VIDEO: Why Every Fast Boat Boat Needs a Kill Switch...

Unless you're just putzing around the lake at no-wake speeds, it's always a good idea to have an ignition kill-switch and a lanyard installed on your boat. This is one of the first things any high-performance boat owner should look into, because if you are hitting the waves at any kind of speed, bad things can sometimes happen. This is especially the case if you are a new and relatively inexperienced boater.

This video picks up at Stuart Inlet, FL, after the driver and his two passengers have already been thrown off their center console boat. This is not necessarily a high-performance boat - but it's obviously fast enough to cause trouble for an inexperienced driver. Another boat is running alongside, and the YouTube poster (jeremyglass86) is taking the video:

"...another boat picked up the boat owners and we rode along side, radioed the coast guard, and made sure no one was hurt. "

Thankfully, the folks on the "chase boat" did the right thing - while it might be tempting, it would be very foolish and dangerous to try and get on board a boat moving across the waves at speed. The lesson here is simple: Use a kill-switch and lanyard, which will shut the boat down immediately if you fall or get ejected from the boat for some reason. Without one, your boat just becomes a guided missile that's been let loose to destroy or damage property, or even worse--hurt someone. Not to mention the damage to the boat itself, which could be avoided.