Paddle Boarders

[Wussername]

https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/23776531.call-restrictions-norfolk-broads-paddleboarders/

A degree of control requested.

[Wussername]

There. I have moved it to the top.

[PaulN]

Personally, although not a paddleboarder, I have no problem with them, in fact I enjoy seeing such people  enjoying themselves, we are hardly overrun with paddle boarders.

Oh dear! I seem to be agreeing with Dr P. (something am rarely able to do), I promise to try not to do this in future.

I get more problems from day boats such as those operated by Mr. Thwaites and others, from their speeding, overtaking on the wrong side, drunken behavior and rowdiness albeit these anti-social people on day boats are in the minority.

The worrying trend I have noticed this year is hire boats with paddle boards not in use and seriously affecting safety.

I have seen many strapped to side decks, completely blocking access along them. Also on fordecks blocking safe access to mooring ropes etc, and probably worst of all, strapped to cochroofs severley restricting visibility from the internal helm position. 

Properly used, there is still access for all craft.

 

[Vaughan]

At last, we are getting some serious recognition of this danger.  Daniel is quoted as saying :

We restrict water ski-ing, we restrict other things, we have got to start doing that. It's only a matter of time before we talk about a paddle board person getting run over.

And also :

As soon as someone gets run over and killed, we are going to have to do something.

Ladies and gentlemen, I have been warning and railing on about this serious danger, for more than two years now.  Look it up, in the forum archives!

At last someone of influence has spoken out and it seems even Mr Mogford has been moved to give it some thought. And the Good Doctor's response :

My gut feeling is that actually what we ought to be doing is trying to encourage them to go to the locations where it is safe.

I wonder how much soul searching it took for him to come up with that statement, in view of his obvious dreams to turn the Broads "national park" into a haven for paddle boards, canoes and cycle paths.

Let us hope that, just for once, common sense will win out.

 

[Vaughan]

45 minutes ago, Vaughan said:

actually what we ought to be doing is trying to encourage them to go to the locations where it is safe.

The Broads Authority is there to manage the navigation in safety.  This doesn't mean "encouraging" them ; it means telling them where or where not they will paddle, for their own safety.  In consideration also, for the other users of the navigation who have been there for literally hundreds of years longer and who pay a vastly larger amount for the privilege of cruising the navigation.  Are they an Authority, or just a discussion forum?

51 minutes ago, Vaughan said:

My gut feeling is that actually

The Chief Executive of the Broads Authority, in my view, is not employed for his gut feeling.

[Smoggy]

But paddleboarders have the same right of navigation as anyone else on the water so they can't stop them from navigating through wroxham.

[Vaughan]

Just now, Smoggy said:

But paddleboarders have the same right of navigation as anyone else on the water so they can't stop them from navigating through wroxham.

You can't waterski through Wroxham or Horning for very obvious reasons and that is the point.

[OldBerkshireBoy]

 

Who pays the most should not come in to it. It is a safety matter first and foremost and these "Stories" are often leaked to the press for personal gain.

[marshman]

Vaughan - there is no comparison with water skiing and you know it - in any case that was allowed under the auspices of your favourite management group (GYPHC) - and whilst paddle boarding creates some issues, by and large I agree with Paul. The Broads are generally about peace and enjoyment and they do little to alter the first part and certainly add to the enjoyment of a large number of people who would not otherwise be afloat. I have to say that if I were 25 years younger (or so) I would be sorely tempted myself especially as the opportunity to spot wildlife will be greatly enhanced.

Neither do I see huge 'elf and Safety issues - of course there are some, in particular very congested areas, but in my experience they are not seen too often outside the Hotel Wroxham! I would prefer to see them all on proper paddle boards rather than blow up ones, just as the Coastguards would I suspect, but as the experience on a blow up one is probably rubbish in comparison, my guess is they will soon transfer to a more sensible one, or just not bother! 

I actually think its a great opportunity to actually welcome people to the Broads who might never be able to enjoy this special area - I think there is in fact plenty of evidence to suggest there is room for all!!! I suspect day boat operators would prefer people spend money on the facilities they provide - hardly an unbiased view!

Clearly there is the question of education, but the RNLI would say the same of rubber boats and blow up rings at the beach - there is always a risk in whatever you do, but given a modicum of common sense, which I agree can be lacking, good luck to them. Unlike my colleague, I do not see the real danger which he clearly sees.

Always room for two views, or more, on a Forum they tell me!

 

 

 

[Smoggy]

36 minutes ago, Vaughan said:

You can't waterski through Wroxham or Horning for very obvious reasons and that is the point.

That would be down to an enforcable speed limit and subject to any rules regarding towing people, a right of navigation does and should continue to exist what ever the shape and size of the vessel.

Encourage people to go somewhere where the risks are lower is all they can do, they have no power to ban them from any navigable area.

[CambridgeCabby]

Legislation and rules are one thing , getting individuals to follow them is an entirely different matter.

I regard paddle boards as the bicycles of the rivers and they should be treated as the same , by all means encourage their usage , promote it even but also similar to bicycles not being permitted to use a motorway paddle boards should be restricted in their use in areas which causes danger to the user and also to other river craft.

[Vaughan]

4 minutes ago, marshman said:

Always room for two views, or more, on a Forum they tell me!

Indeed.

In which case we can casually sit back and wait for what myself, Daniel Thwaites and others in the business predict, when the first innocent paddle boarder is driven under and drowned (if they miss the propeller) by a 40ft motor cruiser navigating entirely legally between Wroxham and Horning.

Sometimes I am reminded of what I maybe have always known ; that the hire boatyards are perhaps more genuinely aware of the needs for safety, and their implications, than pretty much anyone else.  Perhaps because it is us, who have the bitter experience of how very easily the simple pleasures of boating - and paddling - can suddenly go disastrously wrong.

[grendel]

As someone who both cruises and occasionally paddleboard,  I always slow for paddleboards, canoes and swimmers, yes they are safer at the extremes of navigation, unlike swimmers they are highly visible, so should be easy to avoid, much like any other river traffic.

[Vaughan]

2 hours ago, Vaughan said:

My gut feeling is that actually what we ought to be doing is trying to encourage them to go to the locations where it is safe.

Let us re-consider the published words of Dr Packman.

What he is clearly saying here is that, even in his "gut feeling", there are other locations where it is not safe.

[grendel]

Like great yarmouth, breydon and anywhere there is a strong tidal current where they could inadvertently get swept out to sea?- I agree there are unsafe places, well lets rephrase that, there are places that i would consider unsafe to paddle board (but then I am no expert).

is it just me that thinks that if a hire cruiser is perfectly legally navigating the system, then they should be keeping a watch out, and if they hit anyone, then they have failed to be legally navigating the system (i seem to recall a rule that says they should be avoiding collisions)

somehow I dont see a paddle board as similar to other inflatables, unless you have a serious leak, which you would notice quite quickly these things when inflated are a lot more solid than a similar lump of wood, and a lot more bouyant.

[ExSurveyor]

The biggest danger to a paddleboarder is the helm of a boat that isn't keeping a good lookout or is going faster than it is safe to do given the conditions and traffic on the river.

Paddleboarders, canoes, day boats and wind powered boats all have an equal right to enjoy the Broads safely.

That safety is the responsibility of ALL users and education is sadly lacking in some users of all types of craft.

[rightsaidfred]

What a slippery slope we tread when thinking or talking about bans and restrictions, the waterways are public for public use, start restricting one category of user from an area and you open the door for others to be banned.

Fred.

[marshman]

The greatest danger, to any other river user, including a paddleboarder, "... is the helm of a boat that isn't keeping a good lookout."

[Wussername]

4 hours ago, Vaughan said:

Indeed.

In which case we can casually sit back and wait for what myself, Daniel Thwaites and others in the business predict, when the first innocent paddle boarder is driven under and drowned (if they miss the propeller) by a 40ft motor cruiser navigating entirely legally between Wroxham and Horning.

Sometimes I am reminded of what I maybe have always known ; that the hire boatyards are perhaps more genuinely aware of the needs for safety, and their implications, than pretty much anyone else.  Perhaps because it is us, who have the bitter experience of how very easily the simple pleasures of boating - and paddling - can suddenly go disastrously wrong.

"Can suddenly go disastrously wrong."

May I refer you to the MAIB report 2021, where 4 paddle boarders perished.

In particular the report of the MAIB Chief Executive.

[Wussername]

34 minutes ago, marshman said:

The greatest danger, to any other river user, including a paddleboarder, "... is the helm of a boat that isn't keeping a good lookout."

The greatest danger is never one isolated instance. Several factors come into play. An inexperienced helm. Perhaps, possible, has never been on a boat before. A ten year old child on a paddle board. At Ranworth, Ludham Bridge, Wroxham.

A good lookout. Yes, but it is more than that and to my mind a somewhat weak responce that requires a more positive and focused responce to achieve a satisfactory conclusion towards an issue which could well haunt us.

 

 

[Cheesey69]

My experience is that they are highly unpredictable. Unlike a cycle on the highway which has to keep to a defined set of rules.

They pop out between moored boats, cut corners and cruise on the wrong side. And in one case on The Ant, at night

once again, the water is seen as a safe environment where as the highway is seen as a killer 

it’s all about context, when you think you’re safe, that’s when trouble starts 

[Jbx5]

There were paddle boarders on Rockland dyke Saturday night, zero lights not easy to see. Good job the helm was keeping a good look out MM!

 

[floydraser]

5 hours ago, CambridgeCabby said:

Legislation and rules are one thing , getting individuals to follow them is an entirely different matter.

I regard paddle boards as the bicycles of the rivers and they should be treated as the same , by all means encourage their usage , promote it even but also similar to bicycles not being permitted to use a motorway paddle boards should be restricted in their use in areas which causes danger to the user and also to other river craft.

As I read through theis thread I started to make a similar comparison to bikes on the road. In my opinion, in these days of busy roads it's just too dangerous to cycle on a main road anywhere. Paddleboarder's cause is not helped by those who are not happy to paddle along in quiet waters, but prefer to be in the thick of it, in the main boating channels. And not just on the Broads, we saw this just last week down at Itchenor.

How long before we see paddleboards bristling with GoPros, resulting in Youtube videos showing how uncaring and reckless boat helms are? Leading to a set of rules giving PBs all the authority on the water. Unfortunately history shows we need rules because we can't be trusted to use our common sense.

[PCL023]

2 hours ago, Cheesey69 said:

My experience is that they are highly unpredictable. Unlike a cycle on the highway which has to keep to a defined set of rules.

They pop out between moored boats, cut corners and cruise on the wrong side. And in one case on The Ant, at night

once again, the water is seen as a safe environment where as the highway is seen as a killer 

it’s all about context, when you think you’re safe, that’s when trouble starts 

Is that paddle boards or sailing boats 🤪🤣

cheers 

Paul 

[grendel]

as a cyclist I try and avoid major roads, if I do have to use them i do so in a manner where I can be visible, and where they have to take note, i see now why the new highway code advises cyclists to move further out from the kerb, it lessens the possibility of cars just ignoring you and speeding past, likewise on a paddle board, be seen and ensure that you are noticed, dont do anything unexpected if you can help it, and helms, dont go speeding past, reduce your wash and dont do anything to tip a paddleboarder into the water.