Sorry for my slow repsonse to your response. Can you believe they want me to work at work ??
Take a few days off from the forum on a hot topic likle this and I've got a lot of catching up to do.
Quote:
Originally Posted by caloway
1) Using all your numbers--which I believe are reasonable and not conservative--a boater doing 70 mph that looks over his shoulder or adjusts the radio or scratches an itch for 3 seconds would violate the 150' rule.
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I'm kinda at a loss for words for this. If you think taking your eyes off your direction of travel for 3 seconds at a time is acceptable then you and I have a larger gulf to cross than a mere speed limit. Would you take your eyes off the road for 3 secs when driving down the I-93? Would you call for speed limits (or lower limits) if someone who did this caused a collision ? Or would you attribute the collision to driver inattention (I may say driver stupidity of a high order) rather than speed (as I would). While people certainly should be looking around them, not just straight ahead, (in boats and in cars) they shouldn't be spending more than a few tenths at any one time doing so. You want to add 0.3 secs to the reaction time ... OK but it won't make a significant difference. Much more than that isn't an argument against speed but against crappy driving. Sorry but I just can't accept you argument above as proof that 70 MPH is unsafe (but 45 MPH is).
Quote:
Originally Posted by caloway
2) You're completely ignoring the perspective of the kayaker. A kayaker needs about 5 seconds to dump and orient. That means that 5 seconds is the margin of safety--or 650 feet. At 70 mph--even if the boater is not distracted at all--you can't meet that standard. The boater may feel fine, but the kayaker is unpleasantly wet--and hopefully hasn't ingested any water from cold convulsions.
I think it's clear that the higher the speed limit, the more of the lake is off limits to small craft (or conversely, the faster the craft must be to occupy the same general area)
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I think some others have asked the same question I would have re: the 5 secs but let's consider that in the context of the situation you've proposed. At 10 secs prior to collision our hypothetical boater, doing 70 MPH (~100 FPS) is 1000' away. He notices the kayak in his path and reacts. After 4 secs have gone by the boat is still ~600' away and only 25' off laterally. But more importantly it has turned and this should be clear to the kayaker intent on the boat bearing down on him. In another second the boats closes another ~100 ft closer, is now 50+' displaced laterally and turned even more. IMO, were I in the kayak, I'd interpret this as the boat seeing me and taking proper action to avoid me. I wouldn't be diving below the surface. More over most kayakers I see paddling about Winni are wearing their PFDs so diving to escape doesn't sound like a much used plan (despite the recent Sunapee incident).
But your point is a fair one, which I'll rephase as a question and ask "At what distance does your average kayaker become afraid, not concerned, but truly afraid of being run over ?" I understand that any answer has a dependance on the situation (ie - rowboat vs cruiser vs PWC vs etc). My opinion is that boats on plane and moving above slow speeds all garner about the same amount attention and fear factor. When I'm bobbing about on the PWC amongst all the other boaters I don't differentiate between a boat going 30 MPH and one doing 60 MPH when they're coming at me. What I look for is clear indications that the guy is going to miss me. If he doesn't "signal" by a certain distance I get concerned and then a bit more concerned as he gets closer. For me, if I see that "signal" at 500' distance, I don't get to the fear portion of the program. In this case I believe I do see that signal ... before 500' even ... but the point raised has some validity.
And despite disagreeing with you, I appreciate the response. It would be nice to see people discuss the scenarios and numbers and not just how they "feel" about the topic, let alone trade barbs.