Folks, I have less optimism for this thread than the fishing etiquette one, but figured it was worth a shot anyway.

To begin with, all boaters are now required to have passed the boater safety course. Recent collisions have occurred where boaters have been in total disregard of safety procedures.

Additionally, the cost of owning a boat can be high. Sometimes, this could imply that the person owning the boat would be more considerate of others who have also paid that high cost of owning their boat.

However, this is sadly not always the case, as evidenced by some recent tragedies.

this is nothing new under the sun, then why bother ranting and raving about it?

--Waste of time.
--Waste of bandwidth.
--Waste of effort.


In the overall scheme of things, we all bear responsibility how we are perceived as boaters and sportsmen.

We didn't cause the problem, but we are all lumped together by the general public when issues come up.

To this end, I thought I would create (for the 1,000th time) a boating etiquette thread.

I don't expect this will really change the way things are out there. However, more and more people are discovering boating each year. I thought as a website owner, I could sit passively by, agree that it is not my problem, and let things continue to deteriorate, with more accidents and tragedies.

Or I could at least try to do something about it, with the help of you folks out there.

Some of you seasoned boaters have reached the point in your boating careers that you can tell the difference between someone who could use a little extra help, and some one who has no use for any helpful advice. I'm sure many of you already go out of your way to help newbie boaters who are respectful, considerate, and ask the right questions at the right time.

All I'm suggesting is that we continue to do that, without causing any confrontations or putting ourselves at risk. Again, some out there just don't care who they are inconveniencing, and are generally selfish people. There's no point in trying to reach someone like that.

You're better off calling the Coast Guard if someone is acting like an idiot, because the boat they are operating could become a dangerous weapon.

If we can reach some of the others, and maybe teach someone else the beauty of the outdoors, I think it's worth a shot.