Kill switch and life jackets
 

Saw this title on another site. So I wanted to start one here.

Do you guys use your kill switch lanyard. If you dont, do you find yourself thinking about putting it on but never do.... is it on ur concious when ur running wide open cruising....

Do you wear your life jackets all the time r just when running?

I wear my life jacket but I dont use the kill switch. But i will start. U never know what could happen on the water......

Was there an o sh*t moment when u wish u had the kill switch strapped on!!!

sent from my Galaxy NOTE II

^^

My tiller I always wear pfd and use the lanyard, center console I don't use either, but the kids wear there's while running.

My HS Buddy fell out of his boat while running, they found his boat almost a half mile from where they found him. If he would have been wearing his kill switch and life jacket he may be the one typing instead of me. He was by himself so no one really knows what happened.

I wear my KS when its rough or when its dark/almost dark. I dont ever really wear life jackets in my boat but I tell people where they are and they are welcome to use them.

I almost killed me and specksndasurf one afternoon in BL. Tiller handle got caught in the seat...wide open...cut all the way to the left....when I finally jerked it out of the seat it cut all the way to the right. Threw him all over the front of that boat like a rag doll. Funny to talk about now but man I was sure nervous when it was happening. And than i filled the dudes gas tamk with offroad diesel lol! If I ever run a tiller handle again, I'll definitely be wearing a kill switch.

I have a tiller handle boat... always wear both... when riding with my brother in his center console I never wear the life jacket... I don't think he uses the kill switch lanyard.

I try to always wear both when running, sometimes I'll take off my PFD if someone is fishing with me. That's why I bought a Mustang Auto Inflate.

wear my life jacket with killswitch attatched at all times while running. i think its against the law not to have it attached to some part of ur body while running your boat. every tournament i have fished you have to have it attached and pull switch after take off to make sure it works.

I run a tiller so I always wear life jacket. Supposed to wear kill switch but normally don't. It's a PITA!

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It should be a law to wear your kill switch bc you are endangering other boaters if something happens

I know someone is waiting to pounce on this one!!

I know it is advised, but you DONT have to wear a life jacket in a 16 ft boat with a hand tiller right?

In my bassboat I wear oe of the auto inflate vest with kill switch attached. In my Gatortail I just slip the KS around my wrist. Usually no lifevest.

i awlways wear my kill switch and life vest while running. i bought a bunch of inflatables . they are lightweight and you hardly realize they are on . IMO there is so much that can go wrong out there and so many underwater obstructions . buddy of mine had a passenger
and himself thrown from a boat 3 weeks ago after they hit a submerged log in the river..buddy made it passanger wasnt so lucky. for the people that say i only wear it if its rough or dark ect... do you only wear your seatbelt when youare speeding?? for me i wear it so i dont have to put my family through the grief of if something happened , its selfish to not wear one

Emergency Ignition Safety Switch

An emergency ignition safety switch is required to be operating and attached to the operator’s person, clothing, or PFD by a lanyard on any motorboat less than 26 feet long that:

• Is powered by an outboard motor in excess of 10 horsepower and …
• Is steered by a hand tiller or steering arm attached to the motor and …
• Has or is designed to have a safety switch.

Quick and easy web site for boating information. http://www.boat-ed.com/la/handbook/index.htm

It's the Law: Required Equipment

• PFD Requirements
• Types of PFDs

When preparing to go out on a vessel, the operator must check that the legally required equipment is on board.
Personal Flotation Devices (PFDs)

• All boats must have at least one U.S. Coast Guard—approved Type I, II, or III personal flotation device that is, wearable, and of the proper size for each person on board or being towed.
• Each person on board must wear a U.S. Coast Guard–approved Type I, II, III, or V PFD while underway on a motorboat less than 16 feet long using an outboard motor that is steered by a hand tiller or steering arm attached to the motor. This requirement does not apply to electronic trolling motors.
• In addition to the above requirement, boats 16 feet in length or longer must have one U.S. Coast Guard—approved Type IV cushion or ring-buoy on board and readily accessible.
• Each person riding on a personal watercraft (PWC) must wear a U.S. Coast Guard—approved Type I, II, III, or V personal flotation device.
• Louisiana law requires that all children 16 years of age and younger wear a U.S. Coast Guard—approved PFD while underway on a vessel less than 26 feet long. The personal flotation device must be fastened and of the proper size for the child.

• Besides being USCG—approved, all PFDs must be:
  • In good and serviceable condition.
  • Readily accessible, which means you are able to put the PFD on quickly in an emergency.
  • Of the proper size for the intended wearer. Sizing for PFDs is based on body weight and chest size.

I'm guilty of not wearing a PFD all the time but, I do always run my kill switch. I've been thrown half out of my boat because of obstruction unseen and wasn't wearing it. It beat and scared the crap out of me when the motor slammed back into the water!

Kill switch is the "click it or ticket" law of the water. If your boat has a kill switch you better be wearing it or expect a fine.

I read it as a tiller handle OVER 16'. On my 16' alweld, my passengers and I always wore jackets while running(and kill switch). When I sold that boat to my boss, he doesn't wear a jacket since the boat is actually 16'2", therefore over 16'.

Personally I dont see why anyone would not wear a jacket in a tiller handle the way they can jerk around so fast.

On Toledo always wear both. Trying to get in the same habit on Big Lake. Do wear it most of the time

Kill switch yes, jacket no unless alone then yes. Should wear jacket all the time but don't.

Yes, I wear the kill switch hooked to my mustang hydrostat. Use to never wear either. But, now with kids, it is a must for me.

I never wore either until I was riding alone in a 22' center console and had to make an unexpected sharp turn. Lucky I was able to hold on to the wheel with one hand, but it just about threw me out of the boat. If I went over, I wouldn't be typing this today. I now wear both every time I go out.

I thought that was the law

Got a 14 flat just converted into tiller handle - never before did I wear it but now I do n have to bc of the law but I don't have a place for a kill switch on my old merc so game warden told me nothing I can do about that

I had a Buddy who's transom broke on his 14' with a 25. The boat started slapping left to right tossed him out. The boat started turning circles and hit him twice before it sunk. He barely made it. Had to take 5 pints of blood, it punctured his Lung, and ruptured his spleen. He had his life jacket on, but no KS. He said if he wouldn't of had his lifejacket on he could of dove both times cause he saw it coming. But it's like I told him if he would of had both on he wouldn't of got hit in the first place.

This is a re-post of mine from last July.... Hydro



Finished up nice morning fishing trip out of Anthony Ferry, heading back to the launch up Houston River going around 20-25 mph and WHAM !!!

Hit so hard it pulled the tiller out of my hand, spun the boat 180 degrees and came to a stop in the woods backwards... All this happened in a nano-second...

Luckily, I had my killswitch hooked to the lifevest I had on and it shut the engine down somewhere between the time I was ejected from my seat and before I landed in the front of the boat...

Dazed, wet, and confused, there is no way I would have been able to get to the engine and shut it down had I not been wearing my kill switch...

Luckily for me there are only bumps and bruises... Nothing was lost out of the boat as it spun rather flat (wide boat)... Engine, prop, prop shaft, jackplate, are all good...

I was able to find the stump after I regained composure and got out of the trees... Right past the first set of powerlines on the L/H side, a little off of center, 6 inches below the waterline... After several attempts I gave up on trying to pull it out with the boat, its in there solid...

Be safe guys, this could have ended much worse... This is the second time a kill switch has saved my ***...

Hydro

I always wear my PFD when running. Everyone in my boat does also. I try to remember the kill switch. Sometimes I forget. I have stopped numerous times to hook it up. I had a friend killed in a boating accident, and I have been in one myself. Better have it and not need it, than need it and not have it.

I wear my killswitch and depending where I'm running I'll wear my pfd.
One day a buddy and I were coming out of a corner full speed (25-30mph) in black bayou and hit something under the water. I flew up in the air and he flew forward in the boat. I don't remember if I had the lanyard on my wrist or not but I wont go without it on since then...I'm pretty picky about where I'll run without a pfd.
I have been stopped at the launch by a game warden because he didn't see that I had my killswitch on also.

You can always add one, fairly cheap and easy ...

Hydro

I will for now on always wear my life jacket and kill switch.
This past winter I was in my 16 ft aluminum boat(w/tiller handle) running down the river approx. 40mph. It was a cold day and I was going to go scout a hunting spot, so I had on lots of clothes and knee boots on, no life jacket! But I did have my kill switch on. All of a sudden my motor hit something, turning it hard to the left and slung me overboard in a half of a second. Kill switch worked well and the boat drifted over to the bank. Now where I was in the river, it was around 150 to 200 yards wide, maybe more, and I was in the middle. So here I am with a couple layers of clothes and knee boots on with not life jacket. Everything soaked up the water immediately causeing it to weigh me down, im a farely big guy at 6'4" 240 but in overall good shape, so swimming across the river should be no problem for I've done it countless times, but this time was different. I fought and fought for my life, trying to get to the bank and trying to keep my head above the water. I just knew that I wasn't going to make it and that this was going to be my last swim, but I had to give it all I had. And I still think to this day that if I had to go another 5 feet that I wouldn't of made it. I laid on the bank coughing up water and trying to breathe for about an hour, there was not a soul on the river that day so help was out. I eventually made it back to my boat and then back home. I ended up being sick for a week afterwards. I also never saw what I hit that day.

The next day me and my wife went to academy and I bought one of them auto/manual inflatable life jackets. I wear it every single time im running in a boat.
It's sad that it took something to scare the life out of me to make me wear my life jacket.
Don't wait for something bad to happen to you to make you wear it because you may not be as lucky as I was!
Law or no law it doesn't matter because the law is not going to save your life, the life jacket and kill switch will!

Pulled this pic off of a buddies Facebook page.. Not sure of the details but the driver wasn't wearing a kill... Post said luckily nobody was hurt!!

Me and two buddies went tubing in big lake. I was on the tube and my buddies both got thrown out the boat when he hit his own wake. The driver was not wearing a life jacket or kill switch. I fell off the tube and got my leg hung in the tow rope but got it out after what seemed like forever but it was only a few seconds. The boat finally got to where it was running itself in circles and we all swam away from it. We treaded water for about 45 min creeping our way back to hebert's before anyone saw us. we were almost to commisary when it happend. My mom and dad happened to walk out to the dock to check on us and saw the boat going in cirlces with no one in it. They launched the boat faster than they ever have before with biglaketiger and came and scooped us up. Some other boat showed up and after trying to figure out how to stop the boat other than shooting and sinking it, the guys in the boat creeped up to my boat and threw rope in the prop to kill the engine. i Got back in the boat, put on life jacket, and the sheriff told me if he sees me at the launch without the kill switch he was giving me a ticket. We were all lucky that day. I always where my kill switch.

Do any of you guys keep an extra kill switch lanyard in your boat? Im going to get on and rap it around my steer wheel column. So if I shoukd fall out ,who ever is in it will be abke to start the engine with the extra one

sent from my Galaxy NOTE II

Weird you say this, I actually decided to do this last night.

I don't have the flip type switch, it's a button that is held up by an insert on the lanyard.

Gooh I have the same type of switch. If I fall out. The lanyard will be on me and who ever is in the boat wont be able to start it. Ive been teaching my boys how to drive the boat in case something should happen. That extra lanyard could be a life saver for you in the water

sent from my Galaxy NOTE II

Never thought of an extra kill switch lanyard...good stuff. Will have one now.

Excellent idea about the extra lanyard, I will definitely pick up an extra one this week. I have reasonly got into the habit of wearing an autoinflatable Pfd and my lanyard. To much to risk loss not to wear it. I also encourage everyone on board to wear one. I carry five auto-inflatable and five standard life vest. Anyone under 16, always have one on when the engine is running.

Cool im going to rap mine around my steering column

sent from my Galaxy NOTE II

This is exactly why I made the decision, I've also been teaching my 8 yr old how to operate the boat.

From a dead stop, he took me from dry reef to the pass while working the trim and everything. He was also able to recall the compass heading back to the point if something should happen to the electronics. Can he remember now? Maybe not, but every time we hit the water I go through the vitals with him.

All the same goes for the wife too. When the water is low traffic, they are driving and getting comfortable with it.

Great feeling knowing the little guy can help me and/or himself if something went wrong.

Can an engine be cranked with the kill switch removed?

I dont have a compass. Never though of that. Ill have to put one. Also ill put an o sh*t sheet of paper In the dry box. With directions on what to do if.

sent from my Galaxy NOTE II

Not unless it is a switch type.

http://shopping.rexmar.com/Merchant2...e=killswitches

I always wear kill switch lanyard and PFD, kids must to do I, I witnessed a nasty wreck in Sharks Bayou a couple years ago, everyone was okay, but had the boat that threw 5 people out, including 3 kids, not run aground who know, I love to fish too much...

Now my kiddos wont let the boat move without lanyard connected and PFD...

I want to get 1 r 2 of those auto inflatable jackets. Any recommendations on which on to get.

sent from my Galaxy NOTE II

I know a few years ago, you needed the Hydrostatic Inflation Technology, HIT, because the others would inflate in the rain or with enough moisture. Not sure today.

I have one and it is a Mustang HIT.

in my bay boat, it depends on the people and conditions. let me begin by saying we should always wear one while running regardless. This is how it usually works out in my boat.

Killswitch - always, i never operate the boat without this attached to me. Hint, i have a stretchable wrist strap from a cast net. i attached it to the killswithh clip and when I take it off I hang it on the throttle. makes it easy to remember to put it back on cause you gotta grab the throttle.

PFDs
-If its "the guys" and calm conditions, no we do not, rough, yes.
-Ladies or people i an not familiar with on the boat PDFs are worn unless it is slick calm.
-If there are kids onboard everyone wears, regardless of conditions.

I know a guy that had 3 of them go off in his anchor storage lol.... I love to hear him tell the story. He wrangled with them and got them out but it took hours haha....

That was the style that had a tablet dissolve or something like that.