# Be Careful



## murphman (Sep 4, 2003)

Hey guys I saw this story on another board, I thought It would be a good reminder for winter time boaters or those that might give it a try.

This actually happened about a week ago.

Sooner or later the luck runs out. My friend Bob is a guy who likes to play it a little too close to the edge of diaster sometimes. I've known him for many years and fished together going back to before I became a licensed charterboat operator. Too many times to count he'd get us into a situation, and finally I just stopped fishing with him. Never the less, he would get out of it unscathed, that is until a couple of weeks ago.

Bob and his buddy Al decided to venture out into the Potomac River to tap some of the breaking striper opportunties. They could have taken Bob's Nitro-Tracker boat but being the pennypinching cheapskates that they are, they decide to use Al's ancient twelve foot aluminum jonboat with the nine horsepower ob, because it burns less gas.

They get out there, fairly away from shore 500yds and start catching fish, They have three fish on the stringer, and need one more to limit out, Al hooks onto an exceptionally larger fish, and in the ensuing battle both men stand up in the boat.

The boat flips over, dumping both guys into water in the mid-fifties in temperature, and within seconds the boat sinks, leaving them treading water. Then a couple of life jackets come bobbing up to the surface. The guys put those PFDs on, which is no small feat if you are in your sixties and overweight.

Somehow they swim a ways to a staked fish net, and climb up on the pole, with their feet wrapped into the netting.

They are there, hanging on for three and a half hours, until they spot a man walking his dog on shore and they holler to him. About a half hour later the Md Marine Police boat arrives onscene and recovers the two. They are rushed to the local hospital and treated for hypothermia , and released the following day. Both men were former cardiac patients within the last eighteen months, but did not have a recurrent episode.

I know both guys and I'm sending them SOSpenders. I know they will both still take chances, but in retrospect, their lust to catch stripers, almost killed them. 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


----------



## poleant (Sep 26, 2002)

Scary. I fish out of the same setup and the only time we stand is one at time and not fighting fish. Sospenders for X-mas would be cool.


----------

