Where to sit when coaching surfers (on the sundeck will get you a citation in MN)

[cwindingland]

My family and I decided to head out to a local lake after work on Wednesday. It was a hot and humid night with not too many people on the lake and just a little bit of chop. My 11 year old daughter is just learning how to surf. My wife was sitting up on the sundeck with her feet inside the cockpit helping with the rope and giving instruction to our daughter. Right after she falls we turn around to pick her up and here comes deputy dip$hit. Don't get me wrong, I am respectful of law enforcement but this guy was on a revenue generating mission. How about a warning I ask. He responds "Sorry sir, we take safety very serious".

A couple things that got me worked up over this: It's a quiet night on the lake, we are doing about 10mph, everyone has a life jacket, not a beer in the boat, we are very mindful of others, etc. Oh yeah, and if I would not have caught his boat when he pulled up he would have run right into the side of my hull with his aluminum duck boat. Is it just the nanny state where I live or are others experiencing what I would consider harassment? How is this scenario different than allowing motorcyclists the option of wearing a helmet? Unless I am being a nuisance or harming others, leave me alone! Sorry, I am just venting as the citation cost me about a full tank of gas .

[s_kelley2000]

Unfortunately I am pretty sure that sitting on the sundeck is illegal in all 50 states if the boat is underway but it is not always enforced. I got stopped for it once last year with pretty much the same situation. The lake was quiet, the coach on the sundeck had a life jacket on and there was no beer on board. The commissioner said I know it's an inboard and the prop is under the boat but I need you to have all your passengers inside the boat. We were both friendly and he let me go. Sorry to hear he didn't let you off without a warning.

So what I do now is have somebody sit in the back corner with legs stretched across the bench or kneel facing backwards to give instructions and catch the rope. Seems to work almost as well and doesn't attract any unwanted attention.

[scott resick]

The fish fuzz we call them. A step below mall guards on segways. So we went to the city for fireworks one year, 5 people in my '86 2001. A girl was sitting on the motor box as we idled through a No Wake Zone for a spot to anchor. The fish fuzz light me up and inform me she needs to be in a seat and asks to see life jackets. I knew I only had 3 in the bow storage (im usually more responsable than that) so I knelt in front of the spotters seat and lifted the seat and grabbed a life jacket, counted 1 and set it on my lap, then 2 and set it on my lap then the 3rd snd set it on my lap. Then I counted them off of my lap as 4, 5 and 6 as I placed the same 3 jackets on the floor behind me. And it worked! I ended up getting a citation for a bad fire extinguisher but we still laugh about the life jacket scam.

[DanielC]

Almost all the rules you THINK are stupid exist because somebody who WAS stupid seriously hurt or killed somebody.

This is blunt, but your post kind of pointed out to me which those two groups of people you are in.

[nyryan2001]

^^^ WTF is that all about?

[cwindingland]

Almost all the rules you THINK are stupid exist because somebody who WAS stupid seriously hurt or killed somebody.

This is blunt, but your post kind of pointed out to me which those two groups of people you are in.

You're right about being blunt. You don't even know me but yet feel comfortable sitting behind your keyboard and calling me stupid. But, herein lies the beauty of this country and your right to free speech.

[s_kelley2000]

^^^ WTF is that all about?

Agreed. Dan you are usually very on point and have some great advice and knowledge but I am failing to see what the OP did that warranted your response. Coaching from the sunpad is FAR from the most dangerous thing I see on my lake on a regular basis, especially when you consider she was wearing a lifejacket and had her feet inside the main cockpit.

[River Monsters]

Sheriff got us for this Sunday after noon. My son was sitting on the sunpad with his feet in the boat catching the line and jeering his older brother. "That is sunpad, not a seat".

[scottb7]

I do think coaching while sitting on sunpad/deck while underway is a pretty bad idea. What I have experienced is that the driver has enough to worry about when riders fall and you have to turn and pick someone up with out worrying about someone from sunpad rolling off into the water. Granted the person would just get wet. But i think kneeling on seats facing back is good enough for coaching. If that is not close enough to coach then the person being coached is probably not ready to learn. What I do is if they are my kids i tell them what to do. If not I tell the passenger first couple times to get in the boat. 3rd time I tell them it is their risk and their ticket to pay.

Sitting on the motor box on a ski boat i guess is similar but no one falls in the water so I think that one is bs.

Freedom of speech is great!

[DanielC]

Yea, it was blunt. Sometimes it is hard to hear truth without establishing a relationship,

People have fallen off the sundeck on boat. Most do not get hurt, but some do.
Here is an issue most do not realize. At slow speeds, especially in a heavily loaded boat, the propeller sucks water into itself. Anything in that water is drawn to the propeller. Legs, arms, other body parts.

"My family and I decided to head out to a local lake after work on Wednesday. It was a hot and humid night with not too many people on the lake and just a little bit of chop. My 11 year old daughter is just learning how to surf. My wife was sitting up on the sundeck with her feet inside the cockpit helping with the rope and giving instruction to our daughter. Right after she falls"

(Note end of quoting you) my daughter hits her head on the plarform. My wife tries to grab her, and I panic, worried about my daughter, and turn quickly, and my wife, unable to hold on, slides off the sundeck. I then realize my daugher is face down in the water, unconsious, and my wife, just thrown from the boat is unable to help her.

You can finish the story.

That is What the **** it is about.

[nyryan2001]

^^^ reaching.

Another grumpy slollam guy towards wakesurfing?

[Chexi]

With the surf waves you (and others are creating), I think having someone on the sunpad, for coaching or otherwise, is a bad idea. I can tell you that I was surfing one time and some idiot was sitting on the sunpad with his feet on the swim platform, "because that is how you get the best wake." This was on someone else's 2000 SAN (exactly the same as my boat), and that is not the way to get the best wake. It also made me so nervous that I simply stopped riding. Granted, this is more extreme than what you are describing, but with some of the huge waves being made these days, I could see someone on the pad getting thrown from the boat into the rider. Head hits tip of surfboard and person loses eye or worse. It's not the dumbest thing people do on the lake by a long-shot, but it is not the brightest thing either. Personally, I try not to live my life by doing things a little smarter than the masses, but be being lightyears ahead of them. Ultimately, it's against the law, you did it, and you got caught. The cop had the discretion to give you a warning or give you a ticket. He did the latter. You were a bit unlucky on that front, but fortunately no one on your boat was very unlucky.

Regarding the motorbox in a DD (and the same for the sunpad), no one should sit on that when the motor is on. If there is a fuel leak and someone forgets to run the blower for a few minutes before starting, the person sitting on top of the motor is probably dead. If you are elsewhere in the boat, you at least stand a chance. Have I done both of these in the past? Yes. Do I do them or allow them anymore, no. Why? Because I have seen boats on fire with engines that have blown up.

[196 die hard]

It may be a bad idea but the fact is, the lake cop could have given a good warning. If he does not learn from the warning, next time the cop could toss the book at him. This is typical Minnesota land of Al Franken stuff. It is all about the money and is just another way to nickle and dime us to get more revenue.

[Chexi]

There is no doubt that Minnesota is screwed up.

[surroundsound64]

Our government... What a joke.