Hi all, I've been sailing on Botany Bay for at least 15 years and this summer seems to be dramatically worse with regards to jetskis. Let me say first up: yes we should do all we can to avoid collisions with any other water craft regardless of right of way. Second all windsurfers have a blind spot by virtue of the sail luff pocket, which can cover anywhere up to between 1 and 3 o'clock (or 11 and 9 for starboard tack, if 12 o'clock is the nose of your board) which means that it is not always possible for us to see them, but believe it, they will always be able to see you. On no less than 4 occasions within 1 hour yesterday jetskiers came from out of my blind spot and passed within less than 3 ski lengths in front of me whilst I was fully planing.
These are not accidents or near misses, these are deliberate attempts at intimidation. Jet Skis are required by law to stand off 60m from non powered craft when doing more than 10 knots and they all have to know this to get a PWC licence. These people are intentionally BREAKING THE LAW to try and piss us off. Its also interesting to know that irregular driving (other than a straight line) is prohibited within 200m of the shore, and how often do these people ignore that law as well.
So what can we do about it. Firstly DON'T stop coming to Botany Bay, its still the best spot in Sydney for flatwater sailing and the greater on water presence we have the better. Secondly there is a suggestion to exclude jetski landings from most of the beach from Kyeemagh to Monterey according to the Cook Park management plan, but this isn't enacted yet. The authorities may need a little pushing to get this one rolling, so the more pestering in the form of complaints the better. I must admit that not ALL the jetskiers were doing the wrong thing yesterday by the rotten apples must be dealt with, and if they can't reign in their own, then a blanket restriction is the only answer. Thirdly if you have fears for your safety, get off the water and grab your mobile phone. The number for Botany Bay Water Police at Sans-Souci is (02) 8566 7566. Try and grab the number or a description of the jetski in question. (Nothing pisses people off like the tenth call in a row if your trying to kick back in the office on a Sunday afternoon.)
This situation is only likely to get worse if nothing is done so I think we'd all be open to suggestions. (not the "torch their cars at Kyeemagh boat ramp" type of suggestions either). You can read about the windsurfer hit by a powerboat at Jimmy' beach elsewhere in the forums, and Botany Bay can get much busier.
The local council members for third ward can be found here: http://www.rockdale.nsw.gov.au/MeetYourCouncillors/Pages/default.aspx#third
And of course the state member is Frank Sartor (but I wouldn't bother, given the state of NSW politics right now)
Stay Safe.
I know... how about banning JetSkis for another other use than as a rescue craft.
Yeah, I know that will sadly never happen. However, have you tried talking to the Botany Bay Water Police about this situation? At the end of the day it's their job to enforce the law.
Here their details:http://www.directory.nsw.gov.au/showorgunit.asp?id=%7BBA5E1728-CF2A-4EBB-86AD-430BA2637BF4%7D
The water police did book one jetskier whilst I was there at about 3pm yesterday.
He was doing 100km/h amongst the swimmers near the baths,20 meters from the shore line.
There is no way in the world that anything other than a total ban in designated areas will work.
How did they manage to ban these things from the harbour?
As detailed in the powerboat hitting windsurfer thread, I was almost hit by a jetski a few weeks back. In my case it was accidental, but negligence on the jetskier part. He was going fast and litereally turned around talking to a passenger. He was apologetic.
Yesterday I did have some close runins with jetskis that appeared to be intentional... not as close as last time for me, but jetskis passing withing 10-15m perpendicular to my path at very high speed with drivers grinning at me.
I think there is close to zero chance of getting them banned, as we are basically windsurfing across the path to the georges rived ramps, but it would be nice to have som policing going on so they think twice about what they are doing.
-- Adrian
Agree with all above.
Sometimes you have to treat sailing a windsurfer like riding a motorbike on the road.
ie. treat all other users as idiots who don't know what they are doing & are erratic.
A motorbike should not 'claim' right of way over a truck - windsurfer vs powercraft the same applies. Be aware of craft around you & know your limitations.
But also report blatant rule breakers, like that idiot I saw that got booked yesterday riding flatout & spinning within 5-10m of swimmers. Keep booking them all until they know AND apply the regs to their riding/driving on the water.
Disclosure: last year I called on a jetskier to take me out 1+km from Kyeemagh to salvage & retrieve gear with replacement value of $1600. 
I agree Wineman, but the problem is that some of those guys are going 100+ kph. You see them coming, and want to stay away from them, but they have twice the speed most of the time, and the flexibility to point in any direction where we cannot. If they want to buzz you, there is nothing you can do it about it, and even if they do not, it can be difficult to judge what action you can do that will keep max distance from them, as they have much more control of this than we do. It was obvious to me yesterday, that some jetskis were steering towards passing very close to us.
The bottom line is that if they see us, then we have little control over how close they come to us... they decide this with a twist of steering. If they don't see us, then we are often just guessing the best evasive measures... often slowing down may leave you as a sitting duck!! Best to keep some speed and try to head behind them and hope they don't slow down.
I had a boat save me the previous sunday. I tore my sail up so bad I could not sail, and got a tow from a passing boat, so I certainly appreciate the good guys out there.
-- Adrian
I had to laugh yesterday....Amongst also having quite a few near misses with jet skis, I had to stop and drop my rig to give way to a friggin MSB boat that was NOT going to stop. If they don't even know the rules what chance do we have of educating the knobs on jet skis!!
I must admit though that whenever I have ever yelled at a jetskier they hang their heads very quickly as I am sure they know they are doing the wrong thing. They just do it cause they think they can get away with it.
I can't help thinking that our waterways are just like our roadways. The police on the road are more concerned with setting up an RBT station in the middle of the day to catch probably NO ONE than actually cruising the roads and being a moving visual deterrent (rather than hiding behind a bush with a radar covertly) and the water police and MSB are probably hamstrung with the same red tape and quotas and protocol that their road brothers suffer!! If they cruised the waters of Botany Bay regularly I doubt many of the jet skiers would be a problem.
Rant over 
I'd imagine whats happening is the jet skiers playing chicken with windsurfers and buzzing swimmers are getting bored with their jet skiing. After all once you've wound out your jet ski on Botany Bay and gone up and down the shore few hundred times, it becomes a bit boring. So stirring up windsurfers and swimmers brings on a bit of excitement and they can feel like skilled heroes.
I normally sail with my GoPro so if I'm down there and anything like this happens I'll make a short video about it, post it here and if people agree it documents negligent and dangerous behaviour, I'll forward it to the MSB and water police.
I blame the Waterways for not being proactive enough and not issuing enough fines - instead opting for warnings upon warnings.
I have emailed them on ocassions and their response has been somewhat supportive. But I feel they now need a 'Zero Tolerance' approach and unmarked patrol boats to keep it all in check.
Don't hesitate in voicing your complaints, but keep it factual (don't exagerate) and don't be petty. If you can cite the offending PWC reg. No.http://online.maritime.nsw.gov.au/ContactUs/Default.aspx?id=19
Good one DavMen, I used the link and registered my concerns. I think we need to circulate that link.
I also think Mobydisc has the right idea, it shouldn't be hard to capture this sort of behaviour on film even from the shore.
A couple of weeks ago there was a guy with a blue jetski...no hair and long beard, if you were there i bet you saw him! Unwatchable in his look, and quite ignorant in his move. This guy kept playing around me for couple of time with another guy on the back, and they fell in the water quite violently a few time, just to make you feel they knew what they were doing!
Windsurfing always reconciled me with the elements, and set my mind free. I have to admit that that day i would have waited for that f****r on the beach, with my mast in my hands!
Got kind of scared too yesterday at Kyeemagh when three jets were racing full speed coming from down wind. One might be okay to avoid, but 3 in a row over 40 kts, that's definitely some concerns when you have to watch out for them through the (not that transparent anymore) monofilm...
I don't know about the Australian laws, but in France you are not supposed to be over 5 kts under the 300m limit... Some were definitely going faster closer than 300m from the shore. (not that it matters for us, we have perpendicular trajectories anyway...) (And btw, so was I, don't have no cruise mode to keep under 5 knt...)
MOBY is spot on, jetskiing gets boring quickly. Look at most of the riders and their cars and you can stereotype big time! Shoal Bay gets crazy in Dec/Jan and the jetskiers don't seem to get harassed by Police/waterways much there either.
I have been sailing at Wanda and had a jetskier on the same wave and had a bit of water rage although this season seems to have been better so far. Maybe because you need some skill to get to Wanda?
Seems like tension is rising - keep cool!
There are a lot of dicks out there in any activity. As much as I hate the jet skis I do feel that it's not reasonable for us to demand that they be banned alltogether, there is plenty of room in the bay.
IMO the simple solution would be to give them a zone out in the bay 1 or 2 k's off shore with a 8 knot speed limit to get to that spot, then police it. They stay out of our way and we stay out of there's.
They'd then probably halve in numbers because most of them just like showing off near the beach.
Totally agree. I don't want them banned. There is no reason why we should have any more right over the water then them (although it would nice to get the quite serenity back... but near the airport this is impossible anyway). But the fact remains that a windsurfer or swimmer has next to no control over how close a jetski gets to them. This is purely at the discretion of the jetskier because of their speed and gaility. So that being the case it must be the jetskier that follows any rules regarding minimum clearance distance to windsurfers as there is little the windsurfer can do. All it would take would be a few good windy days with some policing going on and fines given to make them think twice about doing this.
I do however agree that with a large bay, they could easily have their fun elsewhere, but they get bored and feel the need to showoff to the beach goers and harass the windsurfers to keep them interested. On the other hand the windsurfers could go elsewhere, but we do not have the same options due to the need for a nice rigging area, and the need to sail close to the rigging area or we are stranded if the wind drops off. I can't remember at any time ever seeing windsurfers harassing other water users. I have seen them call right of way on vessels, and I have seen some irresponsible sailors gybing between swimmers, but not deliberate harassment.
As the number of people use a certain area rises, so do tensions and tempers. If windsurfers are to complain about other water users we should ensure we are without blame as much as possible.
We do not have the options on the water a jet skiier has and that is reflected in the rule that a power boat gives way to a sailing boat. Its a fairly simple rule and all that is needed is for it to be complied with.
If its not being complied with then the penalties for breaking the rule need to be enforced.
Speaking of Shoal Bay and jet skiiers, I saw a sight on Sunday at Shoal Bay that sums it up pretty well. Imagine a loud Commodore ute around 10 years old towing a big jet ski up the street. Sitting on the jet ski is a fat chick smoking a cigarette. Priceless.
Its all getting too hard with the traffic and jet skis down there on the weekends.
I'm not sure which is worse.
Might have to give Palm Beach or Balmoral a go again.
I watched from the safety of the beach at Kyeemagh last week as Swimmers,
Jet skis and power boats were all tearing it up. All you could make out was white water. It was like a scene from "D" day....
Maritime boats are all over it, but they can't deal with this volume of jet ski's.
PS, I was run down 10yrs ago and now regret not pressing charges.
I believe it is only a matter of time until someone gets killed, that is the sad truth.
I never used to see jetskis on the lake but lately there have been quite a few & the rotten thing is they are still out there in 20kts..grr[}:)]
Yep same at Kyeemah. Since the new carpark is there with a more accessible and open beach, the jetskis have increased in number dramatically. They seem to thrive on the need to show off to the beach goers. Previously they were not really a problem.
Its not just Kyeemagh either. Lately there have abeen a few buzzing the shore at Collaroy Basin and Fishermans Beach. They are allowed to launch there but its a no wake zone and they must stay 500 meters away from the beach.
yeah right!!!! They do the same things, zoom around the bay amongst the SUP's, swimmers, kayakers etc. No rangers, no MSB or water police as usual. And they couldnt give a s*** if anyone confronts them about it.
The waft of two stroke and angry mosquito noises are friggin' annoying.
Slalomfreak, don't bother going to Balmoral on a weekend unless you either have a Mosman parking sticker or are prepared to walk 1km with your gear. There is a third option (wife drop off and pick up!)
The place is packed and seems worse since the whole area is controlled by meters.
We should just pick up the plae numbers of the car or the jet-ski and report them!!!
Where do they park and launch from? The difficulty is we do not use the same carpark and launch area.
What about contacting some jet ski representative body? Let the body know of our concern and the possibility of windsurfers asking for jet skiing being banned on Botany Bay? We may not even ask that as it is quite aggressive. Perhaps just telling the reps or shops that sell jet skis that some people using them are acting like idiots and are not making any friends out on the water.
Whenever I hear about a jet skier helping someone in the water I think the better of them. Whenever I see or hear of them buzzing someone I think the less of them.
As far as I know there is only one boat ramp at that end of the bay: Kyeemagh ramp off Mutch avenue on the Cooks river and it's always busy with jetskiers. The next closest points would be on the other side of the runways at Port Botany or Kurnell. Kogarah council in their infinite wisdom banned launching PWCs from Kogarah bay boat ramp but some may be coming from further up the Georges (what is the range of those things anyway). Most of them seem to drop their friends off at the beach then go to the ramp.
I did a quick search for jetski forums with google, there are a couple but didn't see anything specific to Botany Bay, but this may be the way to start looking for message boards etc. (Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.) From the quick look that I had the tone seemed responsible enough and there is recognition that people sometimes do the wrong thing but no solutions and definately no recognition of the scope or scale of the problem currently at hand.
There must be a lot of new Xmas presents out there.
I saw a couple of guys at botany last night racing in out of the mouth of the the river. Going so fast they were spraying the fisherman out on the groyne. I reckon it won't be long before there is a major incident out there, hopefuly not with a windsurfer.
Be careful about sailing late in the afternoon when the glare from the low western sun makes it hard to see the jetskis.This can be made worse if you are upwind of them and the wind is carrying their noise away from you.And the 4 stroke motors are much quieter than the old 2 strokes.
My one close shave was in those conditions,luckily we saw each other at the last moment.But its easy to see how an accident can happen without anyone being obviously careless.
Just confirms that these thing are inherently dangerous due to their small profile on the water,heavy weight and speed.Much like an exocet missile in the wrong hands.
Its probably only a matter of time before they are banned from the bay as they have been in many locations all around the world,for good reason.
Meanwhile if you all put the water police number into your mobiles and ring them as soon as it gets out of hand we can at least keep them on their toes.
