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To the editor:
I’m writing this in response to your piece on the new Hanson-Milone Safe Boating Act. It’s not going to change anything and will only prove to be another layer of bureaucracy that will only feed itself rather than serve the public good.
As a matter of perspective, I am a marine surveyor. My firm specializes in accident investigation and failure analysis. For the past 35 years, my job has involved analyzing and reconstructing accidents as well as teaching marine professionals. I’m not saying that I have all the answers, but I certainly have qualified opinions as to what can happen and why out on the water … and a 40-question multiple choice quiz isn’t going to solve it.
Souza’s comments seemed to revel in the burden on boaters without mentioning how it may help. He seems to eagerly anticipate the coming season when he can pull people over, ask for their papers, and ruin their day by towing them back in. Great attitude.
Although I don’t have all the details, the tragedy of the David Hanson accident could not have been prevented by knowing the rules of the road or United States Coast Guard lighting requirements. My guess is that the accident involved a very common cascade of errors in judgement that, on their own, are seemingly minor. Boating accidents are not as simple as the general public believes. The kneejerk response of forcing people to take some lame test will not improve wisdom or experience.
One of the dramatic changes over the past 30 years has been the increase in speed of the standard powerboat. Back in the 1980s, a cruising speed of 20-25 mph was considered respectable. That number has close to doubled these days. For reference, 40 mph on the water is easily equivalent to 80 mph on the road in terms of reaction time. Back in the day, the largest outboards were in the 125-150 hp range. Harbors are now littered with center consoles sporting multiple 250-400 hp outboards. Imagine driving amongst a bunch of random cars in a giant bumpy parking lot at 80 mph, with no stop signs, no white lines, and no signage.
The second half of it is the decline in boating culture. Boaters these days have little interest in learning seamanship and navigation. They are consumers. They want to get in, go, and get back to take Hunter to his Aikido class. Bourgie boaters almost disdain the hassle of having to understand traditional boating operation if it is not Bluetooth enabled or joystick operated.
We have a problem out there. Turning the tide is going to take more analysis and involvement to understand the problems and foster better operation. One thing is for certain, Johnny Law with flashing blue lights and a traffic ticket isn’t going to solve anything.
Jonathan K. Klopman
Peach Highlands
