Proposed No Wakesurfing Zones Smith Mountain Lake, VA

[Nautiquehunter]

We were rafted at the far back of a cove [not my choice] it wasn't bad until a MC thought we wanted to see how well his surfer could ride. Instead of turning off he continued until he was about 200' from us and made a U turn sending a tsunami at us . No one was impressed.

[boomersooner]

Unfortunately, far too many boaters think they own the water and or the boat ramp when they are on it. There is no shortage of stupidity by boaters of all types. Especially in these times of elevated boat sales to new buyers who don't know crap about boating rules/etiquette.

I'm not new to boating but I am a new "surf ship" owner. As an old guy, surfing provides me a nice break from wakeboarding. We don't have an issue with home owners on the lakes I use as there are no homes on them. Either way, I don't understand the appeal of surfing near the shore or near someone's dock. Unlike wakeboarding, I'm finding that its unnecessary to find the smoothest water to surf on. I'm not going to surf white cap water but I also don't need it to be glass.

[hal2814]

I’m curious to see how this plays out. Personally, I’m all for generic wake restrictions. Etiquette and education can really only take you so far. Etiquette varies from person to person and activity to activity. Education works for a lot of people but there are still enough boaters who ignore what they know to ruin it for everyone. But there are two things I don’t understand:

1. How do you accurately and legally define wakesurfing? It’s very similar to several other watersports. Dropping the rope? Half the people surfing on the lake don’t drop the rope. Going slow? A lot of the sled-type ski trainers go pretty slow. Distance behind the boat? So is learning to barefoot off a ski boom now illegal also? Whatever definition they come up with will either be so restrictive there is collateral damage to other watersports or not restrictive enough and can be easily circumvented.

2. Part of the process to get the area approved for no wakesurfing requires you to certify damage was caused by wakesurfing boats. How do you know what type of ship damaged your property without knowing which ship specifically damaged your property? Seems like you’d know both or neither. And if you know both why are you messing around with this zone business? Why aren’t you going after the boat owners who are liable for the damage to your property? I suspect the “evidence” here will be paying an inspector to look at your damaged property, take a few photos, and say “Yup, that’s wakesurf damage,” without any burden at all of proving the statement.

Again, we’ll see how this goes but I think there are going to be a lot of unintended consequences for trying to single out a specific group. There almost always are.

[GMLIII]

This is like Festivus and the Airing of Grievances! SilentSeven. Amen brother and it will only increase as time moves on unfortunately.

[Shamsra]

This is like Festivus and the Airing of Grievances!

For once I want to see some surf ship captain have to stress about getting his bow stuffed or taking water over the transom...like I do in my little 206 when I'm out on the lake

Amen, brother! When the surf ships are out and about, we often take water over the bow. I know it's partly a driver issue, but don't tell my wife that. I'm trying to convince her that she is a great driver, and that it's a normal part of boating on Lake Travis. {gulp}

Maybe we can negotiate a peace treaty and agree among ourselves that there should be no giant wakes or (seemingly drunk) tubers stirring up the water before noon?

[SilentSeven]

...when the surf ships are out and about, we often take water over the bow. I know it's partly a driver issue, but don't tell my wife that. I'm trying to convince her that she is a great driver, and that it's a normal part of boating on Lake Travis...

Sadly, this is a real issue. Around here...it used to be a rare day when we'd stuff the nose and take on water...most boat wakes were just not big enough to be a problem.

No longer. Now you have to have real skill to read the wake and set the boat to keep everyone dry. Or even prevent something more serious...swamping or tossing a passenger.

So now on busy surf boat days, I'm now the primary throttle man as the consequences are to significant if the captain makes an error.

Long established marine law is that you are responsible for your wake. Not seeing any real surfer community responsibility here. IMO, this is what is ultimately going to come into play - these 3x sized surf wakes (that seem to just keep getting bigger) that are dangerous to other boaters, kyakers, SUPers, you name it....and doing property damage to shoreline and docks.

[bird_dog0347]

I can certainly see how this would be a big problem on smaller, more narrow lakes with private property owners going right up to the shoreline. On my home lake (Texoma) where we keep our boat it's a rather large lake but can be a tiny bit narrow in some places once it gets crowded, but that's mainly due to some islands in the middle of the main body. There are plenty of coves to go for decent water as well. But the cove where we have our slip and keep our boat is a no wake zone as soon as you enter the cove off the main body, and our slip is the second to last one all the way back in there so no rollers or damage from the main body (unless there's a big storm from the North). Also the shore line is all owned by the Army Corp of Engineers so technically they would be the only property owners on the lake to complain about the shoreline... but there are a few unprotected boat ramps right on the main body of the lake that I would never consider using. Also, there are a TON of huge cabin cruisers on the lake that throw much larger wakes than even the P23 regularly.

I don't say any of that to give the impression I don't believe there could be serious problems on other lakes, just that where I'm at it's not a problem for most people. Now a lake like LBJ for example while I think it's beautiful and would LOVE a house on it, it would have to be in a no-wake zone or I wouldn't consider it. But I think I'd feel that way on any lake where your property/boat house were exposed to large wakes all the time.

[GMLIII]

No easy answers. Hope Correct Craft is viewing all these proposed wakesurf regulations and plans to spend major dollars on their lobbyists around the country as these regulations have increased dramatically in recent months? Unless Correct Craft changes their line up of models they offer, their business could drastically decrease very fast as these wakesurf regulations become laws. Hate to be so negative and "Festivus and the Airing of Grievances" but the hammer is coming down bigtime on the wakesurf industry.

[HollywoodBall]

The bigger problem I’ve seen on my lake is retarded pontoon and I/O drivers that want to go 2MPH faster than idle/no wake speed and throw the biggest wake their boat is capable of throwing. And when there’s an entire lake to use, they make sure they pass within 30 feet of me.

Nobody wants to get on plane or cruise at idle speed. Blows my fkin mind.


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[William_Zane]

HollywoodBall I think that could've been said in a much different manner. Hopefully you watch how you say things moving forward.

[srock]

Maybe they should just restrict the distance, for safety of course, that you can ride behind the boat. Perhaps 55 feet minimum would be reasonable.

[XBIGPUN66]

Hollywood ball is 100% correct though. The drivers of these boats and also large yacht drivers will plow along just throwing rollers right close to shore and other boats. They do not have a clue. In our state you have to be 200 ft from shore and 100 ft from other boats when operating at speeds higher than steerage.

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[Stevemo14]

I have had that same argument from the start, finally someone agrees with me. I cannot tell you how many times I have Idiots troll by our docks throwing the biggest waves their boat can make. Then they wave at you.

[scottb7]

I have had that same argument from the start, finally someone agrees with me. I cannot tell you how many times I have Idiots troll by our docks throwing the biggest waves their boat can make. Then they wave at you.

We had similar experience the other day. Someone went flying by us while we were pulling a wakeboarder. They were at full speed and about 50 feet from us. You could tell by look on their face that they didn't know any better. They were just smiling and having a good time, and didn't think anything wrong with it. They knew we were there.

You know at the end of the day all of this stuff is real simple. Keep about 200 feet away from everything.

[75Tique]

I

1. How do you accurately and legally define wakesurfing? It's very similar to several other watersports. Dropping the rope? Half the people surfing on the lake don't drop the rope. Going slow? A lot of the sled-type ski trainers go pretty slow. Distance behind the boat? So is learning to barefoot off a ski boom now illegal also? Whatever definition they come up with will either be so restrictive there is collateral damage to other watersports or not restrictive enough and can be easily circumvented.

Good question. I am on a small neighborhood lake, governed by an HOA. Surf barges have no place on our narrow, 150 acre lake. We dealt with the surf barge issue over 10 years ago. Language has been adjusted over time. Used some of the ideas you mentioned. Must use a rope, rope has to be over 30 feet. Originally rule said no fat sacs (which allowed factory ballast, which was crazy, but rules were made by unknowledgeable people) Ignorant people who didnt know intent of rule language squawked about my barefoot boom and no or 5 ft ropes. I actually got the language changed to address that. We also recently changed the language to include ballast tanks and wave enhancement. And a final separate rule simple states no wake surfing.






There are a couple guys that ride surf foils on our lake. Just recently they got so they could ride with out a rope. (I dont understand the underwater physics of waves well enough to know how they do that??) Since they are just doing that behind either a pontoon boat or a deck boat, we didnt really want to prohibit it and tried to temper the new language accordingly, as those boats dont generate huge wakes. So far, a few people have questioned if they are in violation, but not enough fuss yet to have to address it. Since people talked about banning "surf boats" we also wrestled with that definition. But isnt a surf boat with no ballast or devices deployed, just a boat, and if they are 23 feet or less (our restriction) they should be good to go. Thats why rule doesnt ban "surf boats" but rather activities that generate huge waves.