[Major]

Broad wasn't disparaging Dr. Pilliod, he was making a joke! Dr. Pilliod was a very nice man. He was my first doctor when I moved to NH in 1977. To the best of my knowledge, he did not own a power boat (maybe a sailboat). He lived in Belmont, but may have owned a boat at a marina or club.

Which leads me to my second point, we have people in Concord who have never owned a boat making rules because they feel good. Someone, like Lt. Wade, with a semblance of authority states that the world would be a much safer place if only we had (and now enforced) a speed limit on the lake. While this feels good, it has little or no effect.

This has been litigated in past threads. With perhaps a few exceptions (only one that I can think of), over the past 40 or so years, no accidents have been caused by speed. The most recent spate of accidents have been caused by idiocy and perhaps alcohol. Speed has never been (and certainly now won't be) a safety issue on our lake.

Often, we create laws and rules to replace common sense. The times I have traveled fast on the lake, we were abundantly safe. In the broads, or down a long stretch like Alton Bay, with few boats in sight. We wouldn't have done it if the broads or the bays were full of boats like on Saturday afternoons, or along the shore where people swim, kayak and canoe. In both instances, it would be reckless to operate a boat at a high speed.

Anyway, it's a moot point. It's the law, but they really don't enforce it. I see wave runners and boats consistently going over 45 mph.