> Wes, if it would not upset the prosecution of the PWC driver, you might > consider contacting your local newspaper with the offer of an already > written feature article. If you can provide a picture or two (maybe the > three of you standing to an upside down kayak, or kayak full of water in the > reeds) that might help. Newspapers are more receptive to that approach than > you might think. This is one of the many good ideas coming up in PaddleWise. But I want to get to another thought. Isn't it amazing that a sport, jetskiing, that is relatively new (I can't remember when the sport started taking off) and has reached such huge numbers of advocates (the number of jetskis and jetskiers greatly dwarfs the number of sea kayaks and sea kayakers) who have shelled out mucho money and supported a large industry that has done extensive advertising, created a whole bunch of magazines (several of them individually have a circulation that is higher than all the paddling publications combined), etc. is probably on the brink of being effectively shut down or very seriously curtailed. That total ban it faces in national parks, the many state-level strictures in the form of licenses, mandatory training, etc. all are narrowing where a jetskier can go and how he or she can operate. I am not feeling sorry for jetskiers, mind you. But there are lessons here: 1. If you put out a recreational machine that is a high polluter such as a jet ski, eventually the world will come crushing down on you. The industry has only itself to blame for this current predicament it faces. It has been stalling for years in cleaning up the machines. Only now, faced with that national park ban and other curtailments, is the industry now saying it will act to reduce noise and environmental pollution. 2. If you foster an image of hi-jinx and reckless behavior (which the ads for jetskis almost always do) in order to sell you product, you help create a good number of reckless operators. This leads to annoying others and also to a large number of deaths on the water. This then leads to the type of bans that are hurting the industry. Again, the industry only has itself to blame. I always thought that the jetski lobby was so strong that nothing would ever come up to hinder where and how the machines operate. So I am surprised how many states and municipalities as well as the feds are tightening the noose around the necks of the industry and its customers. I think as kayakers we should take notice. While our boats are not polluters in themselves, we can have an impact on the environment in other ways or have an annoying effects on others. Issues like landing on private property and not watching how we treat it or close encounters with marine life which is covered by federal statutes in the US among other places, or paddling without concern for the rules of the road causing problems for commercial maritime users of the waters. (It's a theme I get into some of the Dispatches I do for Canoe & Kayak magazine; one has a photo of a sign at a NYC luxury yacht marina that says "No Jetskis, No Kayakers" i.e. lumping us together with the dreaded jetskier!) By and large, our industry is more aware of such things and fosters safe, responsible behavior (180 degrees opposite of what the jet ski industry does, I feel) and we, in or clubs and organizations and places like PaddleWise, also stress responsible safe operation of our vessels (jetskiers don't really have this, certainly not as universally as we do). Still it doesn't take much irresponsible behavior and lack of consideration for the rights of others to find ourselves also curtailed some in how we operate. We constantly need to watch ourselves to make certain we don't step over any lines that could get us collectively in trouble. I am really mindful of this. For example, when I am cartopping a kayak, I am extra courteous on the road, letting other cars merge into heavy traffic from shopping centers, etc. It is something I tend to do anyway but with that boat on my roof identifying my cult, I want to make certain that the general public gets a good image of that cult. Small things like that help give us a positive image. Think in these terms whenever you are out on the road, or on the water or landing or launching. Jet skiers clearly have not and they are beginning to pay a price for their oversight. ralph diaz-- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Ralph Diaz . . . Folding Kayaker newsletter PO Box 0754, New York, NY 10024 Tel: 212-724-5069; E-mail: rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com "Where's your sea kayak?"----"It's in the bag." ----------------------------------------------------------------------- *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. 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