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8 J. Legal Aspects Sport 86 (1998)
Personal Watercraft: Boon or Bane

handle is hein.journals/jlas8 and id is 94 raw text is: JLAS, 8(2), 1998, 86-107 © 1998 The Society for the Study of the Legal Aspects of Sport and Physical Activity Personal Watercraft: Boon or Bane? Lori K. Miller, Wichita State University Lawrence W. Fielding, Indiana University Clay Stoldt, Wichita State University I Introduction The term personal watercraft (PWC) re- fers to a category of boats that at an average price of $5,700 remain affordable for a large audience (Whiteman, 1997). The first personal watercraft resembled a snowmobile and was introduced by Bombardier in 1968. Kawasaki introduced the first commercially successful per- sonal watercraft, the Jet Ski, in 1973 (Donheffner, 1997). These first PWC were stand-up mod- els requiring the user to possess a good deal of athleticism. The PWC industry escalated with Yamaha's re-introduction of sit-down models. The sit-down models remain the most popular. In fact, as reported by the Personal Watercraft Industry Association, the sit-down style PWC represented 97% of all PWC sales in 1995 (PWIA, 1997). The National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) define personal watercraft in their Model Act for Personal Wa- tercraft as the following. Personal watercraft shall mean a vessel, less than 16 feet, propelled by a water-jet pump or other machinery as its primary source of motor propulsion which is de- signed to be operated by a person sitting, standing or kneeling on, rather than being operated by a person sitting or standing inside the vessel. PWC can travel as fast as 65 miles per hour. The PWC's high speed, low cost, and easy op- eration have generated a boom in PWC sales. Anderson (1997) reports that between 1987 and 1996, PWC sales increased 870%. With an av- erage of 200,000 PWC sold annually, the $1.4 billion industry represents the most popular seg- ment of the recreational boating industry (Bluewater Network: Protecting, 1997; Gerdes, 1996; Palmer, 1996; Whiteman, 1997). II. The Objections Presented by PWC Opponents Not all stakeholders view PWC favorably. What PWC advocates view as exhilarating rec- reation, others view as an abomination, abhor- ring the resultant noise, damage to the environ- ment, and PWC-related injuries. As expressed by Lyke (1996, p. Al 8), America's eternal quest for more speed and more noise has run smack into a coalition of ecology-minded lovers of soli- tude. PWC opponents present seven primary arguments against PWC operations. A. PWC operations result in devastating injuries Injuries involving PWC use are escalating. According to a 1997 article in the Journal of American Medical Association, PWC injuries treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments have increased an approximate 319% between 1990 and 1995 (Branche, Conn, and Annest, 1997, p. 663). However, even this statistic is an underrepresentation since less than 5% of all non-fatal accidents are actually reported to the states or Coast Guard (Donheffner, 1997, p. 3). An approximate 48% of all injuries caused by PWC use, treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments, occurred in the 25-44 year age group. Thirty-eight percent of all injuries treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments oc- curred in the 15-24 year age group. Surpris- ingly, only 7% of those 14 years or under re- quired treatment in hospital emergency depart- ments. Lacerations (31 %) and contusions (25%) were the most common ailments while the most injuries (34%) occurred to the leg and 29% of all injuries occurred to the head (Branche, Conn, and Annest, 1997, p. 663). Thirty two percent 86 Journal of Legal Aspects of Sport

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