Definition of "safely"
It was recently commented that a member's boat, running a bit north of 100 mph, was "more proof" that our classic hulls "can be run safely at these speeds." This comment didn't sit well with me and strikes me as worth further contemplation.
Caveats: Two thoughts come to mind, but before they do, a couple of caveats. Please, let no one misinterpret my comments as claiming anyone's boat is "unsafe" or that anyone here is being reckless, or the like. I'm saying nothing of the sort. Further, the particular boat in question that inspired the comment above is, in my view, freakin' awesome. I dig it. Looks like a great job. I have ZERO complaints about it, quite the reverse. I'm very much a fan.
But with that, on to the point. Consider the notion that the existence of any 100+ mph boat (and any information we've gotten or COULD get about it) is "more proof" that our classic hulls can be "run safely at these speeds." Leaping into my head are two things:
- a quote from Steven Wright "I intend to live forever. So far, so good." (On the subject of "proof" and how silly it is in this context.)
- a quote from Yahoo Answers where some idiot had asked "Is it dangerous to drink while taking [some drug, maybe Vicodin]." Whatever it was, the drug is always ABSOLUTELY PLASTERED with warnings about not taking it while drinking any amount of alcohol, not even a drop. And the asker acknowledged this. Someone, God bless him, just responded to the bonehead with "what is 'danger' anyway?" Freaking hilarious, as well as genius. Because that really IS the point, after all. There is no "safe" in a Donzi Classic at near triple-digit speeds. It's only a matter of how risky it is. Safe is right out. There are FATAL risks in any Donzi Classic up near 100 mph. It just becomes a matter of making good choices to minimize those risks--they never go away and the unqualified label "safely" is absurdly meaningless in the discussion. Any meaningful discussion will be drilling into the many choices and corresponding risks in an attempt to qualify them.
What's the old saying? "The wise don't need it and the fool won't heed it."
"I don't have time to get into it, but he went through a lot." -Pulp Fiction