2001: I head up north to visit my best friend Danny to do some mountain biking, widsurfing and sailing. He's got (had) a Hobie 18 Magnum. We're out on Barnegat Bay blasting along in 20-knot winds having a great time! We're both out on the wire (he's at the helm and I'm crewing) trying to get the boat to go faster and faster. I'm looking ahead and to windward for any traffic in front of us (couldn't see to leeward becase the main had no window in it). Suddenly there's a flash of white, a cracking sound, I slam into something hard and then I find myself under water under the boat.
I come up to the surface amongst the wreckage of the Hobie and see a 30-ft Bayline sport-fishing boat on top of us and still dragging us along. I look around for Danny and see him near the stern of the Bayliner, facedown in the water in a pool of blood. He's not moving. I swim over, grab him by the hair and pull him back to see a cut across his forehead from ear to ear. He's not breathing. So while in the water, I pinch his nose and start mouth-to-mouth. Luckily it only takes two breaths for him to start choking, spitting up water and breathing on his own.
Then I hear it; the sound of a Cuisanart in the water very close. The guy who hit us still has his engine running and the prop is still turning as he's dragging us. "Shut off your engine! Shut off your f'in engine," I scream out! I look up and this old guy on the flying bridge looks down at me and says, "you sailed right into my boat!"
He came at us directly from the leeward side at a 90-degree angle and sliced through the starboard hull just forward of the front crossbar like it was butter. The Hobie flipped over crashing the mast across the transom of the fishing boat coming within inches of killing the guy's wife. The mast came down so hard and so fast that it broke in two places on the rails of the Bayliner. The sudden flipping action sent Danny and I flying into the side of the Bayliner.
The guy shuts off the engine and starts yelling at us as I'm holding Danny in the water pressing my hand over his head. A large powerboat came up to assist and the skipper (who was retired Navy) and his wife were a huge help to us. They took charge of the "rescue operations" and called the Coast Guard. Two jet skiers came racing in, they jumped off their jet skies and swam over to help us. By now a bunch of other boats come around and someone asks, "how can we help?" I shout out, "don't let HIM leave!" And a couple fo powerboats start circling the Bayliner like sharks keeping him from taking off. The Navy guy and his wife got a semi-conscious Danny on board first and as I went to get on board the pain in my ankle and the odd angle of my shin told me that I had a broken leg and ankle.
The Coast Guard comes in and they want to transfer us to their boat to transport us to shore to the hospital. As I'm being transfered I ask one of the jet skiers what happened to their rides. "Don't know. They floated away. It doesn't matter, we'll go find them later. Let's get you on this auxilliary boat and to the hospital." (It was the BEST experience I ever had with a PWC'er!)
They call out to the Bayliner owner to throw them a line so they could tie up and send someone aboard. So he throws them a line... but forgets to tie off on his end - he just throws over a coiled rope! That pissed off the Coasties and so they ordered him to heave and boarded his boat. We started in for shore and before we got there the coastie piloting the Bayliner says over the radio that it's taking on water, is heavy in the bow and probably won't make it back tot he marina. So he's going to head straight for shore and ditch it on the rocks. Good! I thought to myself. I hope it does more damage.
We were transported to a local hospital. My leg and ankle were set and put into a cast, Danny had to spend the night as he needed stitches and had a nasty concussion. The Hobie broke apart and sank. The Bayliner had been holed in the bottom about six feet back from the bow (probably by the bridle wire) which showed how fast and high up on plane he was going. Since it was in the bay and not the ocean, the Coast Guard turned over jurisdiction to the County Sherrif who since he hadn't seen the accident, simply wrote it up as a collission between two boats. I was not pleased about that. I wanted it on the record the magnitude of what this guy did wrong. He could have been arrested for wreckless endangerment. Luckily for us the Bayliner owner didn't contest the insurance issue and his paid for our medical bills and a new Hobiecat for Danny. We didn't bother sueing for more. We're not like that. The guy had just retired two weeks earlier and typical of powerboat dealers, they took his check and handed over the keys without ever instructing him on the rules of the water. The guy first said he didn't see us (how can you miss a 30-ft tall colorful Hobie sail?) and then said that he thought we would move out of his way.
He was just an idiot. His wife was terrified beyond belief and will probably never set foot on a boat ever again.
Pucker factor. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />
