Anchor line hit by PB pulling a water skier

I was sturgeon fishing on the Willamette across from GR Park.
I was moving my anchor to a new location when a PB pulling a water skier hit my anchor line about 6 feet from my float. 
I had the anchor in my right hand and pulling the line with the float about 75 feet behind me heading west from the east side of the river. The PB was heading into the group of boats anchored upriver of the hole across from GR.
I was shocked to see the PB heading for my line and still had it in my hand when the boat hit it. I run 550 para cord for my anchor line.
Playing things back in my mind I was wondering if this was my fault or the PB’s fault.
The other kayakers that I was fishing with said it was entirely the PB fault.
Oregon law requires a boat to slow no wake or maximum speed of 5 MPH within 200 feet of a swimmer, surfer, wading angler, dock, floating home or boathouse.
100 feet from any anchored or non-motorized vessel.
I can tell you all day we had boats closer than that.
I think I was lucky and did not get hurt. All day while working the anchor line I did practice good line management while deploying or retrieving my anchor line. 
 This is the same location that Jammer was hit by a PB while anchored.
Willbd

Just out of curiosity, why were you towing the anchor line behind you moving from one side of the river to the other? Why not pull anchor line completely, relocate, and drop anchor again?

It may not "legally" be your fault... but it's your fault.  Pull in your line... all the way... it is kinda like leaving your zipper down with your junk part way out when you come out of the restroom.  "I'm just gonna use it again"  Sure you are... but until then you should put it away.   Glad no one was hurt.

Just out of curiosity, why were you towing the anchor line behind you moving from one side of the river to the other? Why not pull anchor line completely, relocate, and drop anchor again?

I was just going to move west about 20 or 30 feet to get better position in the hole.

willbd

I wasn't there so it's hard to say who's fault it was, but I always try to pull my anchor all the way up when moving. For my own safety more than anything.
Rev, loved the analogy.

Was it the decked out red and silver wake boat?

Just out of curiosity, why were you towing the anchor line behind you moving from one side of the river to the other? Why not pull anchor line completely, relocate, and drop anchor again?

I was just going to move west about 20 or 30 feet to get better position in the hole.

willbd

I've drug my line when moving my anchor many times but have only drug my anchor line and the buoy behind me once(after that I realized that dragging the buoy is a P.I.T.A., unless you're going for that sexy, toned calf and quad combo ).  It may make some sense if you're going to anchor in the same depth in a different spot that is really close, but on a day where there are a lot of anchored boats or boat traffic in the area it isn't the best idea as a Monday morning quarterback perspective.  I clearly wasn't at Rodgers Bend on Saturday(I assume you're talking about Saturday since you mentioned the sturgeon fishing and the anchored boats in the area) but from the situation you described it seems that the people operating that boat have a pretty messed up understanding regarding river etiquette.  They shouldn't have been water skiing/wake boarding in that particular spot of the river on a single day sturgeon retention season.  They would likely be deemed negligent if anything serious would have happened.  However, you should always assume people don't know what they're doing, especially on a day like Saturday when inexperienced boaters are all over the river.  When boating accidents involve a power boat and a kayak, the kayak will always lose.

Makes more sense to drag it up or down river.  But not across.  The river there is 650 feet wide.  75 feet is more than 10% of the width of the river.  As a boater, I would not expect a kayak to be towing a 75 foot line.  I'll typically stack the rope in my lap when I move so I don't have to recoil each time.

Makes more sense to drag it up or down river.  But not across.  The river there is 650 feet wide.  75 feet is more than 10% of the width of the river.  As a boater, I would not expect a kayak to be towing a 75 foot line.  I'll typically stack the rope in my lap when I move so I don't have to recoil each time.

+1


-Rodney-

Makes more sense to drag it up or down river.  But not across.  The river there is 650 feet wide.  75 feet is more than 10% of the width of the river.  As a boater, I would not expect a kayak to be towing a 75 foot line.  I'll typically stack the rope in my lap when I move so I don't have to recoil each time.

 
Well put!

If that PB was indeed the decked out red and black one running up from GR to Cedar Oak and beyond it was doing S turns in the river between all of us at Hog Island.
For those of us that are interested the sheriff issued that boat owner/driver with a $400 ticket on Saturday for exactly what he was doing.  That was one of several reasons I pulled up early and left the river, too many inconsiderate and dangerous people on that river Saturday, sturgeon retention or not.
I can fish for sturgeon anytime, maybe it was better that I left "my" keeper in the river.

For those of us that are interested the sheriff issued that boat owner/driver with a $400 ticket on Saturday for exactly what he was doing. 

THAT'S JUSTICE!!   

They started out irritating people; they were at their dock apparently testing the boats stereo to ensure it was loud enough for all boats to enjoy.  If you were up by Meldrum you would have heard it.  The wake boaters "fun" day got even better: after getting their paperwork to make a donation to the state, they were unable to pull their boat out due to low tide and the ramp being sanded in.  They didn't seem to realize they could pull their boat upriver at a deep launch.  It was strange, nobody seemed compelled to point this out to them?  They were still cruising around (slowly thanks to law enforcement) when I left.

I watched the incident from 50 yards away. The PB in question is the power boat that docks at the ramp that willbd was fishing 20 yards from. He came in hot because he wanted the skier to release and float up to the dock and get out. 

Regardless of the rope extended behind willbd, the buoy marker was clearly visible and the pb chose to run within 5 feet as he passed by. I cannot say what the guy was thinking but he did pilot his craft into a very congested area at a fast speed, run next to a clearly marked obstacle and then cut power when his objective was done. Knowing that he had severed the line, he moored up collected his stuff and went on his merry way. All of this without a word to the guy who he had just cut the line.

Earlier in the day they had chosen to run through the whole area in a couple of ski passes. The other PB boats were not very happy either. If I interpreted the actions right (right arm back with a smooth but purposeful extension forward and a snap of the wrist at the end) they let the boat know how frustrated they were.

It looked like the PB was trying to make a statement that this was his section of the river.

Wobbler

Is this the same boat that the sheriff towed up to the private dock just down from Meldrum Bar? Similar situation; I saw them hot-dogging a wakeboarder through the lines of anchored boats, music blaring, then the sheriff's boat lights came on. Next thing I know the sheriff is dragging the boat up to a private dock near where we were fishing. No idea what the resolution was.

Speaking as a wakeboarder, the kind of people who do this stuff are a$$holes and the reason why everyone hates wakeboarders (even me!). I'm glad they were ticketing people who weren't being safe, and I wish they'd do it more often. It is possible to have a really fun time wakeboarding and not act like a complete jerk.