Safety "Long"

This is a cut and paste, but a very worthwile read to refresh you on some good boat driving habbits.
Enjoy
Dallas

SAFETY

I've posted this Chapter for permanent display on this site. Any reproduction of this page is freely granted. I feel it's that important! If you have anything to add, please e-mail it to me. At the bottom of this page is a link to an article brought to my attention by Bruce Epstien from Vermont about the Carbon Monoxide poisoning deaths of 7 young people at the back of ski boats. Please go to the link below this article.

In order to become a great skier, you must survive. There are horror stories out there. Stories about people being beheaded by a prop, backed up over and cut to ribbons, arms and heads going through the handle, hitting submerged as well as visible objects, etc., etc. This chapter deals with eliminating and controlling as much risk as possible. Ben Franklin once said, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. This should be your motto whenever you are around a boat. Some of the rules I live by and why follow below.
· Shut off Perfect Pass when backing up. Perfect Pass will surge at 1,500 RPM. When backing up to a skier, the Perfect Pass could surge. The surge begins as a decrease in throttle followed immediately by an increase. This increase in throttle can kill or seriously maim!
· Never stand on the platform when the boat is in reverse. Suppose the brackets that secure the platform to the boat broke or you lost your balance!
· Never grab the rope. Many people have the tendency of grabbing the rope when they drop. Suppose you got your wrist or finger caught in it and got dragged!
· Never say Go; say hit it! There is very little difference between the sound of “Go” and “No”. Suppose you have the rope wrapped around your neck, the driver asks if you are ready and you say no. The driver hears “Go”, a term you always use and you end up in the hospital if you're lucky.
· Never let children swim behind or in front of boats. Children are used to being “protected” and thus live in a safety shell. Once they become comfortable swimming and/or playing behind or in front of boats, they are in serious danger. It's easy to start your boat, throw it in forward or reverse and without seeing any danger, take or maim a young life.
· Always tuck in your safety vest straps on your life vest. I have seen people grab the handle and strap at the same time and rip off fingernails and break fingers!

· Double check your equipment. A fiend of mine was skiing with Kris LaPoint one day. As Kris passed through the entrance gate, a great big, powerful man went down really hard. His fin fell out! Whenever you make a change or an adjustment to your ski or equipment, double check it! When in doubt, get your Allen wrench and/or screwdriver out!
· Drive responsibly. A general rule of thumb, “If your driving is exciting, it's dangerous”! This applies whether you're in a boat, car, plane, motor scooter or whatever. You are in control of a lethal weapon. In a boat, a sudden turn can throw your passengers overboard and under the boat where the propeller promptly removes whatever body part is in its way. Alcohol and water do not mix. Drugs and water do not mix. Responsibility and water do!
· When you drop a skier, parallel them. I have been scared countless times by drivers who whip a skier up alongside the boat and then turn directly into them, predicting when and where the skier will sink. A misjudgment can cause great tragedy. To eliminate any possibility of this situation occurring, when you whip the skier up alongside the boat, parallel the skier until both the skier and the boat have settled into the water. While the skier is decelerating, the boat is decelerating. When they're sinking into the water, the boat is sinking in the water, approaching idle speed. In this manner, everyone's safety is assured.
· Watch the boat when you drop. Sometimes, whether out of necessity or incompetence, the driver will turn the boat at you, the skier. If you see this situation occurring, you have a chance of surviving.
· Discard old ropes and handles. A friend of mine in Miami ruptured his spleen when a rope broke while accelerating. I busted my ribs breaking a rope.
· Keep your feet out of the ski rope in the boat. My skiing partner broke her foot while seated in the boat when the skier broke one side of the loop on his towline and pulled the rest of the rope out of the boat, breaking her foot in the process. It is not possible to save money on old ropes and handles.
· Put the free rope behind the driver. When you shorten a towline, put the part of the line that you shorten behind the driver. In this manner, it's not wrapped around anyone's body parts.
· Keep your hands off the pylon. If your hand is on the pylon (especially the upper part, near the rope) and something goes wrong, you can literally be ripped out of the boat and/or have some body parts non surgically removed. Keep your hands, face and all body parts away from the pylon.
· Brief riders about handle pops. One day a father and young child came out to the lake. They sat on the shore watching us ski and were enthralled by it. The father walked down to our boat and asked if his young child could ride. I agreed and began pulling the next skier who soon pooped the handle at the boat. Luckily the handle missed the boy but the rope wrapped around his neck. I reached over and pulled it off before it could do any damage. I have seen the handle rip out chunks of gel-coat from boats, shatter rear view mirrors, wrap around the throttle and pull the boat into reverse causing the bow to dive underwater, sinking the boat. I have had the rope wrapped around my neck countless times. I have pulled it off the driver’s necks countless times. Always be aware that a skiers handle and rope can become lethal weapons in the blink of an eye!
· When the skier says “hit it”, idle out slowly and then hit it. Countless times I have heard a skier yell “hit it” before the rope is tight. A well trained driver will always look at the skier and confirm that the rope is tight prior to applying the gas. A secondary safety measure that I employ is to idle out slowly for a second or two prior to hitting it. In this manner, I apply 3 safety checks; the skier says “hit it”, I visually confirm they are ready and I idle out slowly guaranteeing there is no slack in the line.
· Turn off the engine when picking up a skier. Let’s say you're picking up a skier at the end of a productive set. You swing the transom of the boat gently to them, hit reverse to stop the momentum and then put it in neutral. As the skier is making their way to the platform, a swarm of bee’s flies in your face. You panic and somehow manage to throw the boat in reverse. If the engine is off, nothing but bee stings can happen!
· Always keep the skier visible. Whenever bringing a fallen skier the rope, keep them visible as you pass them. Additionally, have the boat in neutral while they're alongside.
· Stay far behind when following a skier. Where I ski, you must drive down the slalom course in order to get to the starting docks. All too often, I see boats following skiers too closely. From the skier's point of view, they're very aware of a boat following them which keeps them from totally focusing. From a driver's point of view, a momentary lapse of concentration can kill a fallen skier. Allow the skier to get to ball 4 or 5 before following them.
· Stay away from other boats, etc. Again, the theory that “if it's exciting, it's dangerous” applies. Skiing close to the shore, spraying other boats, going around other people or boats is dangerous. You might be the best skier in the world and experience an equipment failure at the wrong time. One time in my youth, I skied around another boat only to have the rope get caught and take out their windshield. Think safety!
· Whenever someone goes under the boat, be it to get a rope out of the prop, check the rudder or what have you, take the key out of the ignition (or disable it by entering a lock code on the newer Ski Nautiques and/or pull the safety harness switch off).
· Skiers, watch where you're going! One day while doing a clinic in Michigan, a father and son showed up to participate. This young boy needed some encouragement and basic coaching. All was going well. At the end of a pass we decided to spin the boat to get right back into the course for what I call “accelerated learning”. As we entered the turn, this young boy was staring up at the beautiful blue sky and the driver was just a touch too close to the rocky shore. I as well as the boy's father riding in the boat next to me saw it coming at the last instant but were powerless to stop it. We watched in absolute horror as his ski ran up on the rocks, his body launched forward, his head snapped back as his face hit. Off they went to the emergency room. Luckily, he was OK, a bit bruised and scraped up but OK. Please, pay attention!
· Never, ever spike the handle. One day a good friend of mine with a bad temper was so mad after missing a pass that he spiked the handle. Spiking the handle means to throw the handle down into the water with force! When the handle hit the water, it immediately rebounded and wrapped around his neck. He now has a permanent scar from this momentary lapse in judgment.
· When driving in unfamiliar waters, ask the locals and note any marked or unmarked obstructions.
· Know how to operate the speed control. Stepping on the Accuski pedal at the wrong time can blow up engines, cause property damage and take lives or limbs. Allowing the Perfect Pass to surge when backing up to a skier or docking can do the same.
· As a skier, always keep the rope between you and the boat. If the rope is around you, there is a remote possibility of something happening in the boat that would cause it to accelerate. If the rope is around you, you are in serious trouble. If the rope is between you and the boat, you simply let it go!
· When a skier falls hard, assume the worst no matter what their hand signal says. The day I snapped my foot in half, my hand instantly went up, seconds before the pain came barreling in. After countless falls where we are trained to raise our hand, we one day fall and really hurt ourselves. Our automatic response mechanism kicks in and our hand goes up before we recognize we're hurt. When a skier falls hard, get back to them immediately, no matter what!

· When towing a motor boat, make sure the ignition is off and the gear shift is in neutral. A boat can and will jump start just like an automobile and can kill, even if it’s assumed to be out of gas! The Greek island of Poros, July 2001
· When exiting a running boat, make sure to utilize the neutral safety pin and press the throttle arm forward to the point that the engine’s RPM is about to increase. Doing this assures that even if someone accidentally hits the throttle, the gears cannot engage. Better a blown engine than an injury or death. From Sotiri Kryptos, owner of Passage Ski School, Poros island, Greece.
· When in large bodies of water, make sure you and all your passengers have ready access to life preservers.