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Some See Major Contradiction in Wardens' Use of Jet Skis

June 03, 2008 - NAPLES -- Personal watercraft riders enter Long Lake in Naples, where a marina owner has donated two Jet Skis for the Maine Warden Service to use.

In the wake of Maine's highest court upholding a ban on personal watercraft, the Maine Warden Service will be using Jet Skis to police southern Maine lakes and ponds this summer.

Joy-riding on small, populated ponds where these toys have been banned is one thing -- but stopping violators is another matter. At least, that is what the state seems to be saying.

And residents of Lake St. George in Liberty, one of about 60 lakes in populated areas of Maine where Jet Skis are banned, agree with that.

But Mark Haskell, a Camden man fined $100 for riding his Jet Ski on Liberty's lake, is at least one Mainer who finds it all a bit odd.

"I see a whole lot of irony," Haskell said.

Haskell challenged the ban in a three-year fight, and finally lost before the Maine Supreme Judicial Court last month.

Then, two weeks later, the Maine Warden Service picked up two new Kawasaki Jet Skis on loan from Moose Landing Marina on Long Lake in Naples.

Marina owner Dan Craffey donated the watercraft to help keep Long Lake safe.

Last August, two people died on Long Lake when a high-speed boat driven by a Massachusetts man plowed into a 14-foot boat. The crash killed Terry Raye Trott, 56, of Harrison and Suzanne Groetzinger, 44, of Berwick.

"We want to keep customers safe. The speed seems to be an issue. The Jet Ski is an easy watercraft to do enforcement out of," Craffey said.

"I took my family out on a pontoon boat (on Long Lake) in Harrison for dinner," Craffey said. "We were coming back when it was dark. I was amazed at the speed out on the water, and how close they were coming to the pontoon boat. I realized a lot of our customers have pontoon boats. I felt a little concerned. As a marina owner, I benefit by keeping the lake safe."

Craffey said one of the two donated Jet Skis will stay at the marina on Long Lake, and the other will be used by the Warden Service elsewhere in southern Maine.

Warden Service Maj. Greg Sanborn did not return calls to comment.

But Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife spokeswoman Deborah Turcotte called the donated Jet Skis a "good project."

Regardless, the gift comes at a strange time, following the bad rap Jet Skis have gotten in Liberty.

Still, folks there support wardens' use of these water toys where they are not banned.

Tom Opper of Liberty was happy the court upheld the Jet Ski ban, but understands the Warden Service using them for public safety.

"It's their call, whether it makes sense to me or not. If a Jet Ski is (used) on a lake, they probably need a vehicle as maneuverable as the one the violator has. That might be a Jet Ski," Opper said. "Although, I think the unanimous decision by the Supreme Court was quite good."

Linda Breslin, president of the Citizens Association of Liberty Lakes, said when the ban on Jet Skis on Lake St. George was proposed five years ago, the association members voted to support it 5 to 1.

But Breslin also said the Warden Service needs to do whatever it can to optimize its enforcement effort.

"Certainly, Naples and Sebago are a whole different issue from Lake St. George, from the point of view of the size and the population around the lake in Naples. Lake St. George is considerably smaller, and much less developed," Breslin said. "I don't see a contradiction if they are allowed in a water body. Why wouldn't the warden service be allowed to use them? To be on surveillance has to do with public safety."

Haskell, perhaps Maine's most vocal Jet Ski fan, agrees. It's just that he finds the state's mixed messages about Jet Skis confusing.

"I think the wardens should be using them," Haskell said. "But the state has just ruled that they are a threat."

By Staff Writer Deirdre Fleming, Portland Press Herald, June 1, 2008.


Lakes: Lake George, Long Lake
Regions: Sebago, Belgrade


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