Sea Doo's - Love them or hate them??

[xsv spd]

Almost became a statistic yesterday! We had just got onto plane in a busy channel when I noticed 4 beloved seadoo's coming my way. The channel is about a mile wide so you would think there is plenty of room...right? Everyone knows where this is going.

Two of them where enjoying the wakes from the cabin cruisers, buzzing around like bee's leaving responsible drivers no indication of what course they will take next. U-turns, jumps, noise noise and more noise. One of them was so busy looking at his buddy that he didn't notice he was on a collision course with me. He was so oblivious that he didn't even realize he was driving perpendicular in the channel! He only made eye contact when he saw the underside of my port side as I made the sharpest right hand turn ever! I was going maybe 30 and he was going about the same. My brother in law only had enough time to grab on to our three year old daughters and hold them so they wouldn't fly out of the boat.

It was so close that when I turned, I could not even see the sea doo anymore. So close, that had I not turned right, I likely would have run him over or even worse he would have crashed into the port side where the two little girls were sitting!

So I ask the question: Love them or hate them? This would make an interesting poll for the forum...no?

I will tell anyone who asks or is reading this. I have always disliked the stereotypical bad seadoo driver (they would be bad drivers in a Checkmate too most likely!) but now I can't help but paint them all with the same brush. I have seen it so many times now! I HATE THEM!! Sea doo's are synonymous with trouble and unsafe driving habits. Insurance companies need to hammer these guys! I could have lost my family yesterday.

Plus, a Pulsare at the bottom of the lake! What a shame that would be

 

[chrispallen]

Unfortunately they seem to get into a zone when riding and lose track of their surroundings.... a couple of years ago I had one cut behind my boat to jump the wake, problem was, I was pulling my sister skiing.... good thing she tossed the rope or he would have been toast.

and just Sunday, I had to help a late teen/early 20's kid who had fallen off and couldn't get to his as it was circling.. once i pulled the tether and killed the machine and he swam over, i asked him why he wasn't wearing it.... his response "it fell of my wrist" yeah ok,

and then when i reminded him of the 150' safe passage distance between boats, etc in New Hampshire, he said... really, i thought it was 50 feet.

Arrrgh

 

[Vandalizer]

Personally I don't like them... by that I mean I don't want one. (It would be nice if a friend had a stand up version for me to mess with once a year though)
BUT I think the problem is much less with the machine than with the people who seem to be attracted to them. Maybe because it's a cheap and easy way to get on the water?

By the way... sorry about your close call. My son's too little to boat with right now, but I'd get much more angry if that put him in harms way than if it was just me. Not very logical, but that's the truth.

 

[xsv spd]

By the way... sorry about your close call. My son's too little to boat with right now, but I'd get much more angry if that put him in harms way than if it was just me. Not very logical, but that's the truth.[/quote]

Oh trust me, when I caught up to him (he drove away!) and he finally stopped, I lost it and was way more red than this...can't remember ever beeing that angry!

As a matter of fact all boats in the vicinity came to a stall and one pontoon boat cam by to blast him as well

 

[teamhart2]

I dont mind them, them being the actual vehicle, I hate most of the jokers that drive them, especially the ones that have it as their sole way to get on the water. I would hate to have it as that, not any fun, and only room for your and one other person and if its a hot bikini clad girl, shes behind you with a lifejacket on, not my idea of a fun day on the water (plus no beer holders) My buddy has one at his lake house, and its fun to rip around on for about 15 minutes, but also kinda scary if theres more than a few boats around to keep track of (and I thought my head was on a swivel while driving the mate).

 

[81 enchanter]

like the toys, don't like the drivers usually and the lakes are so policed for jetskis that i sold mine years ago cause i was tired of getting pulled over....i had a yamaha waveblaster(1994) tons of fun!! i love being able to blow by or keep up with jetskis though in my checkmate or sunsation!!!!! they always look so pissed

 

[justincase]

I like the toys but dont like the riders also! but even in a boat there are real idiots, like when im at one of my lakes there is a usual flow of traffic and specified direction of travel but ill be buzzing along on the right side of the lake and there is always an idiot headed right for me head on. kinda like going the wrong way down a one way street. People buy a boat or a jetski and automatically think that there isnt any rules or laws to go by.

 

[bigredinohio]

I feel real sorry about the close call. I own a '07 Kawasaki Ultra 250X which I've had over 70 on gps and I get a pretty good appreciation of the hatred by the boaters when I'm on it. Personally, I hate the people who drive them also but then again, I hate most people who drive boats also.

I've seen runnabouts circle their skiers AROUND no wake buoys, drunks in hot boats blasting by other boats as close as possible just to show off and yes the sea monkey's jumping in behind skiers.

Seems to me like people get dumber on the water each year and I thought there was mandatory boating classes? Maybe the instructors should undergo some classes?

 

[justincase]

like the toys, don't like the drivers usually and the lakes are so policed for jetskis that i sold mine years ago cause i was tired of getting pulled over....i had a yamaha waveblaster(1994) tons of fun!! i love being able to blow by or keep up with jetskis though in my checkmate or sunsation!!!!! they always look so pissed

I had a ski pull up beside me one day with a big grin, he hammered it i was doing about 40 so i shook my head and in about 200 yards caught him and passed him. we were loading on the trailer at the same time and he asked how fast i was going...i told him 1 mph faster than him.

 

[Check This]

It is amazing in Pa thy have to go for a course on saftey. It must be a waste of time because it gets worse every year. Time aftet time they pull next to me and expect me to run with them --- I turn and slow down. I hate them . never had one --- never will. I am glad to see this was just an incident. You and most important your family is okay.

 

[Big Red]

I dont like the young kids on them flying around in circles when they see you coming. I also cant stand mopeds and people that ride bicycles on main side roads that the speed limit is 55.

 

[ndaniels]

Thats complete BS and I would have lost my sh1t if that happened to me- sorry to hear bout it... there is no excuse for that kind of stupidity, it really sucks.


Well, I like the machine- hell, I own a 08rxp... but I operate like a boat. If I'm going to play- go in circles, jump waves ect. I do it away from everyone else- I'm the seadoo rider you'll never see. Unfortunatly, nobody remembers the responsible riders/drivers and we all get bad raps... same thing with go-fast boats, motorcycles, and truck drivers.

 

[81 enchanter]

I had a ski pull up beside me one day with a big grin, he hammered it i was doing about 40 so i shook my head and in about 200 yards caught him and passed him. we were loading on the trailer at the same time and he asked how fast i was going...i told him 1 mph faster than him.

haha thats good!

 

[81 enchanter]

Thats complete BS and I would have lost my sh1t if that happened to me- sorry to hear bout it... there is no excuse for that kind of stupidity, it really sucks.


Well, I like the machine- hell, I own a 08rxp... but I operate like a boat. If I'm going to play- go in circles, jump waves ect. I do it away from everyone else- I'm the seadoo rider you'll never see. Unfortunatly, nobody remembers the responsible riders/drivers and we all get bad raps... same thing with go-fast boats, motorcycles, and truck drivers.

i agree, you can get a bad name on anything. i just try to be as responsible as i can on everything to try to change the thoughts bout it all one person at a time

 

[xsv spd]

Still seeing flashback and it's only been since yesterday. As I said, nobody was hurt, just scared. The seadoo driver will probably never forget and hopefully will smarten up! I know it's not the machine but the man behind it...even if the machine is a garden tractor.

In Ontario the boater's course is mandatory as of Sep 15, 2009. My feeling is that the focus is more toward making sure you know if a fire extinguisher or paddle is required in your vessel rather than focus on driver safety and rules of the waterways. Most people right the test online with all the answers in front of them and don't learn much.

Food for though... A new boater buys a 36 foot cabin cruiser here do you think he should have driver training? Imagine him docking next to your 33 foot convincer every other day with no boating experience! It's like letting a 16 year old boy drive a semi!

Driver training with water test...if enough sea doo get run over maybe it will become mandatory!

The day ended just great yesterday anyway. I got my slalom ski run at 40 mph in and my dauther got to go tubing at 17mph...no sunburns either!

 

[Needafunboat]

As stated, sorry to hear about that - especially with kids on board. We always have alot of kids on the boat and I can't imagine how upset I'd be with that guy.

To your question - We normally boat on a nearly deserted 300 acre late so traffic isn't an issue (saw about 10 other boats all LD weekend). The 2 or 3 guys with ski's are very polite. But I do remember as a kid on the river almost (intentionally) running down a guy on jetski after he buzzed my skier who was down in the water. When he stopped, I told him the next time I'd hit him.

I used to ride our old seadoo XP's in some semi-crowded lakes (often with my daughter on it) and my head was on a swivel looking for boats crossing or coming from behind. Any PWC turns and accelerates far better than most boats so PWC drivers who haven't driven boats probably get a sense of invincibility and that's where I'd bet alot of the problems stem from.

 

[fireguy]

XSV,
One of my buddies had an incredibly similar situation this summer, only the PWC rider slammed into the side of their pontoon. No one was hurt, but his PWC was trashed and the pontoon was damaged. Fortunately they were not in their 30' Advantage.

" Unfortunatly, nobody remembers the responsible riders/drivers and we all get bad raps... same thing with go-fast boats, motorcycles, and truck drivers."

This is so true!!!!!

 

[Cpage66]

PWC owners here have to take the same full boater's license course that everyone else does...and in parts of Australia they then have to take a PWC license course.
They are subject to exclusion zones with the biggest that I know of being the entire Sydney Harbor. Seems like I remember the stand off zones from people in the water is 60 meters (180 feet).
I haven't checked in a while but they were talking about making wake/wave jumping and tricks at least 200 meters out if there was even one building next to the water and visible to the PWC driver. I seem to remember they had to be at least 30 meters from everything else on the water. Underway/moving boats, structures etc...etc...
Lots of exclusion zones on the rivers around here as well as restricted zones where they have to traverse in a straight line only and then going no faster/slower than a set speed (min/max like on the highway).

 

[xsv spd]

Rules and restrictions are good...common sense and good judgment are better no matter what you drive. Everyone slips up once in a while and nobody is perfect.

If we end up with too many rules and restrictions the fun factor will go away... I can't imaging boating on a lake were as an example there is a speed limit of 40 mph or something like that... After all we do all own fast Checkmates and I do like my speed, when the time is right though!

 

[gchildre]

PWC's are a fact of life...

I give a more critical eye to PWC's when I am out than other boats; they are harder to see, accelerate & turn quicker and are usually operated by someone that takes more risks than me.

I would love to have one but my conscience always gets the better of me. Someone in my family would want to operate it that didn't have a clue and I wouldn't let them. I'll choose family harmony over a little more fun. I don't think my insurance agent would talk to me if I got one, he insisted I get a $1M personal liability policy when I bought my Checkmate, and then he heard about my dog, I thought he was going to faint.