Why not to swim after your boat
 

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/n...-1225948879659

This guy got lucky.

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

when will we ever learn that these things are only toys and are replaceable our lives aren t

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

I am sure when stripping to his underwear to go for a swim that he never thought his bare butt would be hanging from a winch under a police helicopter.

Glad to hear he lived - but certainly a tough way to learn a very basic lesson.

I will pin this to the top for a while with hopes it may help someone else make a better decision - especially with winter setting in up here once more.

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

It's really sad that these kind of things keep happening. Sooner or later, the manufacturers might realize that if they put an instruction sheet on operating the boats, INCLUDING SAFE WAYS TO RECOVER IT WHEN IT STALLS

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

Aquacraft does...at least for the Vegas and the SV.....they don't recomend running the boats in a free flowingcreek or river . The also say before you run your boat...look at which way the currents are flowing and wind blowing; the boat will drift back to shore eventually. Finally, they recommend using a tennis ball tied to a fishing pole with at least 12 lbs of line if you want to pull it in without waiting for it to drift back in to the shore or it startsgoing to the otherside of the pond/lake.

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

At least I had the smarts to put on a life jacket. I was in my boxers though:D

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/c...n/IMG_1876.jpg

Now I have a rubber raft.;)

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/c...t/IMG_4401.jpg

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

<span style="font-size: medium">I've gone swimming for boats more times than I want to admit. http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/js/f...ssed_smile.gif

I have also waved goodbye to a couple of boats that I had <u>never seen again </u>becausethe risk outweighed the benefit of getting them back.

My first loss was a Coast Guard Cutter and second was a racing boat many years later...It's really tough having to leave a boat behindbecauseall you have is the TX and a bad feeling... It's difficult making that decision but nothing is worth dying for so it is important to seriously weigh out the risksAND have a good retrieval system in place.

Sometimes it's just better to suck it up and take the loss BUT a good retrieval plan is the best insurance policy for both you and your boat.

Be Safe. http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/js/f...wink_smile.gif

-Rich.

</span>

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

RCU posted the same thing twice..

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

Thats why on all my boats have a magnet on the back and a magnet on the front of my recovery boat... Always use a cheap recovery boat just make sure it works!!!

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

God's way of thinning out the herd.:eek:

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

i swam out to get my HZ super cub LP with floats.
i was trying to turn the plane while on the water....the choppy water made it roll over. just a floating on the main wing.
but it was a nice warm summer day. i would never go into freezing cold water for a RC. but then, i would fly/drive an RC in cold water either.

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

Make sure your affairs are in order, as well as a note to your family explaining how your model was more important than they are (were).

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

If you know how to swim, its a warm day out (as well as the water), and there are hardly any to no currents, where does the risk lie???

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

Probably the same train of thought the people that died had......until their last breath and thought...."now I know why I shouldn't have done this".

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

Why? Because of one word "ACCIDENT" I am sure you heard of it. :eek:

Look it's your life do as you please just think about who else will be effected by your death if let's say you get a cramp, or get exhausted trying to drag a boat full of water while you try to swim.

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

at least 5 fellow RC Boaters died in the US while retrieving RC boats while swimming in 2010. (I have documented it). They did not fall from boats. They were not taken by sharks. Two of them (a father and teen aged son) even had a fishing rod on hand to retrieve the boat (Can you even begin to imagine the loss of a father and son for something as stupid as an RC Boat). They simply underestimated distance, temperature, or their own capabilities. You start swimming after your boat and the wind carries it a little further, and then a little further - then what.

Take a quick look through the news stories - http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_9569185/tm.htm and consider the odds. How many boats do you think were recovered by swimming last year - how many paid the ultimate price. I think the risks are VERY high. I think the risks are too high. I have yet to see an RC Boat worth dieing for - how about you?

I have not read of anyone dieing while using a Kayak, dinghy, life vest, and only one while using an inflatable boat (that was struck by another RC boat - another case of ignoring safety). I am not saying that these methods are 100% safe - but I am suggesting that EVERYONE think twice before swimming for a boat. Have a backup plan in place just in case your first means does let you down. Personally I carry self inflating life vest and two of three of the following - a fishing rod, a zodiac inflatable, a 2 man inflatable. Guys I boat with will have a canoe, a jon boat, a kayak, a dinghy, and/or an inflatable.

If you turn up at a lake without a plan for recovery then odds are high that when your boat dies in the pond - you may too. (I like that line so much I think it will be my new signature ;))

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

I should have added "and you are wearing a life jacket" in my first post. Regardless, those stories came as a shock to me. Very sad. Only had 1 boat before, very small one i only drovein a small pond. Thats what i was picturing when i wrote my first post.

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

omg, such an .... :S

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

Just a reminder to all :

German > English Google-translated : [link=http://translate.google.nl/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bild.de%2Fnews%2Finla nd%2Funfaelle-mit-todesfolge%2Fbastler-ertrinkt-beim-rettungsversuch-17378524.bild.html&sl=de&tl=en&hl=&ie=UTF-8] L I N K [/link]

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

This is why all combat models are fitted with a recovery float and line.
Please, please, please DO NOT attempt to recover your boat by swimming out after it!
If you must go into the water, it is best to do it from a recovery boat, with a lifeline attatched.
Remember, if you operate your boat in still water, the surface temperature of the water is much warmer than the water 2 feet down!

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

the next time i get an RC boat i'll buy a conoe or small boat to retrive it but i might never get an RC gasoline boat since i decided to trade mine in for a nitro rustler and a traxxas T-maxx back in 2004

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

A bad day on the lake is better than a good day at work..............

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

thats goog sh#$. here i am tryin to get out of sports that can kill you. my 99 honda cr 500!
had to swim 3 times in two days. mount shasta califoria this week. cold water but if it was to cold to swim i am on the shore line that curent or wind is blowin to. believe that! 5 years of my own designs with 10 boats and only one store bought and NO FATALITIES! oviously im here too, damn.

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

guess we got to be smart enough to learn rc boating saftey though.hopefully the leason doesnt requier death. i know how it would feel to even lose my testem parts but its not worth death let the boat go. put ur name on it just mabye u be the lucky human that meets the honest one.:D

RE: Why not to swim after your boat
 

IN Florida we have BIG HUNGRY gators, (DO NOT GO AFTER A BOAT) i wont even use a raft. a fishing pole or the wind is fine with me....BE SAFE NOT STUPID..I once had a 7 foot gator stay with my stalled boat for 20+ minutes, hahaha wouldnt give it back   [:o]