| Life Jackets, Kill Switches and Safety | |
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I always put on my life jacket and make sure my kill switch is hooked up when I crank the gas motor on my boat. Something that happened when I was in high school made me realize how important they are, and I still remember that lesson very strongly after 35 years.
While growing up my friends and I used to ski a lot. We often sat on the back of the boat seat and used our feet to push the gas lever. One day a friend had two people behind his boat and was sitting on the back of the seat. When he pushed the throttle, the wheel was turned and he was thrown out.
The boat circled for over an hour before it could be stopped. The boy and girl in the water narrowly escaped being hit. It took three days to find my friend's body. He had been cut badly by the prop as the boat circled around.
Every boat I have bought since 1979 has come with a built in kill switch. My first boat did not have one, so I bought an add-on kill switch - really just a housing that fit over the key. When the boat was cranked, it turned part of the housing and pulled a cord in. If you pulled on the cord it turned off the key.
There are a lot of safety related equipment you should carry in your boat, (see related poll) but nothing is more important than a kill switch. And if you are not wearing a lifejacket, you may not survive a fall from the boat anyway.
Wear you life jacket. Hook up a kill switch. And be safe!
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