A Good Reason for Life Jackets and Kill Switches

"Anglers, departing." That Navy terminology could well be used to describe what you're looking at in the accompanying photo. It happened during the FLW College Fishing Tournament on Lake Seminole this past weekend. The two University of Florida teammates were ejected from their boat while running to their first spot after blast off.

The whole scary scene was captured on their GoPro camera. Check out the video at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AkgjPkCQXc&feature=youtu.be.

According to sources at the event, a locknut came loose on their hydraulic steering, which rendered the operator's control null and void. They were running about 60 mph when steering capability went away, and the boat appeared to hook approximately 90 degrees after planing over another boat's wake, tossing both passenger and driver into the water.

Both young men are alive today because their life jackets were on, and the kill switch was engaged while they were running.

As a couple of local fellas related to me a few months back following a similar incident they had, "It's crazy how fast things can go from perfect to terrifying in a bass boat running on step." Danger lurks anytime your boat chine walks over another boat's wake.

Besides being a reminder for wearing life jackets and always running with your kill switch engaged, let this incident also make you diligent about doing regular safety checks of your boat's steering, motor mounts, and trailers.