9/12/18 – Patrolling the Pond

Where did the summer go?  We’re looking at September; none-the-less overall it was a pretty good season on the Pond.  Number one fact……NO Boating Accidents!

On the plus side, we only had a few days that were really hot and the water temp was a bit nasty, but as a whole we had warm and cool temps, fair amount of rain.  I did water testing today, the water temp was 80 degrees, not bad for August.  Buddy Bass had and is still going strongly with a good season.  Sailing had its ups and downs with a few floaters, but there were some great days for the three fleets, maybe I should say four (Opti Children’s Fleet).  The MC fleet had two of their best days with wind during their Regatta as well as the ladies’ Social Butterfly.  The 4th of July was fabulous with one of the best fireworks shows that I’ve witnessed in my years at the lake.  Lotawana Day was probably the gem of the whole summer.  The Friday night parade, all the different events on Saturday capped with the Lotawana Ski Club putting on another great demonstration.  We still have the C Boat Regatta and the Wooden Boat Show coming up.

Looking at the downside….. way too many citations for no watercraft decals or lot/blocks or license plates on mooring structures, non-residents driving watercraft, ski flags are still a challenge to a few, speeding in/out of Big Rock, and homeowners not securing their watercraft to their dock or lifts.  Just this week, one of the water patrol lifts went down during the night (due to a leaking outtake hose).  Luckily, I had the bow and stern tied to the dock.  The patrol averages almost two watercraft a week floating somewhere on the lake and especially after storms.  Of course, no one that lives here full time will forget the two micro-bursts and our little tornado that did a tremendous amount of damage to docks, boats, houses, and trees.  The Lake Association Operation Staff headed by Greg Rudder, Mike Showman, and Tyler Reiss did a fantastic job putting our lake back together.

Hopefully a learning point here:  last week in the evening after dark a pontoon was floating in the middle of the lake with no lights on and along comes a power boat traveling over the night time speed limit.  The two-watercraft missed each other by a few feet.  This was very upsetting to both parties involved besides having the feeling of relief no one was injured.  The point being……. both parties were at fault.  The pontoon was technically ok having his lights off but should have turned them on immediately upon hearing or seeing another craft approaching.  I highly recommend not doing this.  If you are going to float in the middle of the lake at night you should have your lights on at all times so you are highly visible to all other boaters.  Boat number two was speeding, but at the point his bow was not all the way down.  This can hinder your visibility and awareness of others on the water.  Both parties involved understood each had made a “wrong choice” and this was a learning experience never to be repeated.  What I’m glad to see, both parties confronted each other and talked the situation out not yelling, screaming, or making threats.  They parted as fellow lake residents.  Nice to see this type of communication rather than what goes on in the outside our community today of violence and “I’ll get even” attitude.

Labor Day Weekend was fabulous. The weather was perfect with good wind in the day and a gentle breeze in the evening making for a great holiday weekend.  The sailors in both the MC and C-Boat Fleets had some great races.  On Labor Day itself I thought, “This has been a really great weekend with everything being so peaceful”…….then I ran into an interesting group of individuals in kayaks.  There were nine ladies and I knew a couple of them, so I pulled up and asked if they were having a good time on the water.  Now they all had ladies’ swimsuits on; however, I heard a deep voice talking.  “Boy does someone have a cold?”  This person kept talking and eventually my eyes came face to face with this individual wearing a two piece swim suit…..it wasn’t a lady!  I asked the mystery person who she/he was.  The response was “Dixie.”  Thought I would leave it at that.  If you happen to run into two of our very own special people living on our lake (Leanne Mattoni & Kim Duncan) you might inquire about Dixie.

How was your week?  See ya!