Tournament Angler Dies in Boat Crash, 3 Others Hospitalized.

[N Florida Mike]

18 hours ago, soflabasser said:

Speed limits are needed on all bodies of water and there needs to be better enforcement. This will help prevent tragedies like the one the OP mentioned. I have also seen people ignore speed limit signs on the water, these type of people tend to only care about themselves. For example I see lots of boaters speeding in manatee zones, these people do not care about manatees which are endangered species in Florida. It is no surprise events like this happened and will continue to happen. Fishing is supposed to be a peaceful hobby, not a hobby of driving a boat +60 mph in a place you should not even drive over 20 mph. The boaters that speed are not giving a good impression of the fishing community to people that do not fish. 

There is no need for a bass boat to drive +75 mph, that is faster than what you are allowed to drive on a highway in Florida. No wonder so many high speed accidents happen.

I’m a freedom lover, and hate restrictive new laws.

But I’d have to agree with you on this one !

[soflabasser]

6 hours ago, N Florida Mike said:

I’m a freedom lover, and hate restrictive new laws.

But I’d have to agree with you on this one !

Too many boaters are speeding these days which is causing tragedies like the one OP mentioned. I mentioned earlier that I have seen boaters speeding in manatee zones, these people only care about themselves and could care less about hurting manatees which are endangered species. You really have to be an unsavory person to speed in a manatee zone knowing it can hurt manatees and other wildlife. These events make the bass fishing community look bad, so it is best to put speed limits on all bodies of water.

[Zcoker]

On 3/31/2022 at 6:28 PM, soflabasser said:

Speed limits are needed on all bodies of water and there needs to be better enforcement. This will help prevent tragedies like the one the OP mentioned. I have also seen people ignore speed limit signs on the water, these type of people tend to only care about themselves. For example I see lots of boaters speeding in manatee zones, these people do not care about manatees which are endangered species in Florida. It is no surprise events like this happened and will continue to happen. Fishing is supposed to be a peaceful hobby, not a hobby of driving a boat +60 mph in a place you should not even drive over 20 mph. The boaters that speed are not giving a good impression of the fishing community to people that do not fish. 

There is no need for a bass boat to drive +75 mph, that is faster than what you are allowed to drive on a highway in Florida. No wonder so many high speed accidents happen.

 

The problem is enforcement. Simply not enough of it going on. Some of these lakes are in remote areas and don't have the routine presence to keep things in check, so people just assume that they can do whatever they want and get away with it, which is about as true as it gets. 

[MacJig]

I remember fishing back in the '60s with a  small aluminum boat and a 10 horse motor. And even with that little 10 horse motor, the boat tooled; it got us to our place pretty quickly. I can't even imagine what these mega horse power motors can achieve as far as speed is concerned. If the boat had wings I'm sure it would lift off. I am clueless why something that big and powerful is needed on our fisheries. And they're just getting faster and faster as the years go by!

Edited April 5, 2022 by MacJig

[FishTank]

3 smaller lakes I fish in Indiana have gotten strict on boat safety over the years. One is limited to a 9.9 or under. Fines start at $2500. I have seen a series of tickets written to one guy for just shy of $5000. Another has gone to idle only or trolling motor.  One other is going to counter clockwise near bank fishing only. You basically get in line and go around the lake at slow pace and try your best to avoid each other. 

[TnRiver46]

I get scared driving my 50 horse, it’s crazy out there sometimes 

[cyclops2]

I am lucky in this problem area. I have a isolated bay right off of the St. Lawrence River shipping channel. There are Off Shore racing boats blasting by all week ends. 1 idiot was doing a estimated 110 or so in a speed reduced area.  His Catamaran buried the bow. Tore both arms off as he slid under the dash and squashed him under the dash area. Girlfriend was never found.  

 

I stay in my overfished bay until the thousands of racing h p noise becomes too much. Then come out at sundown.