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[gwa84the2nd]

thouts enybody 

http://www.thisisdevon.co.uk/Kayaker-run-model-powerboat-Torbay/story-16936258-detail/story.html

[martno1fan]

Oh dear sorry to see this guys still in such a bad way not good at all,hope he gets compensated properly for his injuries.
Mart

[gwa84the2nd]

hopfully the boat insurance should compansate him for eny injuries just goas to show that you must have insurance and be safty consias when using pawer boat capable of speed 

[dodgy geezer]

thouts enybody 

http://www.thisisdevon.co.uk/Kayaker-run-model-powerboat-Torbay/story-16936258-detail/story.html

I have only read the newspaper report (and these are often missing important detail), but a few items stand out:

1 - The fact that it was a model boat race was only peripheral - the canoe was hit by a support boat.
2 - It really has to be the support helmsman's fault - he drove into the canoist..
3 - The canoist's idea of evasive action was to capsize and go under - thus guaranteeing that he could not be seen. He would have been hard to see anyway in the troughs of the waves. So I'm not surprised that he was hit. I think that means that the race organisers have a question to answer - what actions were taken to ensure that the course was clear of obstacles...  

[martno1fan]

Lets hope so,one would think OMRA has the propper insurance to cover such accidents.One things for sure this isn't going to go away quietly like some would like.
Mart

[roycv]

Hi, regrettable as the accident is the Newspaper headlines do the damage to model boating.  It says that the kayak was hit by the model boat and yet the first sentence of the article says it was the chasing power boat.

You just cannot rely or believe most of what is printed.

regards Roy

[tmbc]

I have only read the newspaper report (and these are often missing important detail), but a few items stand out:

1 - The fact that it was a model boat race was only peripheral - the canoe was hit by a support boat.
2 - It really has to be the support helmsman's fault - he drove into the canoist..
3 - The canoist's idea of evasive action was to capsize and go under - thus guaranteeing that he could not be seen. He would have been hard to see anyway in the troughs of the waves. So I'm not surprised that he was hit. I think that means that the race organisers have a question to answer - what actions were taken to ensure that the course was clear of obstacles...  

this i think is the accident that happend but didnt according to some individuals  

at these events there are normally 3 or 4 persons in the boat

model boat driver and his/her pit person and spotter
chase boat driver +/- there spotter

leaves the question to be asked what the spotters were doing !

also goes to prove im not the "liar" i was attempted to be made out to be , by certain individuals

what goes round comes round  

oh wonder who's paying the £2275  the associations  members ? poor guys ! paying for others ignorance and arrogance      

[Neil]

It was part of a race organised by the Offshore Model Powerboat Racing Association on September 19 last year

I'll play devils advocate here and ask...........if it was an organised event why were exclusion zones not set out, as one wouldexpect if they were using 5' models and a rib..

and if exclusion zone had been clearly marked..why did the kyaker not adhere to these and venture into the exclusion zone.

If the zones had not been set then substantial blame should go to OMRA for not posting such zones, and should also pay compensation.......

a sticky one is this???

[essex2visuvesi]

Forgive me but this just doesn't seem to add up.... there's some information missing somewhere

[tmbc]

It was part of a race organised by the Offshore Model Powerboat Racing Association on September 19 last year

I'll play devils advocate here and ask...........if it was an organised event why were exclusion zones not set out, as one wouldexpect if they were using 5' models and a rib..

and if exclusion zone had been clearly marked..why did the kyaker not adhere to these and venture into the exclusion zone.

If the zones had not been set then substantial blame should go to OMRA for not posting such zones, and should also pay compensation.......

a sticky one is this???

that the point neil

no zones no public info of routes etc

as an organiser of these events they have a duty of care for not only its members but public too 

omra were warned about health and safety by myself and others  in 2008/9 and told they were an accident waiting to happen ! i was revoked membership for being out spoken about this too even thou it was said otherwise.

[Neil]

that the point neil

no zones no public info of routes etc

as an organiser of these events they have a duty of care for not only its members but public too 

omra were warned about health and safety by myself and others  in 2008/9 and told they were an accident waiting to happen ! i was revoked membership for being out spoken about this too even thou it was said otherwise.

In that place tmbc......you can think yourself totally exonerated of any blame as a past member..............

[TheLongBuild]

As an Experianced Kayaker

The canoist's idea of evasive action was to capsize and go under   WHAT !!

I assume he saw the boat coming, all he had to do was stop, turn, or reverse


Quite why the chase boat did not see him as well and also did not adjust course is also odd.(ok just reread, skipper was busy looking elsewhere, however if I saw a boat bearing down on me and I was not with a swimmer I would Move !!, else I would put my Kayak in the way of the danger to protect my swimmer in addition to trying to get out of danger, rather than waving my hands..
 

[essex2visuvesi]

or is it a case of both took the same evasive manoeuvre... a bit like the dance you do in a corridor sometimes

[TheLongBuild]

His evasive manoeuvre was to capsize.

[scoop]

His evasive manoeuvre was to capsize.

......and that last split second decision is what probably saved Nigels life, can you imagine what the propellor would have done to his head had he stayed upright ? I've heard it said that they never saw him, how on earth can anyone not see an 18 foot bright orange Kayak.....well obviously they didn't 
Get well soon Nigel, it's been a long haul and good luck with any private prosecution(s).

Kind regards
Scoop

[TheLongBuild]

......and that last split second decision is what probably saved Nigels life, can you imagine what the propellor would have done to his head had he stayed upright ? I've heard it said that they never saw him, how on earth can anyone not see an 18 foot bright orange Kayak.....well obviously they didn't  
Get well soon Nigel, it's been a long haul and good luck with any private prosecution(s).

Kind regards
Scoop

Yes I hope he gets well, and the blame is clearly on the powerboat side, However from the text of the article He states he saw it coming for more than just an instant but appears not to have moved.. Obviously as we were not there and did not witness the accident it is hard to really comment if he did or did not try to move..

The article also goes on to say that he was not aware of the event, this would probably be organisations not talking to each other, I was at an event in Dover, The harbour master knew, the RNLI ,Sailing club ,the local policethe Dover Council were all aware of the event but apparently the Dover harbour Police knew nothing about the event !!

same on Tv Last Night, a US Warship was in a designated keep out area for live ammo practice and a sailing yacht sailed on through..

[martno1fan]

Just how the hell a Kayak is suposed to be able to reverse or move out of the way from a powerboat travelling at some 30 mph escapes me  .Nigel is lucky to be alive.
Id like to know if anyone from OMRA bothered to contact Nigel and apologise ?,that would be a start.
Mart

[tmbc]

Yes I hope he gets well, and the blame is clearly on the powerboat side, However from the text of the article He states he saw it coming for more than just an instant but appears not to have moved.. Obviously as we were not there and did not witness the accident it is hard to really comment if he did or did not try to move..

The article also goes on to say that he was not aware of the event, this would probably be organisations not talking to each other, I was at an event in Dover, The harbour master knew, the RNLI ,Sailing club ,the local policethe Dover Council were all aware of the event but apparently the Dover harbour Police knew nothing about the event !!

same on Tv Last Night, a US Warship was in a designated keep out area for live ammo practice and a sailing yacht sailed on through..

some of us have been told first hand what happend to nigel ! it isnt really clear from the report but for them to be found guilty and still carry on advertising they do this type of event goes to show there duty of care to others is none existant ! they are meant to be holding thisevent this weekend at another harbour wonder if the harbour master knows!

[black magic racing]

At the end of the day lets face it this was an accident,some would say one that was waiting to happen,some not,no one can foresee what may or may not happen,chase boat events have been going on for many years now,and im sure will still do so,despite the fact that some one has been hurt during such event,i am hoping that insurance ect ect will play a big part in this and that nigel gets everything he is owed and doesnt look upon this hobby with distaste,we can all preach about what has been said or not,and what should have been done or not.but as stated this was a accident.one i hope does not tarnish model power boat organisations,

[John W E]

hi

As a canoeist and instructor myself in days gone by - one of the things which I will comment on is that the person purposely capsizing a canoe was endangering his own life cos if he was wearing the correct safety equipment i.e. life preserver whether it be the brand new type or self inflating - the specific idea of these are to bring one to the surface.  One has to force oneself to perform an 'Eskimo roll' as its known.   His correct course of action should have been to turn into the oncoming to be forced off by the oncoming bow wave of the vessel - much like - the Slalom Canoeists do around the wave formations around the rocks in the rapids.   But, like every other thing in life it is so easy to sit back and make decisions of what is right and wrong now.

[dodgy geezer]

As a canoeist and instructor myself in days gone by - one of the things which I will comment on...

Poor visibility from both parties seems to have been one feature of the accident. Neither party seemed to be aware of the other until the last few seconds.  I suspect that both of them were low in the water - in particular the canoeist - and I can easily see how a canoe in a wave trough can be totally invisible. Is there any recommendation provided to canoeists in these circumstances to aid visibility, as there is with motorcyclists or pedestrians on a dark road? Both these groups are made well aware that they can be hard to see, and that they need to dress and behave accordingly....

[irishcarguy]

This was an accident that I would assume neither party ever wanted to happen. There is always those that are experts after the fact, with their "if only he/she had done this or that" or all the other what ifs. The fact is history is not reversible & all we can do is when we know what happened & how it happened try to put safeguards in place to prevent that particular set of circumstances from happening again.I feel all involved have some share of the blame to carry. I hope Nigel recovers fully & if he is entitled to compensation that he gets what he is due, all he can hope for is that he will at least be able to function normally, it is doubtful that he will ever be 100%. That sad as it to say is the results of getting seriously injured, speaking from first hand experience. Mick B.

[pettyofficernick]

Had the chase boat driver got a qualification to drive a rib I wonder, at least an RYA Level 2 powerboat certificate, If not, IMO he should not have been driving the boat in the first place, and if he has, he did not follow his training, ie, keep his mind on driving the boat and above all, keep a good lookout, one of his passengers should have also been designated lookout. I hold RYA Intermediate power certificate and RYA Safety Boat certificate, and always brief my crew before going afloat and designate a lookout, this is an accident that should never have happened..
Regards,
Nick....

[Andyn]

As an ex kayaker myself, I can say that if you've got time to see something coming, think 'Oh gosh and bother it', consider your options and capsize, you could have already moved from a standing start at the very least 20 feet out the way.....

[TheLongBuild]

As an ex kayaker myself, I can say that if you've got time to see something coming, think 'Oh gosh and bother it', consider your options and capsize, you could have already moved from a standing start at the very least 20 feet out the way.....

Fully agree, but also agree with Nick