Riding on the back of the boat

[Venkman]

The discussion has been had before about adults/children/pets, riding on the back of the boat and the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. I see it all the time at the lake when people are wake surfing. I just read a heartbreaking story from a local paper that is a terrible reminder of the consequences.

Sorry for the downer, but its something I think a lot of us never consider

Former Kerrville resident shares story of 9-year-old son’s death as warning

Cassandra Free, who was a Kerrville resident and a coach at Tivy High School, is living in Broken Arrow, Okla., now. And her family recently suffered one of the worst

www.hccommunityjournal.com

Be safe out there.

 

[buckbuck]

@Venkman Thank you for sharing that story. It is tragic and those parents will be living with that for the rest of their lives.

Please note however, the Malibu Skier is a mid engine boat with most likely a carbureted engine. The rear seat is physically located behind the engine. I want to believe our fuel injected, computer controlled management does a better job of a complete burn of the gasoline which lessens the CO emitted.
That is not to say I endorse people riding on the swim platform. I just want to point out that our boats are different than the one that caused this child's death.

 

[Beachbummer]

Even though our Honda Pilot has Fuel Injection and a Catalytic converter, my CO detector goes bezzerk when I put it next to the tailpipe. No way my boat expels less CO than my Pilot. Beware!

Maybe I will take my CO detector out for a spin on the boat, that might provide some interesting info.

 

[tdonoughue]

Complete burn or not; injected or carburated; CO detector proven or not -- I know it is a severe risk. You cannot burn gasoline without creating some CO. And it can sit at the back of your boat.

For me: why would I risk that? Simply, I will not. For me and my boat, we will stay off the back deck when the engine is running. The sad article is a good reminder of why and the potential cost of taking that risk. Thanks for posting it, @Venkman .

 

[Canuckjetboater]

The discussion has been had before about adults/children/pets, riding on the back of the boat and the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. I see it all the time at the lake when people are wake surfing. I just read a heartbreaking story from a local paper that is a terrible reminder of the consequences.

Sorry for the downer, but its something I think a lot of us never consider

Former Kerrville resident shares story of 9-year-old son’s death as warning

Cassandra Free, who was a Kerrville resident and a coach at Tivy High School, is living in Broken Arrow, Okla., now. And her family recently suffered one of the worst

www.hccommunityjournal.com

Be safe out there.

@Venkman .....GREAT post as a reminder. My last "big" boat was a 38 foot express cruiser with twin 502 HO Mercruiser Magnum Catalysed engines. Even with the canvas off around the hard top it could backdraft CO at cruising speed (35mph). One time I started to feel ill and about 20 seconds later the cockpit CO monitor went-off. The Admiral took over at the wheel while I made sure I got some "fresh" air. About 20 minutes later I was ok. It can happen to anyone.

 

[Nordicron]

This is a shame. I can see this being a real issue for direct drive boats that exhaust above waterline and the rear seating position is right at the transom, your likely sitting just feet from the exhaust. Plus being alittle kid doesn't take much. Thats why most of these newer surf boats all have some sort of fresh air exhaust system. I think with these jet drives having the exhaust shoot thru the jet helps some vs the normal v and direct drive style boats.