Water and Boating Safety

To anyone ever taking a spin for the first time on an all-terrain vehicle, dirt bike, motorcycle or snowmobile in the winter, a few basic requirements such as how to steer and where the gas, clutch, and brakes are is standard operating procedure. The same goes for cars and trucks except the training period lasts longer.

When it comes to watercraft and water recreation, however, the initial care required by adults just doesn’t seem to be the same.

I've never really understood why many adults who have little or no experience operating a boat seem OK with just jumping in and driving off when given the opportunity. Granted, the state doesn’t have any licensing requirements for operating a boat once you reach the age of 16, but it seems to me that a little practice or a few rides with an experienced boater looking over your shoulder is just good common sense.

Driving a boat or a personal watercraft is not the same as driving a vehicle on a road. One of the big differences is that vehicles have brakes and boats and personal watercraft don’t. It’s perhaps a situation similar to a gun without a safety. You can use them, but it takes extra care and caution, and in the case of recreational boating that extra caution is sometimes overlooked.

The speed and power of today's personal watercraft – often called “jet skis” – is impressive. Modern PWCs can at times rival the speed of terrestrial motorcycles, but the one thing novice operators often overlook is that PWCs don’t have brakes. While they can slow down fairly quickly when you cut the power, cutting the power limits the ability to steer.

For example, if you’re driving a motorcycle down the road and a deer crosses into your lane of traffic, you can release the throttle and/or brake to slow down, and if needed you can steer out of danger once you’ve decelerated to a speed at which it’s safe to maneuver.

In a similar situation on the water, if you release the throttle you've also severely restricted the steering capability, as PWCs require power to the jet to steer. With experience, PWC operators learn to reduce speed but keep the power up enough so steering is still possible. It’s counter-intuitive, but it’s the correct response and only learned through repetition in a controlled environment.

One other point I want to bring up as our lakes and rivers heat up both in the air and on the water. To legally operate any watercraft powered with a motor of greater than 10 horsepower, an operator must have adult supervision until the age of 16. An exception is that operators ages 12-15 can take and pass a certified boat and water safety course. The North Dakota Game and Fish Department program is called Boat North Dakota, and the workbook is available free of charge, and the test is take-home and open-book.

Under age 12, operators must always be accompanied by an adult, and all PWC operators and passengers must wear a life jacket. On all water vessels under 27 feet in length, youngsters ages 10 and younger must also wear a life jacket while the boat is in operation.

My point here isn't to scare any parent or potential boat or PWC user, but one accident, injury or death on the water, stemming from an activity which is supposed to be fun and relaxing, is one too many. Enjoy the short window we call summer in North Dakota and please be safe.

Leier is a biologist with the Game and Fish Department. He can be reached by email: dleier@nd.gov