YCSO conducts boat safety clinic | News

Each boat ramp varies in size and can safely fit either one boat or as many as three depending on the lake, according to Yuba County Sheriff’s Office Marine Enforcement Division Deputy Will Davis.

Davis said it is important to use your space efficiently when working your truck and boat on the ramp to get in and out of the waterway.

Davis and fellow Marine Enforcement Division Deputy Daniel Harris worked with a small group of about 10 or 12 women on Saturday on proper boating safety and working vessels into and out of Yuba-Sutter’s vast natural resources. 

Davis said the common mistake that he has seen during his four-year stint with the Marine Enforcement Division is that people tend to overcorrect when towing their boat over a ramp.

That can lead to jackknifing, he said, where a boat essentially ends up in a complete opposite direction of the truck towing it. 

It is a potentially dangerous situation, Davis said, that can lead to accidents with other boating families and a lot of frustration among the parties trying to get out on to the water. 

“It leads to frustration for everybody and lots of husband and wife and boyfriend-girlfriend fights,” Davis said. 

The United States Coast Guard published a boating safety report last summer that revealed an increase in accidents across the country among boats. 

According to the report, boating accidents increased 26.3 percent, while fatalities were up a shade over 25 percent in 2020 compared to 2019. In California, there were nearly 170 more accidents in 2020 than in 2019, according to the U.S. Coast Guard report. 

Water recreation, while fun, can also be a dangerous adventure for families anywhere. The goal with the YCSO-sponsored boat clinic was for Davis and Harris to provide intricate knowledge – both classroom and hands-on – to help keep families safe getting into and on the lakes and rivers this summer. 

Davis said the clinic, which was his first, included boating safety tips during a nearly two-hour classroom session, followed by a hands-on simulated experience of women getting behind a truck to back a boat into the water. The exercise, which took place behind FoodMaxx at the former Linda shopping mall, featured a YCSO truck hitched to a boat trailer carrying a large vessel. 

The goal, Davis said, was for the participant to steer the boat in between two yellow lines, which simulated the boat ramp. If the boat trailer hit or crossed the lines, it meant that the boat either went into the water or hit another trailer, he said. 

Davis said it’s crucial when towing a boat to make small corrections with the steering wheel and watch the boat at all times.

“I am a big advocate of using your (side view) mirrors because you can see both sides of your boat,” Davis said. 

Davis said a lot of times when people are trying to load a boat off a ramp they will focus too much on one side and forget about what the other side of the boat is doing.

Before you know it, Davis said, the forgotten side of the boat hits the dock, another boat, trailer or something else – causing damage. 

“It really teaches you to use your mirrors to focus on seeing both sides,” Davis said. 

Deveraux, during one of her stints on the boat ramp simulation, made the common mistake of not using her side view mirrors and keeping her head on a swivel while backing the boat up. 

It’s a technique that needs lots of practice even for someone who is a veteran boater in the area, Deveraux said. 

“I can do it and have done it, but it is nerve-racking,” she said. “Because you have other people there and some are impatient.” 

Deveraux recalled a time when she was backing up a pontoon boat next to a family with a jet boat, and as the jet boat hit the gas at the last-minute it created a wave that nearly caused catastrophe on the ramp. 

“I don’t know that he was in the wrong, I don’t think I was in the wrong because I was trying to load mine,” Deveraux said. “That’s part of boating sometimes.” 

It’a delicate balance to back down a boat – a technique that can become more difficult in crowded situations where families are anxious to get on the water. 

Donna Myers, another veteran boater who has spent many years on the water near Browns Valley, said the clinic helped build a person’s confidence before even getting to the ramp. 

Myers said the course, which was designed for women, helped keep the participants from getting too intimidated during the simulation. 

“Women are intimidated by a lot of the men,” Myers said. “I can remember my ex-husband used to tell me, ‘OK, I need to back the trailer up this way and if I start to get a little crooked,’ he would go bananas,” Myers recalled. “It builds your confidence so when you get to the boat dock you feel like you can do it.” 

Saturday’s course was limited to 15 individuals and there is currently not another event such as this scheduled, Davis said. 

Davis said the YCSO Marine Enforcement Division is open to scheduling more clinics this year if there is a vested interest from the public. 

Davis said to register for a boat safety clinic, contact YCSO at 530-749-7777.