Fatal boat wreck on Barkley this morning

[MarkW]

Heard one boat turned in front of another and was t-boned at full speed. Very bad tragedy for sure!

[crigjv]

I was fishing one of these tourneys. The weather was fine this morning. No FOG or wind. The Renegade went out at 6:30 or safe light and at 6:30 you can see safely. The BFL was schedule for 7. I did not see the wreck and can not give you details about what happen or the names of the people. I do not know why or how what happened. What I can tell you is both parties had life jackets kill switches and all safety features on and in use. Yes I did hear the nonbaoter was struck by the boat causing his injuries again i wasnt there. This is tragic and I hope we all learn from this. The driver of the baot can only see so much the coangler should be watching and be acting as if he is driving also. Then stay to the right if i recall corrrectly. Just everyone needs to be more respective of everone out there while running and fishing. Watch other boats and stear clear. My heart and soul goes out the familys of all the ones involved. This may have been preventable but it did happen so everone thank aboutthis and waht they could do to prevent another accident. So may god be with the familys as the gentlemen that passed away will be losed forever but the oned involved will have to live eith this for the rest of there lives.

[Fishin is life]

I was there fishing the Renegade this morning....can't say exactly what happened as I didn't see the accident but i DO KNOW FOR A FACT that as you went towards south barkley there was VERY heavy fog....I also know there were estimated to be around 1100 tournament boats on the big lakes this weekend.....thats entirely too many boats trying to run from one spot to another in a hurry....and this is what happens...I'm all for tournament fishing but when stuff like this starts happening it kinda makes ya wonder....I know running through the canal today was like trying to run through a swarm of gnats without hitting one....and sometimes no matter how much you pay attention and try to drive your best things happen...I don't think it's fair to start casting stones at one driver and not the other unless you know exactly what happened....my prayers go out to everyone involved with this unfortunate accident

[Chubminnow]

I also know there were estimated to be around 1100 tournament boats on the big lakes this weekend.

Wow! That's a lot of boats...I'm assuming that's for both Barkley and Kentucky lakes? I'm kind of trying to put 1100 boats into perspective...like 1100 tournament boats on Cumberland verses 1100 tournament boats on Rough, know what I mean? There's quite a bit of difference there due to acreage of water....But still...1100 tournament boats is a lot of boats.

[trex1]

Wow! That's a lot of boats...I'm assuming that's for both Barkley and Kentucky lakes? I'm kind of trying to put 1100 boats into perspective...like 1100 tournament boats on Cumberland verses 1100 tournament boats on Rough, know what I mean? There's quite a bit of difference there due to acreage of water....But still...1100 tournament boats is a lot of boats.

Where are people coming up with 1100 tournament boats???Other than Renegade and BFL what other tournaments were they? Combined they were less than 400.
Tragic and probably avoidable. Another black mark against tournaments but, accidents happen everyday.
Prayers to all involved...

[redrockerbassnutt]

i'm the last one to support gov. intervention but the ky. dept. of fish and wildlife(or maybe on a national level dont know how bad it is in other states) needs to do something to regulate the number of tournaments on the water!the last few years it has gotten ridiculous.try fishing barren in the spring when they got the water pulled down and it does'nt get any better during the summer.i live on green and it fishes like a bowl cause there's not enough room in the rivers or creeks to hold many boats so everyone is point or drop hopping at warp speed(all this going on with all the pleasure boaters out in full force)dont know the answer,maybe we need to have a meeting of the minds and try figure something out.terrible.

[kygorski]

Too many boats, too much speed, and its bound to happen.As far as co-anglers go, they DONT operate the boat. Thars like giving a speeding ticket to a passenger. I feel sorry for the family of the guy who lost his life,but what about his family?I used to fish some tournys in Illinois as a co-angler,and never remember my adevice about speed being listened to.I'm not sure how much liabity I have on my boat, its a standard policy, but money dosn't bring back a dad or husband.

[Toadman]

Where are people coming up with 1100 tournament boats???Other than Renegade and BFL what other tournaments were they? Combined they were less than 400.
Tragic and probably avoidable. Another black mark against tournaments but, accidents happen everyday.
Prayers to all involved...

Not sure of an exact number but other than the BFL and Renegade going out of the north. One KY Lake the other at Barkley, there was a big ABA classic out of Paris, a world series of bass out of Johnathan Creek and another big tournament out of Kenlake.

The lakes were very crowded with tournament anglers and there were a lot of guys cutting each other off and other nonsense. I love tournament fishing but whatever happened to sportsmanship? If someone is on a spot first then don't move in on them. At least that's the way is use to be. I didn't get cut off any but saw it happen to a few people.

As for the accident, very tragic. Not sure what happened, I know it was near Kuttawa and there was no fog. Just a bad accident that cost someone there life just doing something fun.

Lets all remember to be careful out there.

[AndyG]

I was in the BFL, I didnt see it but was just a couple boats ahead. Remember the family of the man who passed. They came all the way from mississippi with him for the tournament, how many co-anglers have that kind of support?

Also, I dont understand why the news and officials worded the story as they did because everyone involved had a life jacket on.

BTW- the lakes were very crowded, but it didnt seem much worse than regular BFLs on the smaller lakes.

[raincheck]

Back in May i decided too stop running Div.33 ABA The main reason was Mother nature i can't contol the other was there are just too many FAST boats on the lake.Why don't they just make speed limits on some of the lakes.Ky lake is big but still a river for the most.I have been around boats all my life.Back in the early 70s my dad put a 20 on a 12ft row boat and it was FAST.I ran 5 to 10 gal,s every day all summer and respect speed on water.Last yr i sold my Triton tr20x and decided too fish as a non boater.After reading this today i love my life and won't put it in any other boater's hand.Say a pray for those who were in this wreck and the safty of those still on the water.AMEN

[bassin bruce]

It is a miracle that there are not way more fatal accidents on the water during these big tournaments! The unsafe manner in which these fast boats are operated never ceases to amaze me. I no longer fish in these bigger tournaments. The ones I fish are usually less than 30 boats. Still, there are way too many dangerous practices happening. Everyone should learn to back off just a little. Your reaction time at 60mph is much greater than at 75. I have a tr20 with a 225, but rarely do I drive it all out. The 2 minutes fishing time I lose is well worth being safe and alive. My prayers go out to all involved in this tragic accident.

[HURRICANEBOB]

It is a miracle that there are not way more fatal accidents on the water during these big tournaments! The unsafe manner in which these fast boats are operated never ceases to amaze me. I no longer fish in these bigger tournaments. The ones I fish are usually less than 30 boats. Still, there are way too many dangerous practices happening. Everyone should learn to back off just a little. Your reaction time at 60mph is much greater than at 75. I have a tr20 with a 225, but rarely do I drive it all out. The 2 minutes fishing time I lose is well worth being safe and alive. My prayers go out to all involved in this tragic accident.

I agree with ya. Acting follish and macho with a high powered boat gets your just deserts. That said, I don't wish ill of any one, but am a bit tired of being concerned for those that fail to take reasonable precautions to safeguard thier own welfare. Live fast die fast, enjoy it and leave it.