Texas kill switch law passed

[Mikes220]

June 10, 2010 the governor of Texas signed a bill that all oerators of boats 26’ and under must be be physically connected to the boats emergency shut off switch.... what do you guys think about this? I have been boating a long time and have never worn the lanyard. Having said that, I boat in smaller Texas lakes with very few barges causing waves that could throw me over board. I typically don’t like to be told what to do. Texas had a motorcycle helmet law and ended up modifying it to the point if your a mature adult you can make the choice. I am the third owner of my 222 and I have never seen a lanyard nor would I know where to attach it if I had it.

[jhnmdahl]

It's one thing to require new boats being sold to have it, and quite another to require boat drivers to wear it while boating. I can see wearing one while jet skiing or some such thing, but am unlikely to wear mine cruising around in calm, open water.

[Big Block Power]

Not sure why it's not on the larger boats. They go faster sometimes and can be more dangerous. You don't need a Barge to get thrown off a seat even a large cruiser wake or a tow boat wake can do that also. I've never wore mine I would if I had to buy that's about it. I always wore it on the jet ski though.

[NautiGirl]

I usually wear ours while sitting in the passenger seat. It's comforting to know I can stop the boat if Katie gets too crazy.

[cmattj]

I usually wear ours while sitting in the passenger seat. It's comforting to know I can stop the boat if Katie gets too crazy.

That’s awesome !

Back in poker runs I got educated to clip it on lower belt loop or lower vests so standing won’t pull it.
I just stare at it now... it’s red.. looks too short and it’s mounted way to low on our 282. Almost like they designed it to be out of the way.?

[Mikes220]

I just thought of the perfect solution. I will trade my 222 for a R7. Being over 26’ I won’t have to worry about the safety lanyard.

[tgrace98]

I just thought of the perfect solution. I will trade my 222 for a R7. Being over 26’ I won’t have to worry about the safety lanyard.

I like your thinking!! My R7 has a kill switch on the shifter. I’ve never attempted to wear it. I don’t think I’ve had a situation yet where I’ve hit wake and even moved. And I only sit when it’s to cold to stand.

[Motex2011]

I made it a point to try to remember to wear mine. I'm about 50/50 on remembering. I'm like Mike in that I don't want to be told what to do though. I wonder what happened to get this law passed?

[thunder550]

Only time I've ever worn one is when I took the boat out into open ocean. Never touch it at the lake.

[AsLan7]

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Ya, not a fan. I almost threw my wife and child forward out of our first boat while reaching for something at a casual 40 mph...which instantly went to 5 mph as the kill switch killed the engine underway. Fortunately no one was hurt.

Needless to say it was the last time I wore it.

[Bobo87]

Thanks BB for pointing out where the kill switch is. It is obvious the lawmakers who passed this law in TX are not Cobalt owners for if they were they’d known how well they handle in rough water. The only way I know of getting thrown out of a Cobalt is by another person picking someone up and throwing them overboard. They should have put the kill switch on the towable tubes!

[Mikes220]

The Texas law is called, “the Keli Law.
In 2012 a teenaged girl was thrown from a boat and hit by the propeller. A very tragic event. The report I read said they were in a “flat boat”( a bayboat with very low sides. The driver was turning sharply and the boat did a 180 throwing, the driver was thrown from his seat and Keli over the bow.
It’s my understanding there are six other States with a similar law. I have no information as to which states have this law.

[okielaker]

Thought Texas was more libertarian than this... accidents happen, and are tragic, but a
single instance shouldn't be sufficient evidence on which to base passage of restrictive laws..

The specs say I'm 10 inches over 26 feet, else I'd have to stay close to the north shore continuously.

[jasonm]

Shotgun approach...Lets punish everyone

My daughter is 10 going on 11...In Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana boat over 26' kids under 12 do not have to wear a life jacket...Which is partially why I went with my 262. My daughter has gotten to the point where she does enjoy wearing her life jack because it adds some extra cushion.

That being said...I have been on a lake near my house...Lake Wright Patman, and I have been stopped by the Game Warden several times. The 1st time he stopped me I think he was going to write me a citation because she didnt have her life jacket on before I dropped anchor. I politely reminded him about the law and he was like yes that is correct...do you have any proof of the boat length. I showed him my Game Warden boat registration (I really wanted to bust out a tape measure for him). He was like...I have never seen a boat this big out here...Then he was like well this is just a courtesy stop and proceeded to ask me about my fire extinguisher, horn, whistle, life jacket quantity (I have about 20 on the boat)...everything he could think of...

Now I can just see him trying to stop me to verify my lanyard...I guess I will have to politely remind him of my boat length...lol...

[AsLan7]

Thought Texas was more libertarian than this... accidents happen, and are tragic, but a
single instance shouldn't be sufficient evidence on which to base passage of restrictive laws..

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Yes in the Air Force we had a saying for this...."punish the a$$es by going after the masses."
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