Unbelievable!!!

[Skidplate]

Are you sure it was black and not blue?

[Skidplate]

.

Edited August 25, 2020 by Billy H

[Lewis863]

Are you sure it was black and not blue?

If it was blue it was very dark driver appeared in his 30s brown hair and beard I believe... should have snapped a pic but I was too busy being appalled and shocked at his behavior ...


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[ErieBuck]

On 8/22/2020 at 10:23 PM, Fat Trout said:

Situation dependent. I towed a 24 ft boat who had no steering capability on lake Ontario ...didnt know the steering part until i was committed. I was an 18 ft boat. When i came to port that boat swung back and forth wildly at slow speed. It was all i could do to maintain control. I have many regrets from that scenario and im not even explaining the half of that 2 hour hair raising scenario. I came really close to putting my crew in harms way and plowing that boat into others. Im still willing to help but im going to grade the scenario. Ill respond to life emergencies but towing for a guy with an questionably maintained boat (my situation)....yeah im gonna think that one out. im also very able to call towboat US for people. Which is my plan for myself which i have already set up if i have issues. As captain of my boat im responsible for my boat and crew and others at my discression. That was the lesson that i learned. Consider that before tossing too many universal..."you must do" stones.

 

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Agreed.  A towing insurance policy is very affordable there's really no excuse not to have it other than being cheap.  Certainly we all should come to the aid of stranded boaters and make sure they are not in danger, but is it really the expectation you have to tow them in perhaps putting both boats at risk?  

[58Johnson]

No Towboat available on Cayuga Lake. Tow insurance covers big lake areas.


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[Lewis863]

No Towboat available on Cayuga Lake. Tow insurance covers big lake areas.


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Correct there are marinas that will come get you on Cayuga during business hours but that is it...


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[ErieBuck]

My bad!  Sounds like a different ball game in the fingers.  No excuse for that guy.   In Lake Erie, it's a whopping $75 a year for a policy for PA and NY waters.  I'd never impose on somebody to tow me in when I could have just paid $75 for piece of mind, but yet I see it all the time.  My boat insurance has towing but I decided to buy a policy directly with the tow company this year to not have to deal with a middle man if stranded.  Got stranded on 4 of July last year with my whole family onboard and had to sit on the phone with Progressive and wait for them to play middle man and authorize the tow with the tow company, so for $75 I can just jump on the radio or give the tow company a call.   

[Lewis863]

My bad!  Sounds like a different ball game in the fingers.  No excuse for that guy.   In Lake Erie, it's a whopping $75 a year for a policy for PA and NY waters.  I'd never impose on somebody to tow me in when I could have just paid $75 for piece of mind, but yet I see it all the time.  My boat insurance has towing but I decided to buy a policy directly with the tow company this year to not have to deal with a middle man if stranded.  Got stranded on 4 of July last year with my whole family onboard and had to sit on the phone with Progressive and wait for them to play middle man and authorize the tow with the tow company, so for $75 I can just jump on the radio or give the tow company a call.   

I wish we had a tow service on Cayuga ... but no such luck


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[DWHJR]

Towboat will reimburse for towing charges  by marinas on lakes that they do not have a boat on.

Edited August 25, 2020 by DWHJR

[Lewis863]

My bad!  Sounds like a different ball game in the fingers.  No excuse for that guy.   In Lake Erie, it's a whopping $75 a year for a policy for PA and NY waters.  I'd never impose on somebody to tow me in when I could have just paid $75 for piece of mind, but yet I see it all the time.  My boat insurance has towing but I decided to buy a policy directly with the tow company this year to not have to deal with a middle man if stranded.  Got stranded on 4 of July last year with my whole family onboard and had to sit on the phone with Progressive and wait for them to play middle man and authorize the tow with the tow company, so for $75 I can just jump on the radio or give the tow company a call.   

I wish we had a tow service on Cayuga ... but no such luck


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[bulletbob]

best insurance policy??? a kicker motor in good working order.. If you have a 17-18  footer even a 4 horse will get you back to port..Might take all day, but it sure beats paddling.. If you can afford a 23-24 footer, you can afford a  good 9.9 or 15 with a proper Hi thrust prop... saw a guy on another fishing forum swear his 32 footer makes  an honest 7.5 knots with a 9.9 Yamaha kicker with a high thrust prop... Luck favors the prepared.. If my kicker is not functional for whatever reason, the boat stays on the trailer... bob

 

 

[BSmaster]

11 hours ago, bulletbob said:

Luck favors the prepared..  bob

 

 

 

I like this quote.  Very well said Bob.

[Lewis863]

Yes but many boaters are pleasure craft not fishing boats ... I personally have twin 250 hp engines so unless the boat is on fire I’m getting back just fine... your average small family boat isn’t going to have a kicker, and your average sail boat is gonna carry one engine...

Yes luck favors the prepared and the educated and experienced truthfully .... but not everyone is and there is never an excuse to refuse in calm conditions to assist a broken down boater with four kids on board as darkness approaches...


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[stoneam2006]

My bad!  Sounds like a different ball game in the fingers.  No excuse for that guy.   In Lake Erie, it's a whopping $75 a year for a policy for PA and NY waters.  I'd never impose on somebody to tow me in when I could have just paid $75 for piece of mind, but yet I see it all the time.  My boat insurance has towing but I decided to buy a policy directly with the tow company this year to not have to deal with a middle man if stranded.  Got stranded on 4 of July last year with my whole family onboard and had to sit on the phone with Progressive and wait for them to play middle man and authorize the tow with the tow company, so for $75 I can just jump on the radio or give the tow company a call.   

Ever since I've been on the big lakes I pay for both services too...75$ a year is cheap insurance

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[fisherdude]

" Perhaps there is a reason you were fishing alone " ...to me this was very unprofessional statement especially being a charter Captain Coast Guard auxiliary remember probably shouldn't even put a post up about the guy not towing somebody in .

 

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[Ahab]

You talk bad about someone you expected to tow a boat that you would not tow ?? Unbelievable. 

Edited August 28, 2020 by Ahab

[suttontroller94]

Im not saying it's right for the guy to drive by. However if there was a coast guard auxiliary vessel with the boat they probably figured it was part of the job to offer tow assistance. What exactly does the ithaca coast guard auxiliary do if they aren't even allowed to tow a boat dead on the water? 

[Lewis863]

Im not saying it's right for the guy to drive by. However if there was a coast guard auxiliary vessel with the boat they probably figured it was part of the job to offer tow assistance. What exactly does the ithaca coast guard auxiliary do if they aren't even allowed to tow a boat dead on the water? 

A good question, the auxiliary operates for a number of objectives. They are Search and Rescue, Boater Education, Vessel Inspections, Marine Monitoring under the department of homeland security. A boater broken down while that can lead to a rescue is not an emergency. The protocol requires us to first have them obtain a tow from any commercially available source. On Cayuga after 5 there is none. Secondarily issue a marine assistance broadcast for a good samaritan on channel 16, done no answer. Thirdly if available utilize a good samaritan in the area.

When there is a risk to life and property we get involved, like the sailboat adrift becalmed with broken engine at 10 pm I pulled to harbor, or the broken down boat adrift ahead of a severe inbound thunderstorm we towed in.

We work as a federal asset on the lake, there are a limited number in this case we were the only one covering 38 miles of lake. We need to be kept available for emergencies...boat sinking... people missing...medical emergency etc.

In this case the second potential good samaritan agreed to assist, with instruction and guidance they completed the tow while we monitored and shut down the entrance of the marina so it would make it safer for them to enter. The two families involved appeared to strike up a friendship and it ended quite well.

What I have learned from this post is that most people would render assistance and there are a few that take the approach of its not my problem piss off. I guess that should not surprise me, yet it does. It also disappoints.

Hopefully that helps clarify...and hopefully when asked to help, the majority would....


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[suttontroller94]

I would always help a stranded boater however I just think it's ridiculous they won't let you tie off to a boat and drag them across the lake to safety... Seems like a waste of resources to be on the lake burning gas and not doing something worthwhile when it pops up

[Lewis863]

I would always help a stranded boater however I just think it's ridiculous they won't let you tie off to a boat and drag them across the lake to safety... Seems like a waste of resources to be on the lake burning gas and not doing something worthwhile when it pops up

Covid has tightened our restrictions...in past I would have grabbed my tool kit, boarded and quite possibly gotten them going again...but now that isn’t an option either...


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[Hop]

2 hours ago, Lewis863 said:

A good question, the auxiliary operates for a number of objectives. They are Search and Rescue, Boater Education, Vessel Inspections, Marine Monitoring under the department of homeland security. A boater broken down while that can lead to a rescue is not an emergency. The protocol requires us to first have them obtain a tow from any commercially available source. On Cayuga after 5 there is none. Secondarily issue a marine assistance broadcast for a good samaritan on channel 16, done no answer. Thirdly if available utilize a good samaritan in the area.

When there is a risk to life and property we get involved, like the sailboat adrift becalmed with broken engine at 10 pm I pulled to harbor, or the broken down boat adrift ahead of a severe inbound thunderstorm we towed in.

We work as a federal asset on the lake, there are a limited number in this case we were the only one covering 38 miles of lake. We need to be kept available for emergencies...boat sinking... people missing...medical emergency etc.

In this case the second potential good samaritan agreed to assist, with instruction and guidance they completed the tow while we monitored and shut down the entrance of the marina so it would make it safer for them to enter. The two families involved appeared to strike up a friendship and it ended quite well.

What I have learned from this post is that most people would render assistance and there are a few that take the approach of its not my problem piss off. I guess that should not surprise me, yet it does. It also disappoints.

Hopefully that helps clarify...and hopefully when asked to help, the majority would....


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Good explanation. I  was wondering the same thing. 

[Sk8man]

And on the other hand there are some great buddies that stand by you through thick and thin like HOP and Admiral Byrd. Over the last 50 years I have been towed twice. Both circumstances were under adverse conditions and both on Seneca Lake. The first time  I was out (solo) south several miles from the north end of the lake and had been out for afternoon/evening troll when my new 35 horse motor on my 13 ft Whaler overheated (bad thermostat) and quit (i had no kicker at the time). I paddled for hours with my one canoe paddle toward the north in a fairly calm lake and then it became dark about nine o'clock and I was within sight of Glass Factory Bay and could see the lights of the Geneva Country Club. At about 11 PM or so I finally made it to shore and the then existing dock there. My trailer was at the north end at the Chamber of Commerce. I went up the hill to the Country Club and luckily the place was being swept up by the janitor and he let me use the phone. It is now about 11:30 at night. My buddy Hop was the only person I could think of who could retrieve my butt from the situation as he lived on the lake and had a boat in his hoist. I aroused him from sleep for HELP. I know he may not have been thrilled with the call but being the guy he is he came to my rescue at about 12:30 AM and towed me back to my trailer and returned home to finish his sleep. I have never forgotten that favor.

 

Time number two was the 2013 Seneca Lake Derby. My son and I were about 15 miles south of the north end where we had launched when my 135 HP motor quit (we had taken sediment earlier into the impeller earlier at the launch and the alarm went off but then subsided so I figured it had cleared and we trolled for about 4 hours afterward so I thought it was OK. The wind really accelerated during our troll and it was gusting at 45 mph when the motor quit. Ah OK well I still have the 2 stroke 9.9...which ran fine but I couldn't make headway against the strong wind gusts so I became very concerned then. I said to my son we need to get closer to shore (were in the middle of the lake trolling) thinking we could drop anchor in close and ride out the storm. We got into about 10 ft of water and I dropped the two anchors (total of 40 lbs) on 150 of rope). The wind continued and we were drifting south with it despite have out nearly all the rope and we would have been on our way to Watkins Glen at the south end without stopping with that wind. I called my friend Admiral Byrd who was near Sampson and asked for help and he came immediately (against the 4 ft waves and towed us the 15 miles north against the wind with his 19 ft Penn Yan. I remain grateful to this day for that help.

 

There are several morals to these stories:

True friends are there for you through the tough times as well as the good ones, and they are very different than just "acquaintances"

Never take your safety for granted out there; even experienced boaters/fishermen can get into trouble out there

Having a kicker although a good idea for many reasons does not guarantee your safety under all conditions and you don't have to be on Lake Ontario to get into trouble

Mother Nature can be merciless and will test you at the worst possible or most vulnerable times (motor quits, dead battery, storm onset  etc.)

We all need to stick together under those adverse circumstances.

Edited August 28, 2020 by Sk8man

[Fishmaster196]

sk8man as always very well said.

[Lewis863]

sk8man as always very well said.

Amen


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[chinook35]

On ‎8‎/‎22‎/‎2020 at 9:48 PM, bandrus1 said:

Ahh ok. I dont fish with my radio on. Definitely #1 rule is never pass a stranded boat.

If you have a marine radio aboard , you are required by law , to maintain a watch on channel 16 at all times  Fishing or not