Jet Ski Rage

Fri Oct 12, 2007 10:41 am

I was surf fishing for bass a couple of days ago when a couple of meat heads on jet ski's came around the head land at high speed. I had waded out into the surf and these guys charged at me at high speed as if I wasn't there. I reeled in as fast as I could to prevent them hitting my line. They actually made as if to hit me but swerved at the last moment then circled around me a couple of times and then sped out to sea. Is there any speed limits on these craft in inshore waters? I was really tempted to hurl a 3oz lead at them but I thought better of it.:emoticon(':x')x

Fri Oct 12, 2007 10:45 am

i remember a rib from dunlaoghraire harbour drove too close to string of about 8 anglers caught all the line and cleaned out all the gear :evil:

Fri Oct 12, 2007 10:54 am

jet skiers , the morons of the sea.

there are speed limits within harbours, but i dont think there are for inshore waters. i would have hurled the lead.

Fri Oct 12, 2007 10:56 am

luckily they band them form galway city burough on acount of the swimmers but that doesn't stop them just less of them

Fri Oct 12, 2007 11:23 am

Might not have been a bad idea to report it to the cops or the harbour master if it was within the harbour limits. What they would do I don't know but it might open someone's eyes to the problem.

A hi vis vest might be needed next time you fish this mark they probably didn't see you n were not looking out for you :evil: :evil:


Jim

Fri Oct 12, 2007 11:28 am

Mohawk wrote:Might not have been a bad idea to report it to the cops or the harbour master if it was within the harbour limits.


... or even the county council if it was outside the harbour. They may have been violating Beach Bye-Laws.

I know in Wexford jet-skis are banned up to 200m from low-water at almost all popular beaches with easy access.

Fri Oct 12, 2007 11:46 am

They truly are the morons of the sea. They definitely saw me, had their engines been quieter they would have heard me swearing. These guys seem to need an audience to show off their toys to. I thought about reporting them but its not like they have license plates or anything. Also the speeds they travel at meant they could have come from anywhere, they certainly hadn't launched nearby. :x :x . Do they enforce the ban in Galway and if so who does it and how?.

Fri Oct 12, 2007 11:51 am

If you see them being launched (or retrieved) you could report to the guards and give number plates of the cars. Otherwise, as you said, there's not much you can do.

Fri Oct 12, 2007 12:01 pm

I forgot to mention that as soon as they had sped out to sea I threw a cast into their wake and hooked a fish within seconds. The bass obviously weren't too bothered about them, I was still furious at that point and I was a bit heavy handed playing the fish, it resembled a jet ski itself as I hauled it through the surf. If I encounter them again I will try and find where they are launching from and get their vehicle reg as suggested. I bet they drive a Hummer!

Fri Oct 12, 2007 12:12 pm

chiggywig wrote:I threw a cast into their wake and hooked a fish within seconds.


have often found the same when fishing piers, i think the wake of a vessel throws up the bottom and fish come into look for an easy meal.

in days gone by, when i used to fish ballycotton i would often retrieve a line to ensure that it was in the wake of a boat and invariable within seconds i had a take

Fri Oct 12, 2007 12:14 pm

Jet Skiers… personal hate of mine.

As far as I know, the only people who like jet skis are the arse’s sitting on them….
Will motor for miles to drive round in front of you? :roll:

I know all launching of jet skis is banned from the Malahide/Portmarnock area, which is a great thing. They are also banned from a few big midland lakes!

It seems the only good thing about them is that everyone hates them, so a little pressure on the local council and you can get the launching/running of them banned from areas.
A letter to your local County councillor might not go astray.. Pointing out what other county councils have done and the general danger of these things.

A general hazard to themselves and others, have seen them outside Howth harbor in force 6 conditions, with no wet suit on…. :roll: :roll:

As an angler they are bad but as a swimmer… Lethal.

Will stop now or I will just get :evil:

Fri Oct 12, 2007 12:26 pm

I may well write to the council Bombax, as I am reading all the replys here it is making me furious all over again. As you say a swimmer would have had a much lower profile and would have been really vulnerable. Surely there is also a risk to marine animals from those prat machines. Imagine if you hit a basking shark! I would like to think it would harm the jet ski more than the shark. :wink:

Fri Oct 12, 2007 2:42 pm

i think they are a hate of all those who enjoy watersporst of anykind...

i have written numerous letters to local papers, city council/county council, harbour master, swan rescue, RNLI and any other organisation that there idiots get in the way of..

i found that a few swimmers complaining to the local gardai usually gets things rolling...

Mon Oct 15, 2007 1:45 pm

Can I play devils advocate here. There are people who use Jet Ski's responsibly and there are idiots who don't. Just like in fishing - there are decent, responsible anglers and there are idiots who cast at passing yachts. We are fighting seriously against DunLaoghaire/Rathdown CoCo because they want to ban angling on the basis of the conduct of those angling idiots and we are calling for bans on Jet Ski's on the basis of the conduct of another set of idiots. Seems we might be running with the fox and chasing with the hounds - trying to anyway.

Just a thought in an idle moment.

Mon Oct 15, 2007 2:32 pm

100% agree with ya...

slowarm wrote:Can I play devils advocate here. There are people who use Jet Ski's responsibly and there are idiots who don't. Just like in fishing - there are decent, responsible anglers and there are idiots who cast at passing yachts. We are fighting seriously against DunLaoghaire/Rathdown CoCo because they want to ban angling on the basis of the conduct of those angling idiots and we are calling for bans on Jet Ski's on the basis of the conduct of another set of idiots. Seems we might be running with the fox and chasing with the hounds - trying to anyway.

Just a thought in an idle moment.

Mon Oct 15, 2007 2:59 pm

yep agree with you slowarm - turned it on its head nicely

Mon Oct 15, 2007 3:26 pm

slowarm wrote:Can I play devils advocate here. There are people who use Jet Ski's responsibly and there are idiots who don't. Just like in fishing - there are decent, responsible anglers and there are idiots who cast at passing yachts. We are fighting seriously against DunLaoghaire/Rathdown CoCo because they want to ban angling on the basis of the conduct of those angling idiots and we are calling for bans on Jet Ski's on the basis of the conduct of another set of idiots. Seems we might be running with the fox and chasing with the hounds - trying to anyway.

Just a thought in an idle moment.


I was thinking the same, there are swimmers out there saying exactly the same about anglers.

Less legislation is more, less enforcement is more on these issues I think you'll find, unfortunately you'll always have idiots who don't even practise common sense.

Wed Oct 17, 2007 7:07 pm

there are undoubtedly responsible jet-skiers, just like there are responsible owners of SUVs and golf clubs. However, emotionally, I can't stand any of them.

Furthermore, reading through the papers released to me under an FOI request made to DLR CoCo about the proposed blanket/beach ban on angling in the DLR area, it's clear that the legislation and penalties aimed at the jet ski narcissistas is forming the basis for introducing restrictions and levying fines against other water users.

So the message is to report these bozos to the cops, authorities, and media (Irish times, seascapes, etc) and put a stop to their bad behaviour for all our sakes.

Thu Oct 18, 2007 7:37 am

slowarm wrote:Can I play devils advocate here. There are people who use Jet Ski's responsibly and there are idiots who don't. Just like in fishing - there are decent, responsible anglers and there are idiots who cast at passing yachts. We are fighting seriously against DunLaoghaire/Rathdown CoCo because they want to ban angling on the basis of the conduct of those angling idiots and we are calling for bans on Jet Ski's on the basis of the conduct of another set of idiots. Seems we might be running with the fox and chasing with the hounds - trying to anyway.

Just a thought in an idle moment.


I was thinking the same thing myself, I still hate the things though I am sure there may be a bit of fun for people. Anyway, those lads were just gobshites and if they were surfing would surf in the swimming zone, if fishing would litter and leave a pile of dead fish in a pier, if they were petrol heads they would do wheel spins where my kids are playing....

Thu Oct 18, 2007 12:11 pm

I see no contradiction in saying angling is good and jet skis are bad. Jet skis are intrusive noisy and dangerous. In my opinion these machines can only appeal to the type of person who enjoys being intrusive noisy and dangerous! :x