Quote:
Originally Posted by Woodsy
I will take a cue from BI & others.... At the risk absolute futility what kind of compromise would possibly work??
My personal feelings on the Valedmort Bill is that nobody is really happy with they way it currently is. The hi-po guys like myself really cant enjoy our boats, the slow boat folks are ticked there isnt enough enforcement (no tickets yet to date) and lets face it with the budget crunch and the economy boat registrations are way down so the NHMP doesnt really have the resources.
SO what would be the best of both worlds and allow the NHMP to allocate thier resources better?
I suggest we keep the night time speed limit. Almost all of the cataclysmic accidents that are brought up during this debate occured at night. Not saying that a speed limit at night would have prevented these accidents (although not drinking alcohol would have). If people want to debate the MPH thats ok with me. I think 30 would be a reasonable compromise... I see the Weirs town docks and the Meredith town docks practically deserted after dark. I have friends who live in Moultonborough that dont come to the Weirs or Meredith at night anymore because it takes too long to get home! I guess kids can get antsy! LOL! It used to be that you had to wait to park at the Weirs Docks during the summer, nowadays parking at night is not a problem! I am sure nightime visitation is down at all the town docks. I can only assume its a combination of the 25MPH limit and the economy.
The 45MPH daytime limit should be discarded all together. Its a complete waste of the limited NHMP resources. We don't boat vs boat (or boat vs. island) accidents during the day because your visibility is measured in miles!! I would rather have the NHMP allocate resources to catch Capt Boneheads in and around the busy parts of the lake than hanging out hoping to clock the rare boat going faster than 45...
Woodsy
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Sir,
I think 45MPH is already a perfect compromise. It's certainly very fast in a boat (by the speed limit opposer's own count it is faster than over 95% of the boats on the lake can even go), and the law only applies to one lake in the entire state. Most people who had not gone that fast are amazed at how fast it really is in a boat the first time they are given such a ride. Most skiers cannot ski over 30, let alone 45. Not a single performance boat manufactured in the past 20 years claims a planing speed over 20, so those cruising around with their trims and bows up to make huge wakes in an effort to sabotage are just wasting gas. Certainly the whole of Newfound or Sunapee each approximate the size of the Broads of Winnipesaukee, so those who want go faster have plenty of open water in the state to do it on (besides our substantial "offshore" and Great Bay). And the Newport Police chief was one of the biggest opponents to a speed limit on Sunapee, so I assume the people out there would welcome more performance boaters. 45 is more than fast enough already for any reasonable boating activity on a lake that has so much traffic and people.
I disagree wholeheartedly with the attempts to say people are not happy with the impact of the SL or those (sometimes the very same individuls) who say the SL is doing nothing at all (which is it?). Most of the boaters I meet at the marina (admittedly not Channel or Silver Sands), all of the sailors and salmon fishermen I know (and there are a lot of those) and almost all of the residents I talk to around town have noticed a huge improvement in the civility on the lake this year (with the SL) and last year (with the test), are spending more time on the lake this year, and do not want things to go back...even an inch. We keep hearing how quiet things are on the lake this year, but if you look, you will see just as many boats. When the economy and weather are better, we should see many more boats than in recent years...but I'll bet the lake will still be quieter...and seem safer.
It seems pretty obvious, except if one only gets his news from this forum and the few who dominate it, that the vast majority of the boating public feels very happy with the current law and does not care how many tickets are issued. What difference could that make to anyone who is not just out for revenge? Who told you "slow boat folks are ticked there isnt enough enforcement (no tickets yet to date)." ? People are obeying the law (for the most part) and that is all we really care about.
45 mph daytime and 25 mph nighttime on only one lake in a state with several hundred is a fine compromise, and is working out just fine for everyone except the few who would probably not be satisfied if the limit was 95.