Minnesota DNR confirms that it is illegal to ride on the tubes of an inflatable boat

[Montanan]

Well you could get a J-Rig, motorized inflatable taken to the extreme. You can chose many locations to sit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wab9gN1c6qU

[CFS Klopas]

Version of this law in Illinois. I read a boat police blotter, they gave written warnings to people standing on swim platforms, but no fines and nothing RIB specific.

Sec. 5-21. Passenger location. No person operating a motorboat shall allow a person in the motorboat to ride or sit on the gunwales, tops of seat backs, or on the decking over the bow or stern of the motorboat while the motorboat is underway, unless the person is inboard of guards or rails provided on the motorboat to prevent passengers from being lost overboard.

Nothing in this Section shall be construed to prohibit entry upon the decking over the bow or stern of the motorboat for the purpose of anchoring, mooring, or casting off or some other necessary purpose nor to prohibit customary practices while lawfully engaged in commercial fishing under the provisions of the Fish and Aquatic Life Code or hunting and trapping under the provisions of the Wildlife Code.

The provisions of this Section shall not apply to the driver of the boat, a person while fishing or to a person on private property.

[Jammer]

I was at the Minneapolis Boat Show today. A representative of Highfield Boats was there working in the booth of the local dealer for Highfield, AB, and Zodiac. I spoke with him about the state law. He said that Highfield is aware of it, and that in Minnesota and other markets where similar laws are on the books, they include an additional seat as part of the sale beyond what they include in other markets. For typical ~10 foot dinghies that would mean they include two seats rather than one seat. That way, the operator can utilize the rear bench seat rather than having no other practicable choice but to sit on the sponsons.


He also said he had spoken with the representatives of the Minnesota DNR who were at the show regarding the law. I gathered from his comments that it does affect sales, but that there is no serious lobbying effort being contemplated to try to do anything about it.

[jmorrison146]

Coasties do it all the time

[Nicholson58]

Stupid is as stupid does.

Clearly written by non-boaters or at least those unaware of inflatables.

Sitting on a seat, as a driver, places you in an awkward position of steering behind your back. Very difficult to make a left turn. Highly likely to cause accidents.

[senormechanico]

Originally Posted by jmorrison146

Attachment 184560

Coasties do it all the time

If I lived in Minnesota, I'd print that pic and keep it for any obliviot water cop to peruse if he tried to give me a ticket.

[Jammer]

I do not believe it is a wise strategy to attempt to educate the Dakota County sheriff's deputies, nor the MN DNR's conservation officers, in the field. In any event, I would expect an answer of the form, "You're not them."


Whether it would be worth the time and aggravation to fight such a ticket is an open question. There is no system of "points," escalating penalties, or effect on insurance premiums for violations of this minor statute. I would be inclined to pay the $150.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by Nicholson58

Stupid is as stupid does.

Clearly written by non-boaters or at least those unaware of inflatables.

Yep.

Sitting on a seat, as a driver, places you in an awkward position of steering behind your back. Very difficult to make a left turn. Highly likely to cause accidents.

Having done this with "tinnies," as aluminum utility boats are called in some places (but not here), I can say from experience that you can usually offset the motor a few inches to port and make it work (assuming you steer with your left hand). You would slide to the starboard side of the bench.


Whether sitting partly on the sponson and partly on a bench would draw a ticket is an open question. I would be surprised if it would.

[senormechanico]

The easy answer to this stupid law is, don't find yourself in Minnesota, at least in a boat.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by senormechanico

The easy answer to this stupid law is, don't find yourself in Minnesota, at least in a boat.

Quite.


While the jurisdictional questions are complex, the facts on the ground are that the State of Minnesota and its various political subdivisions have authority over a good deal of Lake Superior, the Mississippi River, and the St. Croix River, all of which are fantastic cruising grounds.

The situation is the same in Wisconsin (https://dnr.wi.gov/files/PDF/pubs/LE/LE0301.pdf). It is also the same in Illinois, as posted upthread. New York does not have specific statutes or regulations but has a broad "reckless operation" statute that has been interpreted to include riding on gunwales (https://parks.ny.gov/recreation/boat...atersGuide.pdf, p. 45).


I don't know what the situation is in Canada, or in Michigan, but that pretty much covers all the other major Great Lakes jurisdictions and related freshwater cruising areas.

[YachtlessI]

I know someone who was cited this year for this in an inflatable boat.. So, yes, it's being enforced in MN.

[Group9]

Move to America. Problem solved.

[donradcliffe]

This rule goes in the same file as the anchor ball rule. The circular one.

[Boatguy30]

This seems like a red herring sort of thing to post here. Who cares? I just about guarantee if they has life jackets and a kill cord on they’d have gotten off or certainly would be dismissed if they asked for a court appearance

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by Tetepare

There are no gunwhales or decking on an inflatable so subd 5 is meaningless.

... +1