Water Police Thanks thread!!

[ShamrockIV]

How are the water police/game wardens/whatever law you guys have on the water??

I have seen many threads on here about how bad they are some places.

I want to saythat ours in TN at least allt he ones on our lake or any lake i have been on are excellent!! As long as you are not obviously breaking the law they will not bother you. Talk about a thankless job!! they swat to death riding around trying to try and keep up safe from one another!!! I get stopped every weekend. Why?? they stop me so they can give my kids a reward of candy for having their life vests on!! i found out they buy this stuff out of their own pockets too!!

THANKS GUYS!!!!!

Lets hear how everyone else's water law enforcement act.

[rodltg2]

ive never seen one water patrol at our lake :D

i did passd thru a DUI checkpoint on the river a couple weeks back though.... they seemed nice...

[endl]

Ours are great in AR. They typically just sit around the marina's and wait for wally to take off in his boat with his under age kids without life vest on.

Now.......if your duck hunting thats another story!

[ShamrockIV]

Ours are great in AR. They typically just sit around the marina's and wait for wally to take off in his boat with his under age kids without life vest on.

Now.......if your duck hunting thats another story!



lol i can imagine!!!

i had to tell some kids last weekend they were about to get a ticket. they were pulling a tube with "wakeboard model" sea doo all the way into their houseboat. i told them that was a ticket for both of the people on the tube, much less easy to get run over by a houseboat trying to get in and out of it's slip!!!!

[kgrove]

Bastards here in AZ. I got a ticket this weekend for having a rider (my 10 yr old) sitting on the transom while I putted at wakeless speed to pick up a tube we left attached to my anchor. I would never let him do that if I was really driving the boat, but while at wakeless speed? Not only that, when they pulled their boat along side mine, they put out their bumpers, but their bumpers were too small and too low so their rub rail still protruded out far enough to bang my brand new boat. They were doing a pretty half assed job of trying to hold my boat away from theirs. I am 100% in favor of them looking for safety violations, *especially* alcohol, but I think they should use a little judgement and put the violation in context of the situation and give warnings for small problems. And there is no excuse for not better protecting people's boats from damage.

[ProTour X9]

What cops?? We've had them on our lake a whopping 1 time this year, and during a non-busy, glassy calm, weekday.

[flipper]

The ones around here suck!!!!

[Sodar]

The ones around here suck!!!!

X 2....


Cops on the river are cool. (They are out od state... imagine that!)


Coasties and Police on the bay/ocean are lame.

[TX.X-30 fan]

No more problems with ours after my wife started flashing them. :D

[TMCNo1]

Around here, they do their job keeping and getting the unruly, drunk, stoned, dangerous fools off the lake and treat the people acting like they have some sense and operating their boats properly with respect and leave us alone.

[russlars]

In 10 years I have only seen them twice on our lake, one of which was this last 4th of July in the morning. They were on Sea Doos and I think they were making the rounds to make their presence known. The other time was several years ago when I was teaching one of my daughters to ski. When I lowered her in the water with the skis on she panicked and let out a shrieking scream. Later on in the day he pulled us over because we were not using our skiier down flag. I explained to him that it had blown out of the boat on the way to the lake. He was cool about it and said "just wave that red life jacket you have over there." While he was there he gave us an inspection. When he asked to see out distress signal I couldn't produce one. I said: "Did you hear my daughter scream a little while ago? She's our distress signal." He laughed and said, "yeah I think you've got it covered for today. Just pick up a real one before your next outing.":)

[Willski]

Never been pulled over. I hear they can be nasty. Probably just depends on how you treat them, and if they think you are drinking or not.

[flipper]

I've been pulled over plenty of times, only one ticket. The cop was mad because I argued with him about a sign that i didn't obeyed by, because it wasn't there. He pointed out that it was, but the sign was turned towards the bank, where you couldn't see it from the water.

I got out of that, but he wrote me up because my fire extinguisher was "on the line" and needed to be replaced. I argued that it was still in the green, and lost. Went to pay the ticket, and the sheriff laughed about it, saying "that guy is like that", and that my fire extinguisher was fine.

[djhuff]

Ours are great, they pretty much know all of the regulars, one of them owns a Supra. They will come by and say hi when we have people tied up, and remind us to be careful leaving and not drink too much.

Had one help me out when I almost got run over, had some nice words for the other boat driver.

[Voodoo]

In the last eight years skiing in Berrien Co I have never seen law enforcement on the water.

Voodoo

[BIGBADBLUE]

My kids wave down the TWRA (same lake as Sham) to get the candy and show the officer they have their vest on ... it is funny.

They do a great job on CHL.

[btriantos]

I wish ours were a little more militant. They tend to pull over for overdue registrations and give a lot of warnings. We have a bunch of monkey's coming into our marina a little too hot, pushing a lot of wake. In general, we have a pretty safe lake, but now that the other reservoirs are getting too low, we have a lot of newbee's coming to ours. As stated in another thread, more reminders on common sense safety and courtesy would be great! Has anyone seen five to eight years olds getting pulled at 25+???

[kgrove]

I was polite as hell to mine even when they announced they were skipping the warning and going straight to a felony violation for a rider sitting on the engine cover/transom (at wakeless speed). I only got chippy with them when they banged the crap out the side of my boat. In hindsight, I should have been much angrier with them to prove the point and asked for badge numbers, etc. If they're going to be dicks on the water, I should have returned the favor. It would have been painfully obvious we weren't drinking... three 40ish men with three 10 yr old boys and nothing but gatorade and water bottles in all the cupholders, no screaming college kids in sight.

I see them patrolling all the time and really like the idea - assumed they were mostly making sure the drunks kept things in check. Turns out they aren't prioritizing what they're going after. Either the individual cops on the water are jerks or they are under alot of pressure to generate violations. I'm going with the individuals being jerks since they appear not to have given a crap about whacking my boat.

[2RLAKE]

pretty good at Lake Norris TN ... dont see them much to be honest. We almost got hit by a waverunner this summer idling into a marina ... the were right there, chased him down and gave him a ticket

[Scott]

Would like to see ALOT more jet ski harassment!!!!!!!!!!!!:D

[Upper Michigan Prostar190]

this is for the cops.

[Gonzo]

There is one in particular on Gaston a few yrs back that was a complete problem. These days they seem to be pretty good.

[Upper Michigan Prostar190]

Do police ever have impeller issues?

[whitedog]

We see 3 or 4 different deputies patrolling on the river. Rarely stop anyone for minor violations or safety inspections. Usually slow down and wave or stop to watch the skiing. A couple of them are skiers and enjoy watching others. They often will come to a complete stop if they see someone footing just out of courtesy and to watch. Have had a couple of inspections over the years but hey seem more interested in checking the parties on the bigger boats at the sandbar. Glad to see them on the water.

[NU-skier]

I was out with a friend in his new center console in early spring last year and a Game Warden pulled up and asked to see my friends fishing license. The two of them tried to get her to ask for mine but she said she didn't see me fishing so I didn't need one. She checked the new boat paperwork and his required equipment and gave him a check list to help keep his boat legal with. She had set up jumbo fenders and she also held her boat away from his the entire time she was talking with him. She was a very polite .. and cute Game Warden. :D A good hire by North Carolina.

[ttu]

on the lake that i frequent, never been pulled over or messed with. always wave and pull up and give him a bottle of water.

was down at lake murray (southern oklahoma) years ago when i had my old ooommmmbbba. my brother (13 years younger than i) was standing on the platform having a cig while stopped and the ok popo pulled up and said my boat registration numbers did not contrast enough with the hull for him to see. think he was checking my dumbarse brother out thinking he was smoking pot. my brother may be slow but not that stupid.

anyway, popo did a complete safety check and everything was fine, except the 120.00 ticket he gave me for the registration numbers not freaking contrasting enough.

[ULMboarder]

they hound us down here in louisiana. of course, i am a college kid who hangs out with the partiers cause i go to school with them. seems like every time i go out they are pullin me over. i have gotten several tickets from this one guy who for some reason just hates me. none of the tickets held up though. somedays, they will stop every single boat that they passed. they come in groups, I got checked 3 times in one afternoon once.

[uawaterskier]

I just duck back under the highway where our boathouse is...there stupid patrol boats cant make it under.

[jimmer2880]

For the past 30 years, ours have almost always been good. They rarely put on in the mornings when we are skiing.

About 7 years ago, I did have a problem with 2 of them (in 1 boat), who said my slalom course was too close to the shore. I asked them to show me the law I was breaking. After they couldn't find the ficticious law, they just tip their hat and wave.

I will agree that they do have a thankless job and need better respect.

[Skipper]

I saw a show on TV the other day where camera men were onboard with water cops on Lake Havasu. That place is totally out of control. Policing that lake would be like a grade school hall monitor trying to keep order at an Ozzy Ozborne concert.

[pram]

No more problems with ours after my wife started flashing them. :D

I call BS

we want proof

[wakesurf101]

hey anyone have ne suggestions on weighing a x15 down for surfing?

[wakesurf101]

hey anyone have any ideas on weighing down a x 15 for surfing
???

[TMCNo1]

Sand bags!

[bigmac]

hey anyone have any ideas on weighing down a x 15 for surfing
???
I'd suggest you post this question as a new thread in

http://www.mastercraft.com/teamtalk/forumdisplay.php?f=21

rather than in the water police thread.

[KBryant2007]

I was pulled over on the 4th of July this summer. There were 2 officers in the boat and he waved me over and I complied. He was very nice and asked for my drivers license, and proof of insurance. Of course, I forgot to put the new card in the boat at the beginning of the season, so he gave me a ticket, but said if I would send in a copy of my card, that the fine would be waived which I did. They both were very nice, but by the book. My kids, 10 and 7 were not sure about the whole thing, but the officers gave them a sonic gift certificate for having their vests on, so all in all it was a good experience.

[Michael hunter]

I get pulled over regular on Lake Michigan. I carry doubles
of all safety equipment. They seem to only check small boats
and wave runners. I have never seen a large boat pulled over.
I wish they would check at the ramp not stop you wile pulling
a skier. They also want you to stop immediately leaving the skier alone
in the water. They never seem to be around when needed
too busy hassling a small boat some where.

[chudson]

My family had a place on Mattoon Lake in central Illinois from 1958 to 1997 and the lake patrol was on us all the time, once the patrol guy threatened to shot a hole through the hull of the M117 boat (our city regitration number). He lost his job. And then DNR guys would visit the lake twice a year, once they stopped my brother in-law in his fishing boat and asked if he had a fire extinguisher and he should them his FULL extinguisher and one of them took it pulled the pin and shot a blast out of it and told my brother in-law " It's empty" and gave him a ticket. I boat at Clinton Lake now about 45 minutes from home and the DNR guys there are great. My son helped the chase down a smoker one time in my boat, at their request, and it seems they've never forgot it. I wave to them whenever I see'm and they always wave back. Great bunch of guys!!

[Skipper]

40959

Took this picture two years ago on Lake Powell. The police were cracking down on people who were using fireworks on the lake. Apparently they were in "hot pursuit" when the cops in this boat realized that there was no water on shore.