Boat Lights, Regulations, DANGER!!!

[Bob La Londe]

I decided to post this here rather than in the one of the boating forums because it is bass tournament anglers I have noticed who seem to have the worst problem with this.  Atleast around Yuma.

I have a pet peave.  Tournament anglers who don't turn their running lights on in the morning.  First off guys.  Let me be perfectly clear.  The USCG says on any USCG regulated waters the lights must be on from sunset to sunrise. It says nothing about, "its light enough so we don't need them."  Most state boating regs I have reviewed don't jive precisely with USCG, but in AZ and Ca they do require running lights to be on from sunset to sunrise.  Not last light to first light. 

I know that I had a near miss last year because of somebody who wasn't running with their lights on.  I was moving pretty fast up the river.  I glanced over my right shoulder and didn't see anybody so I started to cut over into the lake I was going to fish.  As I cut over I glanced back again, and anoither boat who had decided to overtake me on the right instead of the left was right on top of me.  I was able to smack the throttle and swing the boat enough so that we didn't have an accident, but in that early morning twilight if they had been running their lights they would not have blended into the background weedline, and I could have noticed that they were trying to overtake and cut me off from the wrong side.  I'ld have just backed off and let them by or tached it out and cleared them easily.   

What reminded me of this was the start yesterday morning.  We had fog.  It had started to lift inside the host marina when we launched, but I notice that more than half the field didn't have their lights on.  When we hit the river it got thick.  I ran by my GPS and followed a bank where I know there is deep enough water to make the run.  I also backed it off to about 25 MPH so I had time to react to any obstuctions or other boats that might already be fishing or running slow.  About four or five miles down I noticed another boat was dropped into the center of my wake following me down river.  What bothered me was I had to look twice to realize he was there.  He didn't have his running lights on.  COME ON!!!!  It was a good fifteen or twenty minutes before sunrise, and we had heavy fog and he still didn't have his lights on.   

Sure you may have fished local club tournaments for twenty years like that and never had an accident, but it only takes once.  For a simple thing like not turning on your lights as required by USCG regulation (which has the force of law) or your own state statutues you may cost somebody their boat or their life.  And I know for a fact most of these people know the regs.  Go fish a classic like the ABA on Lake Mead and all those same anglers will have their lights on.  The difference is the tournament officials will DQ a boat they see blatantly disregarding safety regulations. 

I think that club or other tournament officials should at the very least make them turn on their lights before allowing them to leave the marina.

[Mike Noble]

I agree and am also at fault.  I don't use the running lights most of the time.  It is also an issue in the evenings.  Folks will think they can make it back to the landing safely after sunset and its very dangerous.

We pushed the wearing of personal floatation devices on here and I think this is another GREAT area.

Thanks Bob for bringing this up.

[MotherNature]

It is a very good point and I think that all of us should be more aware of safety issues on and off the water.