[Paddlewise] Fwd: whaling rules of the road

1) There are no provisions that specifically say a vessel under oars (oar) has
a right of way over anything.  (someone correct me on this please) See rule 18
"Responsibilities Between Vessels"

2) Due to 1) above, we must resort to rule 2 "The Responsibility Rule", also
known as the rule of good seamanship.  "Nothing in these rules shall exonerate
any vessel, or the owner, master or crew thereof, from the consequences of any
neglect to comply with these Rules or of the neglect of any precaution which
may be required by the ordinary practice of seamen, or by the special
circumstances of the case."

If I were in the hotseat in a Coast Guard query, I would interpret this as
saying both vessels/crews were ultimately responsible for safe shipkeeping of
their individual vessels. If you were vessels passing in the storm, OK, but if
there was a history that your highly maneuverable kayak was "playing" in front
of the ship, well, you decide how the courts would look at that.  Oh, the rule
of gross tonnage may really come into play with this too....You may never make
it to the Coast Guard hot seat.

Tom
Unlimited Tonnage Any Ocean   

attached mail follows:

The rules of the road say that a kayak has the right of way
over a whaling boat, do they not?
Therefore, if there is a large group of kayakers in the way
of a whaling boat, the whaling boat has to move.

If the exclusion zone law has priority over the rules of the road,
then we could get a couple of harpoons in our kayaks and engage in
whaling activities as well.

If me and my fellow paddlers are there with our baidarkas performing
traditional whaling with our harpoons, and the Makah whaling machine
shows up, who has to move out of the way?  
Does the fact that it is very unlikely that we would ever reach a
whale with our harpoons give them the right of way to force us out
and steal our whale?

There is no need to interfere with the Makah whaling activities with
our kayaks.  Instead we should show them, and help them revive, the
traditional hunting techniques with kayaks and harpoons. If a whaling
boat interferes with our class and teaching, it is their fault.

- Julio
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