speed limits

[Mee-n-Mac]

Originally Posted by Lakegeezer

While a speed limit may be useful in certain areas of the lake, on certain days, it is not needed in most areas of the lake, most of the time.

You'll get no argument from me, I agree with what you said above. Just as we have differing limits for school, town, highways and interstates; the lake has differing conditions and thus differing requirements. A "1 size fits all" approach would find no support from me (and I don't think my boat could break any reasonable limit ). Moreover there are other rules I'd impose first that would, IMHO, make things better before I'd support a lake-wide SL.

*sorry for the title, been watching that Blazing Saddles DVD again, sorry folks, sorry ...

[madrasahs]

You may recall this post from Rob, re: measuring noise.

Originally Posted by Rob

Increase the measuring distance to 150' or more. Not only is this safer than the 50', but it more accurately duplicates the real-world condition due to the fact that boats are supposed to be 150' from each other, as well as the shoreline or any docks, swim floats, etc. Personally, I wouldn't want to be nearly that close to any object at WOT [Wide Open Throttle].

1) This fast, Big Boat business has already passed Rob's comfort zone with respect to the 150-foot separation rule. He is to be applauded for recognizing this. The problem is that there are too many Big Boaters who do not.

If passing a 150-foot stationary point is scary in these boats, what is it like for a "legal" 150-foot pass amongst multiple and moving points? (Meaning us, their "fellow boaters").

Is 150-feet a sufficient distance today? At today's unconscionable speeds, 150 feet takes less than 2 seconds to "close" on a moving obstacle (my boat).

2) Speed limit? Could the MPs possibly enforce such a speed limit?

Nowadays, Winnipesaukee operatives "welcome" boats that can exceed 100 MPH. Enforcing even a sensible nighttime limit would be fraught with problems identifying the offender by eye. A targeted offender could still continue on his way with his boat shrinking into the gloom at WOT (Wide Open Throttle).

If the reader hasn't gotten the gist of Winnipesaukee's most likely offending boats by now (and their operators' psyche), tickets are merely "the cost of doing business" -- just as we saw this summer with motorcycles and being ticketed for their illegal activiites.

[itchin for fishin]

Mee n Mac...help me out....what's IMHO?

[KPW]

Originally Posted by itchin for fishin

Mee n Mac...help me out....what's IMHO?

In my humble opinion

[Mee-n-Mac]

Originally Posted by madrasahs

{snip}

1)Is 150-feet a sufficient distance today? At today's unconscionable speeds, 150 feet takes less than 2 seconds to "close" on a moving obstacle (my boat).

2) Speed limit? Could the MPs possibly enforce such a speed limit?

{more snipping}

You raise 2 good points, let me take the easiest first. Certainly there are boats which can outdistance the MP's boats. This is also true on land wrt our cars and most of the cruisers the various PDs operate. And there are time and places when outrunning the law will be successful. Yet those facts don't stop the posting of SL's on the roads. I do believe that the majority of the time the MP will be successful in capturing the offender because it's not just an isolated MP boat but rather a network of MP boats (the old saying of "You can't outrun a Motorola" applies). A person who frequently offends is almost surely to be caught at some point, at least if he's docked on the lake. Now your question of "The cost of doing business" comes to the forefront (OK, 3 points). Certainly there are well heeled Ferrari and Porsche owners who think the same way. Yet the law allows for repeated offenders to be curbed via revocation of their liscence. A similar thing could (may already, perhaps Skip knows) happen with the boat owners registration. I would add that it's much easier to drive w/o a liscence than w/o a plate (or in this case, registration sticker). Nighttime enforcement, as you point out, may be more problematical but then again the MPs have radar to track non-stopping boats so perhaps strategies could be found to mitigate the problem. Whether the resources needed to effectively enforce a SL would be allocated is good question.

As to separation distance ... I don't disagree. Just as your following distance in a car should increase with increasing speed, so should your separation distance in a boat. What it should be is a bit harder to answer. Let me bring up one point for consideration. We are all (probably daily) exposed to a situation wherein the closing velocity meets or exceeds the 100mph mentioned above. If you drive a car down Rt11 along the lake you'll encounter cars running in the other direction with only yellow lines and much less than 150' separation. This usually works (though not always as an earlier post here on this forum showed) because most people act in a predictable fashion and follow the rule (keep to your own lane). Now boats aren't cars but similar thinking applies. Congestion, as well as speed, increases the desire for predictability. I've often been passed (overtaken & in opposing direction) by boats that violated my 150ft bubble. It doesn't always bother me because I've been able to assess the other guys course and determine that, barring some form of stupidity, no collision would occur. If separation distance is too be maintained in order to reduce the likelihood of collisions then I agree that the distance should be increasing with increasing speed but also would add that all boaters have a part to play in this. Just as you wouldn't turn across the yellow lines in front of an oncoming car, you have to operate you boat in a predictable fashion when in the presence of other boaters (and I don't mean Boston type predictability ).

[upthesaukee]

I think that Mee N Mac hits on one thing that makes the shrinking 150' zone just a little scary is the unpredictability of the other vessel (driver). In a car, we kinda assume (which can get us in trouble) that the other guy will stay on their side of the yellow line.

There are many times out on the lake when I feel like I somehow got stuck in the middle of a Joey Chitwood Thrill show, with vessels overtaking me two and three abreast, and just as many going the other way, and no yellow line for a "sense of security". Going in and out Alton Bay, Wolfeboro, Governors Island - Timber - Eagle Island area, etc. you will see a lot of "multi lane" passing, most less than 150' apart, and no separation by direction. I do try to keep to the right when I get into narrow or congested areas, but find a lot of others don't really seem to care about what side of the road they are on.

And then there is the "tunnel vision". It seems the faster some boats go, the narrower the forward field of vision becomes, something that can be a problem for the untrained driver at truly high speeds. Just as we get tunnel vision driving on the highway at high speeds (doing 80 and never see the cop in the median), the same thing can happen in the boat.

Just glad I can pick and choose my times to be out there, at least for the most part.