Hey all,
I'd like to know how many of you would support a ban on high performance engines on lakes less than 500 acres?
We have similar laws on our public roads, so why not our public waters?
Just thought about that as I was swimming back to shore after being flipped off my mobile dock.
Could we get a state initative going?

why dont they just increase the daily limit??

Awesome pix MM!

Person On!

i'd like to see something like that, but i'd decrease the size to 300 acres, and around 50hp or so

although i can be on both sides of this issue, and i really, really miss being able to light up my outboard on the opener like you used to be able to a few years ago(thurston co boating laws that were recently enacted makes it so you can't do over 5mph until 30 days after fishing season starts, except on lake st clair)

Thanks for your input all. It doesn't seem raise too much concern among other anglers. I just figured that if some shmoe like Tim Eyeman can rattle Olympia's cage that we,as a semi-organized group of sportsman, could do the same. That State initiative thing is a mightily powerful tool.
I fish a small 36 acre lake and am stuck on shore until those anotomically un-endowed half-wits get done stroking thier egos, which is usually around dusk.
I'm not really against big motors as much as I'm against high speeds on small waters. The occasional big wakes caused by fishing boats doesn't really bother me.
Maybe we could find a comprimise. Maybe divy up the lakes that are large enough to support high speed crafts into sections. Something simmilar to American Lake, with a smal portion reserved for slow speeds(a.k.a. "little" American) Just an idea.
-Larry

Those things almost swamp my boat every time I go to Lake Sammish

I was just at a meeting of the renton PSA. Our guest speaker was the officer in charge of the mercer island marine patrol. One of the things we talked about is personal watercraft. They recieve most of the tickets they hand out. Speed and careless operation being the problem. Another thing that he brought up was that in the next year or two washington state will be requiring anyone operating a boat or personal watercraft will have to have passed a test like the one they now have in oregon. I dont really like the idea just because I have been operating a boat for 35 years I started when I was 5 and dont need to take a test. But I can see that it would help with some people at least make them think a little bit .

Troller, You half to admit there is a butt load of people out there that don't have a clue. I like the license idea, even though i don't feel I need it either, I hope it will cut down on the stupid crap that i see all the time...well and my insurance rates will go down some too And what the heck it will be easy to pass the test, basic rules of the road and safety I would think.

yes, it will be easy to pass the test, but thats not the point. the state doesnt care if jetskis upset those lazy fishermen, what they see is another fee that can vanish into the general fund.

Hey all,
Mojo has a point. I think a better solution would be to find a way to get the state involved without them fondling the contents of our pockets. Fisherman and "sightseers" aren't the problem. Jet skis and speed boats are.We sportsmen have already paid our "fair share" for the privlige of using public waters. A great many of the launch sites were paid for by sportsman, not jet skiers.
Perhaps require operator licensing for motors over a certain H.P.? And I think age restrictions are pretty much a given. If they aren't old enough to operate a vehicle on public roads, then they aren't old enough to drag race on public waters.
I talked to a lady who just moved down here from Whatcom county, and she stated that lakes like this one(Lake Louise-39 acres) up there were long ago made off limits to combustion engines.
I'm still convinced that speed and horsepower restrictions are the way to go though.
Seattlerocket just posted on a rule change by the city of Sammamish concerning Pine lake. It no longer allows combustion engines AND trailer-launched boats. Not exactly the direction I'm thinking we need to go. 88 acres is large enough to support some" small motor " fishing boats.(Bass boats are a good example)
I think that around the 1rst of next month I'm going e-mail this string of posts to the various state representatives so that our opinions are seen by those who can make a difference. Maybe it won't do anything, but just like the lottery sales pitch goes: "........odds are considerably less is you don't play."

-Larry

Well all those jet skiers got the same shock we did with the jacked up rates for trailers - ouch. Maybe we should have a mandatory helmet law for jet skiers, that would weed some of them out. Seriously, jet skiers and ski boats coming to close is a never ending source of frustration on lake Sammamish.