Ah,
The annual off-shore debate.
As they say, perception equals reality and nowhere is that adage more true than with a handful of prolific winni posters.
Mee-n-Mac, you hit the nail right on the head.
But let's let the facts get in the way of the bashing for a moment, because the actual accident statistics are readily available to anyone willing to take a few moments to research this issue.
The most relevant data to this debate is the annual boating accident statistics kept by the United State Coast Guard. The 44th annual report, covering 2002, is the most current available data.
Here are some pretty interesting statistics;
In 2002, 750 people died across the country in recreational boating accidents.
Of those 750 deaths, nearly half (331) died in accidents involving boats of less than 16 fet in length.
290 people died in boats from 16 to 26 feet in length.
In boats of 26 to 40 feet in length (the most popular size of the constantly assailed cigarette style boats bashed on this site) only 37 deaths occured. That's less than 5% of all reported fatalities!
92 more people died in boats 40 foot or greater.
As you can see, 621 of the 750 reported deaths (83%) occured in boats of less than 26 feet.
Perhaps that is why so much attention is spent on this size craft (26 foot and below)by law enforcement agencies nationwide. It also confirms reports from experienced law enforcement personnel that while larger off-shore type boats by their own size draw particular attention to themselves, it is the smaller family style runabouts, canoes, kayaks, jet skis and the likes that need the most attention.
It also explains the preference of news organizations to uplay an overturned off-shore boat (makes a great background for the anchorperson). I mean, what's the newsworthiness in a picture of an overturned row-boat or 17 foot skiff?
Anyway, I have a wealth of additional statistical data that debunks many of the myths posted about off-shores here....be glad to share it with anyone interested, just drop me a line. I won't clutter the site with mundane data as I am fairly sure most people's minds are pretty well set on this subject.
Be safe, and enjoy the nice weekend coming up again...
Skip
p.s. - don't own an off-shore, never have. I'm stuck in that "dangerous" 26 foot and below category.
