New information about the boat crash on Smith Lake.

[west_tn]

I believe that you are thinking of the BPT trail, not MLF.

You are correct. my bad.

[bustasack]

To all the people talking about channel markers on Smith lake, their are none. The only markers on Smith lake are hazard buoys and no wake buoys. I know the Striper guide, I went to High School with him, And i also knew one the victims he was a great guy, that left behind 4 kids. Im not blaming anyone or any organization, because accidents happen. The striper boat was sitting in a high traffic area during blastoff of a large major tournament, and one the tournament boats just didnt see him for whatever reason. And that will change the lives of alot of families forever. Its sad getting on here reading some of these comments of some people that probably dont even fish or own a boat, yet they know all the answers. And yes I fish Smith lake and tournaments there weekly .

[BigFishSteve]

Sorry for the loss of your friend and the striper guide. But the striper boat had a right to be where ever they were. Unless a steering system broke etc, then the driver of the moving boat should have seen any boat in time to react to it. Wasn't blast off like, 6:30am? Crash (notice I didn't say accident) happened at 7:03am. So the are you saying the striper boat was in the way of a "blast off" when he was 30 minutes of steady, full bore running, away from takeoff point?

[bustasack]

Sorry for the loss of your friend and the striper guide. But the striper boat had a right to be where ever they were. Unless a steering system broke etc, then the driver of the moving boat should have seen any boat in time to react to it. Wasn't blast off like, 6:30am? Crash (notice I didn't say accident) happened at 7:03am. So the are you saying the striper boat was in the way of a "blast off" when he was 30 minutes of steady, full bore running, away from takeoff point?

He had every right to be there, Like i said one of the guys just didnt see him. And I was told by a reliable source that knows striper guide and talked to him, said that they were in the process of leaving the spot because so many boats were getting really close as they ran by. And yes he should have seen the boat but a lack of attention for a split second cost the lives of 3 guys.

[ProVle]

They (including the tournament director, President of the club, etc) could for sure be named in a lawsuit, and still have to make a defense even if proven not liable later.

Which is why the club officers should all be bonded in some form including the treasurer in control of any funds.

[ninethree]

I fished my little 20 boat club tourney saturday at Clark Hill leaving Dorn. Couple other tourneys Over 100 boats blasting off ran wide ass open out of Dorn heading down and lake merged with other boats blasting off up river. We just shook our head went the other way couple hundred yards waiting for things to settle. Good thing had small limit in 30 minutes.

[188Musky]

He had every right to be there, Like i said one of the guys just didnt see him. And I was told by a reliable source that knows striper guide and talked to him, said that they were in the process of leaving the spot because so many boats were getting really close as they ran by. And yes he should have seen the boat but a lack of attention for a split second cost the lives of 3 guys.

Right there is an issue that all boaters, and especially tournament fishermen, need think about.

[basshammerwannabe]

I fished my little 20 boat club tourney saturday at Clark Hill leaving Dorn. Couple other tourneys Over 100 boats blasting off ran wide ass open out of Dorn heading down and lake merged with other boats blasting off up river. We just shook our head went the other way couple hundred yards waiting for things to settle. Good thing had small limit in 30 minutes.

Wish i could of seen the blast off saturday morning at Kerr Lake. They had a decent size team tournament out of a ramp not far from BFL ramp which is at the end of the big creek the other tournament would be going right into.. not the first time but seems like these 2 ramps usually arent used the same mornings for 2 big tournaments..

[Bug Bunny]

The accident is a tragedy. How is happened is worth discussing / investigating at length as it could possibly prevent an accident in the future. I generally don't run more than 50 in my boat. I'm just never in that big of a hurry. That said, there are thousands who run 70 and do it safely. When the why comes out with proof, let's discuss how we can all be better. Until then, let's just pray for all involved!!

[Thamelau]

We invest thousands of dollars in technology chasing a fish under the water to cast to it. Nothing invested to see a 20 ft boat filled with human beings on the water . Misplaced priorities. sad state our hobbies have come too.

Have you invested money into things like radar and whatnot that currently exist and would aid in seeing other boats around you?

[Hoot]

There have been post after posts on the BBC about the expert boat driving skills of Professional Tournament Fishermen not sure if that just means they are extremely skilled in driving at high speeds even in the worst conditions?

[Bill2e]

The accident is a tragedy. How is happened is worth discussing / investigating at length as it could possibly prevent an accident in the future. I generally don't run more than 50 in my boat. I'm just never in that big of a hurry. That said, there are thousands who run 70 and do it safely. When the why comes out with proof, let's discuss how we can all be better. Until then, let's just pray for all involved!!

[digthemup]

In the MLF trail, competitors are not employees, but customers. Only in the BPT trail could competitors be seen as employees.

Jeff
This clown has regurgitated the same stupidity multiple time just to stir the pot and maybe dilutional self-justification, which seems to be the approach of certain people who try to make a money grab out of a very complex and hurtfully sad accident with so many variables.

[XRD]

I hear this talk about Radar. Then the talk about driving while looking at a screen. How do you use radar without looking at your screen? Besides, by all accounts and 1 video fog was not a factor. There is a point where not paying attention comes into play. All the other boats managed to not collide with the striper boat.

[basshammerwannabe]

I hear this talk about Radar. Then the talk about driving while looking at a screen. How do you use radar without looking at your screen? Besides, by all accounts and 1 video fog was not a factor. There is a point where not paying attention comes into play. All the other boats managed to not collide with the striper boat.

Radar would show you on your screen if a boats close or not

[west_tn]

I hear this talk about Radar. Then the talk about driving while looking at a screen. How do you use radar without looking at your screen? Besides, by all accounts and 1 video fog was not a factor. There is a point where not paying attention comes into play. All the other boats managed to not collide with the striper boat.

Nobody in a bass boat is using radar.

[ericm]

Radar would show you on your screen if a boats close or not

Maybe. There’s a lot of factors that could impact that.

[ProVle]

Nobody in a bass boat is using radar.

This is one!

[ProVle]

More Radar in Bass boats. https://www.bassmaster.com/news/rada...aster-classic/

[west_tn]

More Radar in Bass boats. https://www.bassmaster.com/news/rada...aster-classic/

An article from 2011 of sponsored pros trying to sell a product I bet they didn't even use, and for sure aren't using now.