ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, February 23, 1997 TAG: 9702210107
SECTION: BOAT SHOW PAGE: 6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN OUTDOOR EDITOR
Smith Mountain Lake has the dubious reputation of being the most dangerous piece of boating water in Virginia.
More often than not, it leads all other water - even the huge Chesapeake Bay - in the annual number of boating accidents investigated by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. There were more than 50 accidents reported at the lake last year.
You get no argument from Tom Maynard that the number is unacceptably high. Maynard is president of the newly organized Smith Mountain Lake Boating Association.
But he thinks the lake gets a bad rap when it is painted as outlaw water ruled by demon drivers who rip about carelessly in noisy, high-speed boats.
Take those 55, or so, accidents reported last year, said Maynard.
``A person reading the statistics would say, `My God! They had 55 boat collisions on the lake. That is not true at all,'' he said.
The accidents weren't all grinding, head-on collisions that caused death and severe injury, he said. Some involved people who fell while standing in a boat. If they had been seated, they would have been safe. A dozen occurred when people took nasty falls off personal watercraft. Others involved boaters who hit docks while attempting to land their craft. The list includes boat sinkings and boats running aground and skiers being hurt by tow ropes.
The way Maynard figures it, nearly 35 of the accidents were of that nature, and probably would have gone unreported on many lakes and rivers where there are fewer warden patrols.
``Those are the kind of things you probably can solve by creating an awareness, but laws aren't going to do anything about them,'' he said.
The new boating association has been operating under the banner ``Education, not Legislation.'' The group has become an opposing voice to the Smith Mountain Lake Association, whose members have endorsed passing new boating laws, including mandatory boating education, engine noise control, speed limits and a minimum age limit for boat operators.
``Education, not Legislation'' isn't just a theme, Maynard said. It is being taken seriously by the boating association. The group is sponsoring and publicizing boating safety courses and promoting knowledge of the ``rules of the road.''
Paul Howell, a boating education coordinator for the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, isn't taking sides on the debates at Smith Mountain. He is happy just to reap the benefits, which include a greater public awareness of the safety issue and an emphasis on getting more people into safety courses.
``The stand I have taken on it, we certainly will provide the boating education, one way or the other,'' said Howell, who lives in Roanoke. ``With people saying education is the thing, we are going to help promote it. I am trying to ride the wave.''
Last year, 786 participants completed a boating safety course in the region, according to records kept by Howell. He believes that number can be topped this year, and a safer lake will be the result.
More than half of the accidents at Smith Mountain last year involved personal watercraft, a statistic Howell is addressing by highlighting a special segment on PWC during the safety classes.
``When operating a personal watercraft, you really have to know the rules of the road, because they are the same as for operating a boat,'' Howell said. But PWC users also must deal with factors unique to them.
A challenge of the education effort is reaching people who visit the lake from out of the region, Howell said. One way that will be addressed this season is with a 71/2-minute instructional video, titled ``Play It Safe, which will be shown at businesses that rent personal watercraft.
Then there is the personal side of boating safety.
``Our membership is people who boat and a lot of people who work around the lake,'' Maynard said. ``We have to have a personal commitment to this thing. I am committed to doing a better job of operating my boat and being considerate to other people on the lake. We all have to do this.''
The configuration of Smith Mountain, with it's many coves, narrow channels and blind turns, coupled with heavy boating traffic, tends to magnify the need for a knowledge of the ``rules of the road,'' Maynard said. The association is promoting an expanded list of navigation rules for Smith Mountain boaters. The list contains 16 points, merging the rules of the road with safety recommendations and just plain old ``Golden Rule'' principles.
LENGTH: Medium: 83 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: ERIC BRADY/Staff. Jumping wakes, a fun thing for manyby CNBpersonal watercraft operators, is considered a dangerous practice by
boaters who promote safety. Graphic: Chart: Boat safety courses. KEYWORDS: MGR