sounds like the u.s. coastguard are in vic

If you are wearing a leggy just tell him you are permanently attached to a flotation device!

ALLROUNDER may be able to shed some light on this issue. Matt?

AA

Oliver and I were hassled over Christmas in Waratah Bay - same thing, threatened that next time we would be fined. Maybe they're bluffing but there is a clause in the regs that talks about rafts, open to interpretation but I'd say they could probably fine you if they were feeling nasty. We used the leg rope 200 litre flotation device argument - mind you it was howling offshore and the only way we could make any progress was on our knees, but we were hugging the coast, that is just outside the 6 foot waves crashing on the rocks, apart from that it was perfectly safe!


Victorian
Recreational Boating
Safety Handbook
December 2005

Personal Flotation Devices (PFDs)
Wearing of PFDs on recreational vessels
Victoria has new requirements for the wearing of PFDs at certain times
on recreational vessels. Under the new regulations, you may be required
to wear a specified type of PFD when in an open area of a recreational
vessel when the vessel is under way.
Wearing of PFDs on recreational vessels at all times
All occupants of the following vessels are required to wear a specified
PFD when under way and when in an open area of the vessel:
• Power driven vessels up to and including 4.8 metres (m) in length
• Off-the-beach sailing yachts
• Personal watercraft
• Canoes, kayaks and rowing boats
• Pedal boats and fun boats
• Kite boards and sail boards
• Recreational tenders.

Could we be "fun boats" whatever that is? We just stuck with the fact that they were big surfboards and that wearing a life jacket in waves was dangerous. Mind you probably wouldn't have been so silly to have an impact/pfd on on that day. Had the big Police launch slow down for a distant look yesterday in the Bay - had a sleeveless fluoro zip up vest on - maybe they thought it was a pfd.

Problem is always going to be the blurring of the surfing / flat water line. Sometimes I think that surfing around rocks or with a lot of people an impact vest that didn't hinder your paddling wouldn't be such a bad thing, but most of the time it would be a pain. Guess it will take a serious incident to make it law. I think there is a clause in a later version of the regs that in the case of windsurfers and kites a 3mm wetsuit is acceptable a certain distance from shore.

there is a legal way around infringements, but you have to have an understanding of your rights in common law and victimless crimes.
if you do get infringed, so to speak, ignore it and wait for sdro to send you a reminder, now this takes balls because they have no authority and are basically just bluff, but you gotta stand up to it.
sdro, or whatever collection agency are a third party to the fact, and have no legal claim over the infringement.
so when they send you a penalty/collection notice, they have paid your infringement and are now seeking to claim from you, which they legally have no right to do.
so when you get your notice, call them up, challenge them with this, politely of course, and when they admit to the fine being paid on your behalf, thank them for being so kind and hang up.
i am not making this sh1t up, upmart in vicco were well on the way to creating the legal avenues to freeman societies.
a bunch of mates in syd have been doing the same in relation to the ever increasing amount of private toll roads.

get you head around it if you can....

google:
freeman
strawman
ucc-1

www.truthmovementaustralia.com.au