Was the ski used for towing in, or did the dude feel like going for a leisurely cruise?
If any of you want to learn a little about tow ins, and just how much training these big wave surfers go through I suggest you get billabong odyssey.
its strange how the original post went from being a man rescued from gold coast waters after his jetski broke down to some hero towing big wave surfers out to sea!!!!
its becoming clearer that he was just out for some 'fun'. at least he wasn't wrapping himself in cotton wool ey??
ps - Lloyd's right on the money with this one - those blokes who rescued him did a might job and I reckon needed a change of undies when they got back.
There always have to be a ######## putting other people's lives at risk
I don't know how long some of you have lived on the Gold Coast or know anything about the Gold Coast but for the last say45 years i can remember every time there has been big seas, surfers, board riders and now it seems jet skiers are going out in these conditions to get their thrills.
I remember in the 60s when a board rider went in the surf at Coolangatta and hit shore again around Burleigh Heads.
He survived and no one was hurt.
I don't condone nor condem what has gone on but i think some could go to bunnings and get a can of harden up and have a good spray with it.
Everytime something goes wrong armchair bandits come out and knock what is happening without really having a good look at the situation.
Just remember Sh't happens and can happen so quickly to anyone in any place at any time.
I haven't seen posts of this amount knocking all the rescues that the lifesavers have made to those who have braved the conditions lately body surfing. They too have risked their lives to rescue the body surfers.
That's about all i have to say in this matter.
HAPPY NEW YEAR to you all.
Graeme
I found the article in the courier mail 30 december.That was the one i referred to.That rescue happened at 9:30 am at palm beach.There were 2 blokes .
George
At Heaven's gate a soldier stood,
his story ready to tell,
St Peter said, 'no need my son all is understood,
Go right in cos you've already served your time in Hell'
thats just the point - anyone who goes in the water in the current conditions risks theirs and other's lives. thats why the beaches are closed.Originally Posted by gawby
its not an invitation to jump in - professionals have assessed that its just too dangerous for the average punter.
as for hardening up, well you do that when you're dead don't you?
Professional big wave surfer's look for ground swell predominately on shallow reef. Not the wind blown sloppy mess we are experiencing at the moment. Anyone thinking they are in this league by going out in this is a fool.
Cheer's BAT
Thought I would add to this conversation as I was out with the skiier in question. It amazes me that so many people want to weigh into this debate. The simple sequence of events is that one of the three of us out there experienced some engine trouble and got washed off his ski. He was safely on the beach before the chopper arrived. This is not to detract from those people who do a sensational job keeping out beaches safe. I regularly contribute to the life savers because I know they are keeping an eye on me whenever I decide to go into the surf. As for all you people who feel the need to coment negatively, who do you think you are?What I decide to do with my ski is nobodies business but mine. I as the rider, understand the danger and the possible damage to my equipment. I have been involved in the rescue of a troubled swimmer on my ski so I know the risks involved and would do it without hesitation if the situation arose again.
It is great to see that some people out there can converse with intellegence, most likely from a position of experience. Some others should get some perspective.
PS The ski was also recovered
Last edited by kegman; 04-01-2008 at 06:39 PM. Reason: double post
Ok, In that case you should be fully liable for the rescue costs. To run the rescue chopper you would be looking at $1500 - $2000 p/h . Not to mention the man hours to look for the missing rider etc.
You, your 2 mates and anyone who says that risking the lives of the rescuers is ok are a complete tools plain and simple.
Brad.
I am sick of the media blowing this whole thing out of proportion.
I have surfed here on the coast for 20 years and used to surf stuff like this whenever the opportunity arose. Nowadays, spending more time fishing, i am out of shape and recognise that i would not be able to handle it if i went out there.
You guys with no experience in decent sized waves don't realise how good these sort of conditions are on the points. Offshore winds with 2 - 3 metre pits only happens when we get conditions like this. Any fit and experienced surfer who has done his "apprenticeship" should be quite able to handle it.
Surfers are quite happy out in waves that would drown anybody else. The ill informed media never reports on the tons of people that surfers pull out of the water quite regularly. I know i saved plenty of "joe public's" that got into trouble in conditions that were barely big enough to bother going out.
Honestly, some people would drown in their own bathtub, they are that useless. So should we ban all these people from swimming in the ocean too? It's all relative. It all depends on what you are used to.
Just like i read about guys on this site reporting that they were out in their boat with 1.5 to 2 metre waves in the broadwater, bay, etc when it was only a messy chop of 1 - 2 feet. BIG DIFFERENCE!!! Some people have a very low fear threshold and it messes with their perceptions. They definitely need to go buy one of those bunnings cans of "harden the &*%$ up"
So please, don't beleive everything the media churns out on this subject, most of it is crap and completely wrong, full of assumptions and based on pretty much zero knowledge of the ocean.
Just finished reading another crap article about this stuff in the Gold Coast bullshitten, with a picture of a fisho "DICING WITH DEATH" on the rocks with a big wave bashing against the rocks in the background. Anyone who has any depth perception and experience in this type of situation could see he was in no danger and probably about 50 metres away from the wave in question. Not the know it all journo though, he/she was busy beating up the story with all the people out there in readerland nodding their heads in unison and saying to themselves "bloody idiot"
Chill out guys,
some of you are stressing about not fishing for a week or two? Bloody hell, I haven't been able to get out for nearly 6 months!!!!
Cheers,
Mick
Kegman is my sisters boyfriend and i spoke to him about this today. He felt the conditions were well within his capabilities and it turns out they were for he was able to help the other person that had a ski malfunction. He (they) did not call for a rescue, somebody else did. Unfortunately accidents happen but in this case there was 2 skis there for just such an incident. He is not a fool and did not head out alone. As much as jetskis annoy me some times they are made to crash and bash through waves and that is what they were doing. Ben
If people are going out in such dangerous conditions as these and then requiring helicopter rescues then I think it is a sad waste of the donation money that has been given to the rescue teams. Let them worry about legitimate rescues instead of bailing out idiots.
Poodroo
i used to have a ski and you feel pretty safe in stuff youd never take a boat into. saying that i took a walk down the spit and saw some dude out by himself on a ski and thought that guys crazy to be out in that. not cos of the conditions themselves but becasue of the situation you'd be in if your ski packed up just like what happened to that fella. its pretty obvious you've got all your eggs in one basket.
i think it comes down to common sense
Re: Goldcoast Seaway (busted jetski Westpac rescue chopper)
From what i understand of the rescue business there is a big risk rescuing in any weather granted much higher in weather like this. Every few years there is extreme weather for the Sydney to Hobart and the round the world races but they are not stoped or banned. How many people get rescued during those events and almost all rescues conducted by australian rescue groups are never payed for by the rescuee. Most of these guys heading out in this sort of weather are better prepared for the swell wind and visability than most granted some fools still head out. But we still get fools head out in there cars in fowl weather when they have no need to leave home other than to have a look. I am sure the land based rescue groups have had to pull more people out of car wrecks the last few weeks than there has been sea rescues. Now next time you here of some one that gets picked up by the helo for a stroke or broken limbs or vessel that sinks be it through poor maintenance or navigation or whatever remember those people have just risked lives as well.
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