Rich Landers: Like it or not, boater safety here to stay

As our lakes and rivers become more crowded with motorized and non-motorized vessels and the shorelines become more packed with cabins, houses and condos, it’s safe to say that boater safety issues aren’t going away.

Washington has taken the proactive route of phasing in law that will require virtually all powerboat operators to complete an eight-hour boater safety course.

The law passed by the legislature in 2005 will require that all resident boaters operating vessels powered by motors of 10-horsepower or greater will be required to have a boater safety education certificate. This provision would be phased in over nine years depending on a boater’s age. Boaters 20 and younger would need the certificate by 2008.

Yep, that’s next year already.

The requirement will continue to add more age groups until it extends to boat operators 70 and younger in 2016.

Approved courses include the basic safe boating classes already being taught on the Internet and in Spokane by certified volunteers from the U.S. Power Squadrons and Coast Guard Auxiliary. If you have a certificate that proves you’ve already taken one of these courses, you’re requirement is fulfilled.

The Power Squadron’s are offering their next course starting Aug. 6. The Coast Guard Auxiliary will schedule private classes. Costs are about $40, including the manuals.

Contact:

“Spokane Sail & Power Squadron, (509) 328-6165.

“U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, (509) 921-0449.

The most common complaint about boaters on Lake Pend Oreille this summer is many of them insist on going too fast close to shore, according to Bonner County Sheriff’s Department marine deputies contacted Wednesday.

The lake speed limit is 50 mph, but boats are required to travel with no wake when they’re within 200 feet of shore. On the rivers, the no-wake zone is 100 feet from shore.

The other big concern, deputies say, is speeding at night. While the posted limit is 25 mph, you’re asking for trouble going more than 10 mph when there’s no visibility, deputies say.

And, of course, always wear lifejackets. The county’s one boating fatality this year – actually an angler in a float tube – likely would have been prevented had the victim been wearing a life jacket.

The number of accidents is up this year, but the number of serious accidents is down, deputies said.

The Kamloops Island Campground in the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area will be closed Wednesday-Aug. 15 during a construction project, according to National Park Service officials.

Work to replace the Hedlund Bridge at the intersection of SR 395 and Northport Flatcreek Road also will prevent water access to the Kettle River from the main channel of Lake Roosevelt.

Although bridge construction will continue until next summer, visitors will be able to access the campground after mid August on a detour from Napoleon Bridge.

Launch facilities at Napoleon Bridge on the Kettle River will remain open allowing access to the river above Kamloops Island.

Info: Kettle Falls District, (509) 738-6266, ext. 109.

The cyclist struck by a hit-and-run driver in this year’s Seattle-to-Portland ride suffered two fractured vertebrae, nine stitches in his head and a partially collapsed lung.

But Gerald Marvin, 24, of Seattle said his helmet saved him from a much worse fate.

“Given what happened, I think I’m pretty lucky,” he told The Oregonian newspaper on Monday.

The Oregon State Police said Marvin was hit from behind last Sunday by a 40-year-old who fled the scene before being apprehended and charged with felony hit and run, driving under the influence of intoxicants, assault, reckless driving, recklessly endangering another person and violating his parole.

Of course, none of that detail made any difference to the victim. When a bicyclist is bumped by a motorist, the outcome is usually the same regardless of whether the driver is a road-rage jerk or a church-going granny.

“I just remember all of a sudden I was flying through the air,” Marvin said. “It really came out of nowhere.”

Muzzleloaders once again are on the agenda for the Idaho Fish and Game Commission meeting, which ends today in Salmon.

In January, the commission adopted changes to the legal definition of a muzzleloader for muzzleloader-only hunts.

The change effectively prohibited the use of most in-line muzzleloaders used by many Idaho muzzleloader hunters. The new definition generated public concern, primarily from North Idaho and out-of-state muzzleloader enthusiasts.

Yielding to the complaints, the commission amended the rule for some hunts, which opened another can of worms by changing all Panhandle muzzleloader seasons to “short-range weapon” seasons. That meant that all designated short-range weapons – archery, muzzleloader and shotgun – were allowed in the former muzzleloader-only seasons.

The commissioners are scheduled to review the rules again today.