Rob Murphy's Day in Court

[Splitlip]

Don't sailboats under sail have the right of way?

 

[theduckguru]

I don't like seeing society limit a persons right to civil actions or judgements because of incidents like this one.

There are 2 serious allegations in this accident - idiot boat operator and an improperly displayed dive flag. A diver injured in an event like this one should have recourse to both negligent parties - even if he signed a liabiltity waiver with a dive operator.

 

[tracydr]

I agree that it seems like a trivial punishment for this crime but you might want to check with FL medical board, which is probably public. Anything like this in AZ would have prompted drug and ETOH testing which may have brought him before the board.
If that's the case the courts charges will probably be a lot less than the Board's.

 

[tracydr]

As was mentioned on spearboard I wonder if if medical license will be reviewed due to a criminal conviction.

Very strong possibility. Watch for postings on the Medical Board, most states put them on the Internet.

 

[DandyDon]

Perhaps we need to take a lesson from the caving community and put up signs on as many docks and at as many fueling stations as we can... something along these lines

Wasn't that movement tried a few years back, a wonderful idea that lost steam? Maybe I misremember? Very good idea to try again perhaps. How about getting your state lawmakers to require docks post & maintain such? I'm an outsider but do like the idea a lot, and good ideas often spread.

Don't sailboats under sail have the right of way?

I think so but being dead & right is not an appealing combination still. Hard to stop a Forrestal-class supercarrier like the Ranger.

We tried to tell that to a cruise boat one night while I was piloting a Windjammer boat under the "let the customers drive program. That failed so next I got to do a hard starboard that rolled a few folks out of bunks.

 

[mike_s]

Don't sailboats under sail have the right of way?

doesn't matter who has right of way if you're dead.

the USS Ranger can't maneuver that quickly to avoid an idiot who cuts in front of him.


Reminds me of the captain that told me to remember the "first Bahamian Law of Sailing". In an island accent he said, "Bigger boat got right o way, mon!"



In case you're wondering... this is the USS Ranger

 

[Erku]

Kinda reminds me of that old joke about the carrier that, over radio, ordered another boat to get out of its way. Not a true story of course, but it still makes me chuckle.

US Ship: Please divert your course 0.5 degrees to the south to avoid a collision.

CND reply: Recommend you divert your course 15 degrees to the South to avoid a collision.

US Ship: This is the Captain of a US Navy Ship. I say again, divert your course.

CND reply: No. I say again, you divert YOUR course!

US Ship: THIS IS THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER USS CORAL SEA*, WE ARE A LARGE WARSHIP OF THE US NAVY. DIVERT YOUR COURSE NOW!!

CND reply: This is a lighthouse. Your call.

Any word on if(when) Rob is taking this to civil court? I, too, would like to see justice served. It shocks me that more marinas and such don't voluntarily show those kind of dive flag awareness signs. Next time I'm in Nanaimo I'm going to check the marina I have the most contact with and perhaps ask if it'd be okay if I stuck some up.

 

[bleeb]

Don't sailboats under sail have the right of way?

Not necessarily. In open waters, I've always understood the general principle as the least maneuverable (including slowest to accelerate or decelerate) having precedence. Since sail boats depend on the wind, they often have less capability to change speed or direction (or stop) than powered vessels. However, it's hard to argue that someone much longer or heavier than you is more maneuverable, especially if they outweigh you by 40,000x, whether they're powered or not.

 

[Erku]

Not necessarily. In open waters, I've always understood the general principle as the least maneuverable (including slowest to accelerate or decelerate) having precedence. Since sail boats depend on the wind, they often have less capability to change speed or direction (or stop) than powered vessels. However, it's hard to argue that someone much longer or heavier than you is more maneuverable, especially if they outweigh you by 40,000x, whether they're powered or not.

This is how I was taught when I learned to sail. I don't know if it's the legal rule in Canadian waters, but the canadian yachting association promotes this attitude.

 

[tfsails]

Sailboats under sail have the right of way over other craft unless the other craft is "restricted in its ability to maneuver" as would be a large ship in a shipping channel, for example. Having the right of way is not a license to do something stupid. If a big ship hit a small sailboat broadside because the sailboat insisted on its "right of way" the big ship would run it over and probably not feel it. The helmsman and lookouts on the big ship may not even see the sailboat. The skipper who challenges a big ship is a damn fool.

IMO, only a fool in a sailboat (any boat, for that matter) would insist on his right of way under any circumstance. I can tell you that I'll give way before I risk my boat and the people on it. The only possible "good" reason to insist on right-of-way might be in a sailboat race where all skippers know the rules beforehand and they do use the right-of-way rules during the course of the race. Still, I'd give up the race before I insisted too heavily on my right-of-way privileges. It isn't worth the potential cost. If I'm the standfast boat, I'll stand fast until I see that the give-way boat is not giving way, then I'll give way.

But I'm a cruiser, not a racer. Anybody got a beer?