On our usual lake, we too have a huge influx of newbies. The lake is decent sized w/ many areas along the perimeter to drop anchor to chill and float around the boat, but this year there seems to be a plethora of dipshits not utilizing the perimeter to drop anchor.
This year it seems as if every one just drops anchor wherever they feel like it, no matter that they are smack dab in the middle of the normal flow of traffic. So now we have tons of obstacles everywhere. It makes it hard to board or tube when all of these jackasses are anchored down everywhere all over the place instead of pulling off to the perimeter before dropping anchor.
What makes matters worse is when they throw you dirty looks and throw their hands in the air for creating a wake "near" them. 99% of the time the perimeter is wide open to pull off and drop anchor and still have plenty of room/privacy between boats. I have always pulled off to the edges and out of the way when my family wants to stop for lunch or just float around.
I had to laugh last week. There was a guy (one of many) in the way and anchored down and was grilling their lunch ON the swim deck. I was pulling my son on the wake board and another dipshit (they must multiply in the water) was going the opposite direction of travel and coming at us leaving me nowhere to go to give room to the other dipshit grilling ON the swim deck (anchored down in the middle of the cruising path). I didn't want to stop and dunk my son in fear of having him get run over by the dipshit going the wrong way, so I held my course and honked at them to get their attention. They finally changed course (barely) enough to not collide with us, but then he threaded the needle between us and the other dipshit grilling lunch. Their wake then caused the other boat to toss about, enough to have their "Captain" lose his balance and fall off of the swim deck and took his grill (and lunch) into the lake with him.
We kept an eye on him and made sure he surfaced and was ok. This also caused my son to drop the rope and he got dunked anyway. I turned around to retrieve my son and then we pulled up near the soaked and hungry boat full of people to check on them. Their "Captain" thought it would be appropriate to lash out at me..... Let's just say he picked the wrong guy to lash out at. I "educated" him that had he pulled off to the perimeter to anchor down for lunch, this would have prevented this from happening. I also reminded him that it was not my boat going in the wrong direction nor my boat that caused the wake to toss him overboard. I felt bad (sort of) because he had his wife and kids with him, but I refuse to be yelled at for something that was not my doing. Hell, I am the guy who came and checked on them and was offering help if needed.....
IDGAF if my wake bothers them anymore. If they are going to drop anchor right in the main path of travel, they are going to catch the wake. Don't like the rough waters, move to the perimeter or stay off the water......
LOL - yeah, last time surfing on the Chain O Lakes in Waupaca, WI we saw a great one. This chain is beautiful, clear, blue water. However there's only four, fairly small lakes, in which wake speeds are allowed. I choose "round lake," which contains most of the through lake-to-lake traffic on it's southern shore for just a few hundred yards, on which to go surfing.
So we're out surfing and suddenly this old guy in his pontoon puts out to about 1/3 away from shoreline, IE, right in the middle of everyone's way. THEN he proceeds to clean his pontoon with a rag dipped in lake water. Why this couldn't happen on shore or anywhere else is beyond me. So now I'm watching him open the side door to his pontoon, kneel down to get his rag wet, and wash his boat off while realizing that he seems to have purposely left his little 25hp outboard in gear.
So here's this idiot by himself, with no life jacket on, old AF, bending over into the lake and then bending over the outside of boat, all in order to wipe it down, on a lake being used by me and a few other boats to wake surf.
At that point I stopped, got in the boat, and just watched on assumption that this moron was going to go in and I was going to have to attempt a rescue. Thankfully he didn't and after a few minutes he motored back to his house.
