I was almost killed yesterday...

[darflinger]

Everyone- Please be carefull..
I was barefooting yesterday here in StCharles, Il.- off my boom -with a 5 foot line and handle. boat was up to speed when I stepped out of the boat, and made my way out to the end of the boom. The handle flipped around and landed around my neck while full-speed barefooting..... I was lucky enough to pull it off my head before falling..
I cant imagine what would have happened if I hit the water at 38mph with a rope around my neck. My girlfriend and a few others saw everything from the boat. My girlfriend is still traumatized.
Just everyone please be carefull.. A perfect day can turn gruesome in the blink of an eye.

[tg0824SSVGG]

OMG! Ropes of all lengths can be so dangerous! So happy all worked out ok.

My swim suit would have needed a good cleaning after something like that!

[haugy]

Oh damn man. That's one of my big fears. I'm glad you are okay, that would definitely freak me out.

[beast 496]

You are so lucky! Note to yourself, learn to deep water start! Off a boom it is very easy. Al

[chrisk]

I have seen a lot of people combat this problem by retro-fitting a guard on their handle. All you do is take a cheap cutting board, cut it in a triangle that will fit inside your handle with room to spare for your fingers, drill holes in the edges, and secure it in place with either zip ties or a long bungee chord laced through the holes. That way, you can't fit anything larger than your fingers in the handle.

[haugy]

I have seen a lot of people combat this problem by retro-fitting a guard on their handle. All you do is take a cheap cutting board, cut it in a triangle that will fit inside your handle with room to spare for your fingers, drill holes in the edges, and secure it in place with either zip ties or a long bungee chord laced through the holes. That way, you can't fit anything larger than your fingers in the handle.

I think he meant the line that the handle was on wrapped around his head. I've seen it happen. The line can be bouncing from the handle hitting the water, and as soon as a body is near the line it creates a wrapping point. Once the handle hits the water sideways, the handle whips around the person like a bullwhip on a post. Hopefully you aren't going down when it happens.

[wotan2525]

Everyone- Please be carefull..
I was barefooting yesterday

You could have stopped right there. Barefooting is the scariest thing I've ever done.

[haugy]

What? You don't like going the speed that turns water to concrete, making the slightest miscalculation and getting slammed to the water's surface like a wrestler with a rag doll, only to then feel your balls follow suit as your body is turned into a pretzel, and your sack is now hitting the back of your head?

[bens250ex]

What? You don't like going the speed that turns water to concrete, making the slightest miscalculation and getting slammed to the water's surface like a wrestler with a rag doll, only to then feel your balls follow suit as your body is turned into a pretzel, and your sack is now hitting the back of your head?

lmao nice wording of the situation, I guess you might have some adventures with this situation?

[sybrmike]

Glad you're o.k.

Haugy, you forgot that great sensation of coming to the surface after a face plant & wiping your face, only to have more water rush from behind your eye sockets & down your cheeks when you open your eyes - not that it's ever happened to me.

[Rusty Griswold]

I think a lot of these things go unreported to the manufactor so no changes are ever made.

[darflinger]

Thanks guys. I went right back to barefooting after that happened. I didnt want that image to ruin our day.. Unfortunately, my girlfriend says she sees it every time she closes her eyes.

[tomelenbaas]

In May of 2008 Brett Yager, a top competitive skier, was killed running a 38-off pass at Gordon Rathbun's ski school in Acapulco. He took a bad fall and his head passed through the handle of a slack rope, killing him instantly when the rope tightened. There was an outcry at the time to do something with handle designs, and I have seek a few after market products - mainly a close-knit net that fits over the rope's triangle but leaves enough room for the grip. The problem is most competitive skier's don't want the potential interference cause by a safety device.

I've never barefooted off of a boom, but it seems like there must be a better (or at least safer) way than crawling out the boom with the boat at full speed.