Attendees listen to speaker at Wake Boat Seminar

Nearly 50 people turned out for the wake boat safety seminar at lake Rabun last month.

In August, the Water Sports Industry Association and WaterSports Central presented a wake boat safety seminar at Lake Rabun to introduce its Wake Responsibly campaign.

Nearly 50 people attended the workshop to learn about safe wake-boat operation. It emphasized safety and courtesy tips, including:

  • Stay at least 200 feet away from the shorelines, docks or other structures.
  • Keep music at reasonable levels. Sound travels well over water. If it’s loud enough to hear at 80 feet back, it is likely loud enough for homeowners to hear, too.
  • Minimize repetitive passes on any one portion of the shoreline. Once you’ve run the same line for a while, move on to another area.
  • Remember, you are responsible for your own wake.

In Georgia, the 100-foot rule applies, as quoted here from the Georgia DNR, Law Enforcement Division website: “No person shall operate any vessel or tow a person or persons on water skis, an aquaplane, a surfboard, or any similar device on the waters of this state at a speed greater than idle speed within 100 feet of any vessel which is moored, anchored, or adrift outside normal traffic channels, or any wharf, dock, pier, piling, bridge structure or abutment, person in the water, or shoreline adjacent to a full-time or part-time residence, public park, public beach, public swimming area, marina, restaurant, or other public use area.”

For more information, visit www.wsia.net.

Photo: courtesy of Frank Matcha, Watersports Central