http://www.ridepwc.com en rex@hammock.com Copyright 2008 2008-08-19T16:01:00-06:00 http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/chicago_to_new_orleans_ride_live/ http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/chicago_to_new_orleans_ride_live/#When:16:01:00Z There’s no such thing as getting old anymore, and four AWA members prove it.  By riding from Chicago to New Orleans, Al Swope, 76 retied Airline pilot and former Marine fighter pilot, from Gainesville, Georgia; Luck Gravett, 75 and retired from owning his own business from Petaluma, California; Tom Beckwith, 72 and retired from Owens Corning and from Belton, SC; and Firman Beckwith, 68 a retired CFO from Roswell, Georgia, prove it.  This crew has been riding together for years.  They’ve been sending us updates. General 2008-08-19T16:01:00-06:00 http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/k38_tv/ http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/k38_tv/#When:20:03:00Z Check out K38 Water Safety Televised Action! Enjoy movie clips and come train and learn from experts! Please check out RescueVoices.com. K38 is proud to be sponsored by Kawasaki and enjoys the use of Jet Skis in our programs, Gath Headgear, MurraysMarine.com, Lifesled and Mustang Survival. K38 is honored to be working with the California Department of Boating and Waterways for Rescue Water Craft training, and the American Watercraft Associaton (AWA) H2O Responders program! Ride Safe! pwctv 2008-07-22T20:03:00-06:00 http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/bawa_k_38_boat_handling_course_kentuckyb/ http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/bawa_k_38_boat_handling_course_kentuckyb/#When:15:37:00Z Pleasant Valley Marine and the Tri-State PWC Club offer a personal watercraft safety course in Kentucky.  Pleasant Valley Marine of Florence Kentucky, in conjunction with the Tri-State PWC Club and the Commonwealth of Kentucky offer a one day personal watercraft safety and boat handling course to be offered at Potters Ranch on Gunpowder Creek just off the Ohio River on July 19th 2008.  The Kentucky Dept. of Fish and Wildlife will provide the state approved boating safety course, followed by lunch and then the hands on AWA/K-38 basic boat handling course using the PWC which matters most: yours. Working with Pleasant Valley Marine is the American Watercraft Association and K-38 Rescue. Combined, these groups offer an easy and educational one day course for personal watercraft owners. This innovative and practical instruction deals with basic rules of the road, common maintenance procedures, and a challenging half day of practical exercises on the water geared to increase your PWC handling skills.  Created specifically for personal watercraft owners, the course offers comprehensive information combined with hands on testing and real life riding situations. From launching your PWC to docking, we suggest skills that will help you become more knowledgeable and safe on the water. The basic tasks we teach are used to instruct First Responders, the Military and professional tow-surfers in watercraft handling. As easy and fun as personal watercraft are to ride and enjoy, we believe there is always room for more safety.  Our boat handling course includes:  Centering: Learn the proper way to position your body on a craft. Boarding and Re-boarding: Re-boarding a PWC is easy, or is it? Do you really know how to right an overturned boat? We offer tips for re-boarding your personal watercraft, and with passengers. Walk The Deck: Discover your safe balance points on your personal watercraft. Johnny B: Learn how to use the ‘pivot point’ of your vessel to give you better control. Slalom: A buoy course designed to teach you throttle control and body placement Raid Drill: Designed to teach you how to reach low to the waterline and maintain craft stability Docking: Learn techniques for approaching a dock and using an EZ Dock. Join us for the AWA/K-38 Boat Handling Course Sponsored in part by McGraw Insurance., and turn one day into a lifetime of safety and knowledge. The course is free and will be offered Saturday July 19, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Potters Ranch in Union, Kentucky. The Potters Ranch is located at 11500 Victory School House Road on Gun Powder Creek and the Ohio River. Click here for detailed direction: http://www.pottersranch.org/Location/DirectionMap.htm The course is free for PWC owners.  For more information, or to register, contact the American Watercraft Association at 800-913-AWA1(2921) or on the web at http://www.awahq.org General 2008-07-07T15:37:00-06:00 http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/boating_advisory_update/ http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/boating_advisory_update/#When:15:39:00Z Beginning May 23, 2008 all vessels entering four Santa Clara County reservoirs will be subject to a vessel inspection. Based on new protocols, park staff will perform visual inspections on every vessel entering Anderson Lake, Coyote Lake, Calero Reservoir and Stevens Creek Reservoir. All other county reservoirs will be closed to boating. Inspections at the four reservoirs will begin on May 23, 2008 and will continue until December 31, 2008. All water craft, including but not limited to, power boats, jetskis, sailboats, kayaks, canoes, and float tubes will be subject to inspection. Current vessel registration documents are required at the time of inspection. General 2008-05-23T15:39:00-06:00 http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/the_return_of_bluewater_network/ http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/the_return_of_bluewater_network/#When:20:30:00Z We’ve been warning PWC riders not to discount our San Francisco based pals, Bluewater Network, and their desire to turn back the clocks on access. Well, they’re back and coming out swinging; Last week, they filed a suit to repeal hard won personal watercraft access at Gulf Islands National Seashore in Florida, and Picture Rocks National Lakeshore in Michigan. Using the same old worn out propaganda mumbo jumbo from early 1990’s, they claim the National Park Service failed to conduct the rather extensive environmental impact statements in the correct manner: Translation: “The science and facts didn’t go our way, so we want it done again.” Real nice, eh, but then again, these people aren’t real big on integrity, or letting others decide for themselves the way they choose to live.  We expect there to be a hearing soon. Count on us to keep you up to date on this.  ActionAlerts 2008-05-19T20:30:00-06:00 http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/what_is_the_meaning_of_being_green_this_is_not_about_kermit/ http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/what_is_the_meaning_of_being_green_this_is_not_about_kermit/#When:19:14:00Z Or for that matter, what make a particular product “green”?  Well aside from the PWC Nation knowing that green is Kawasaki, the issue is much less clear.  I actually had a publisher of a major boating magazine contact me the other day to discuss which salt spot remover was “green”, and what the qualifications behind an “environmentally friendly” claim might be. General 2008-04-14T19:14:00-06:00 http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/blake_anna_safety_dayb/ http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/blake_anna_safety_dayb/#When:21:01:00Z AWA/K-38 Boat Handling Course The American Watercraft Association and K-38 Rescue offer an easy and educational one day course for personal watercraft owners. The course deals with basic rules of the road, common maintenance procedures, and a challenging half-day of practical exercises on the water geared to increase your PWC handling skills. General 2008-04-08T21:01:00-06:00 http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/bbun_freestyle_caresb/ http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/bbun_freestyle_caresb/#When:21:42:00Z IJSBA 2007 World Champion in Pro freestyle, Fumikazu Watanabe is supporting awareness for the conservancy of ecology or our surroundings. At the Yokohama Boat show recently in Japan, his booth was dispensing for free, seedling samples of flower packets to beautify your neighborhood, with planting mix.  General 2008-03-17T21:42:00-06:00 http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/legislative_fix_federal_boating_permit/ http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/legislative_fix_federal_boating_permit/#When:20:38:01Z Legislative Fix In for Federal Boating Permit Debacle. With six months to go, Congress has finally acted on the issue surrounding “federal boating permits.” Senate Environment and Public Works Chair Barbara Boxer and Senator Bill Nelson have introduced S. 2766, the Clean Boating Act of 2008, which will fully and permanently restore the longstanding regulatory exemption for recreational boats and recreational boats used for charter fishing expeditions from any federal or state permitting under the Clean Water Act. From previous AWA alerts, you already know environmental extremists convinced a San Francisco judge to eliminate the EPA’s 30 year old common sense exemption for recreational boating. Without this new protection in place, the EPA will be forced to implement a “Federal Boating Permit” system where you will be forced to purchase “permission” to do exactly what you do right now; boating. This isn’t a “maybe” “might” or a “could.” Instead, this will happen unless congress passes this important pro-people legislation. Every boater needs to contact their Senator today and strongly urge them to support this common sense measure. For an easy and free way to contact your Senator please click on the following link: www.boatblue.org Make the call, and stand with us as we preserve and expand boating access to America’s public waterways. For more information, contact the AWA at 800-913-AWA1. Think Free. Live Free. Ride Free ActionAlerts 2008-03-17T20:38:01-06:00 http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/bsame_stuff_different_dayb/ http://www.ridepwc.com/index.php/blog/single/bsame_stuff_different_dayb/#When:16:34:00Z PWC acquaintances of mine put in almost a full day meeting with management of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Sanctuaries and Preserves programs in early March. From what I hear, their accomplishment at the literal end of the day was spending a full day out of their own offices, and not much else.  This apparent lack of meaningful outcome was due to the complete inflexibility on NOAA’s part when it came to PWC regulations in Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS).  NOAA’s Sanctuaries and Preserves programs have had many positive accomplishments in raising the awareness level of national marine resources, but their record at MBNMS is one that has the fate of PWC sealed in a coffin. General 2008-03-13T16:34:00-06:00