no injuries, just some property damage.

I don’t know what he was trying to do but turn off the ignition!!!