Last thoughts . . .
Thank you to the last few of you for your kind advice. I was not going to add any more to this but feel I must respond to these last considerate posters.
Jackl, thanks for your suggestion. I did consider deleting the original post, but I believe that this thread does contain useful information and that most of the readers will see through the abuse to receive the information and the character behind all the postings for what they are - and that includes mine. I am not proud that I allowed such small-minded people to get me so riled, but this thread does present a picture of what can happen to anybody who posts on this forum. Quite a number of people did take their valuable time to post some thoughtful information and I would not want to waste that. If nothing else, it’s a good example of how not to swim with sharks! Thank you for your support in this.
Ditto for your response, paddlinunit; I exhibited the same stubborn futility the last time I boxed, a long time ago in the Army, as I was getting the crap beat out of me by a much bigger guy. A big buddy of mine stepped into the ring, picked me up from behind, and pulled me out of the fight. I’m still learning . . .
Dr Disco, like jonsprag1 said, I found your advice very useful and re-read it several times, to commit it to memory, as I have with a number of the other postings (Mike_McCrea, celia, jonsprag1, pagayeur, toesnorth and others) with useful advice.
Thanks, tiva, for your observations. It wasn’t the Coast Guard, but the sheriff patrol that responded – and believe me, these guys would have had me for lunch if they had perceived anything I, or we, did as being in poor judgment or beyond what our skills should have been for the situation, and they deal routinely with kayakers. We had all the proper gear and the “beach-side rescue” was offered mainly a courtesy due to my wife’s upset and our desire not to have to deal any more with the mud. They were very kind to us and their disclosures indicated they already had some regular suspects who had caused previous trouble. They did recommend a couple alternative locations for put-in, mostly known to the locals, where power boat problems would be less likely. Good idea on the note. Regrettably, I didn’t recall the name of the primary officer involved in the response. I can do a search online and drop a “thank you” email to the marine patrol division of that sheriff’s office.
Finally, thanks to all who offered useful information, including those who offered private email support. Hopefully, some day we may meet on the water.
You Feeling The “Love Yet…???” 
man, it’s been a quite awhile since there has been a thread of this length where folks can beat a dead horse to the bone. They love ya for you provided.
“Ditto for your response, paddlinunit; I exhibited the same stubborn futility the last time I boxed, a long time ago in the Army, as I was getting the crap beat out of me by a much bigger guy. A big buddy of mine stepped into the ring, picked me up from behind, and pulled me out of the fight. I’m still learning . . .”
I respect folks who don’t give up – in the real world. These are just words in here. Let’em roll off and save your energy for real challenges and battles.
Keep your guard up while you’re out there. It’s not how many times you get dropped but how many times you get back up. Most folks give up after one or two knock downs. So, what’s gonna be for you? ( rhetorical question – go out and answer for yourself. Forget the “stuff” in here.)
sing
eternal truth…
The undeniable fact, in this scenerio is that no paddled hull is a match for even a small powered craft and the best paddler on the water can get taken out by a rude or reckless driver, regardless of ability or training. This is a constant problem in all venues and we need to stick together so that power boaters are made aware of the dangers and will respect the safety of all others on the water. I understand that there is always the possibility that few individuals will not heed this message, but we should show some solidarity and be united in a clear message to be aware of all other craft on the water. The Safe Boating Council is an example of one group seeking to do this.
Don’t worry about this little P.net cabal. They gang up and attack folks with legitimate issues on a regular basis. They seek to evelate themselves by low-rating others, with the self-serving mantra that if you were a cool and talented as they, this could not happen. Implied in this is that one should seek them out for advise and lessons, even though some have been at this for only a few years and one has to wonder how much real experience they bring to the table.
learning curve
Here is a link to Charleston County Parks and Recreation.
http://www.ccprc.com/index.asp?nid=107
This is where I live, pay taxes, and the CCPR sponsors the East Coast Kayak Festival.
You can find qualified ACA instructions and evaluation
there is one three day course “introduction to coastal kayaking”
This kind of information is what I based my assessment on.
That and the OP said his wife was a very inexperienced.
Like I said, I think it was a legitimate mistake, where they didn’t have quite enough experience.
I also offered good advice on carrying a cell phone with a camera.
Otherwise I think Angel completely overreacted to my post. Maybe he was just confused? It doesn’t matter.
About the spray skirts, we often have this discussion in other threads about the dangers for beginners, which the OP claimed they were, or at least his wife was. I was the only one who mentioned the potential hazard. I often post the story of my own mistakes when I started out almost being trapped underneath the kayak.
Nothing to freak out about. Nothing to get jealous about either.
rude could be impaired
I really hate to jump in here, but nobody else has mentioned the possibility that the power boaters could have been impaired in some way. This spring, I volunteered to go out & interview fishermen returning from their fishing trips (field creel survey). I was surprised to see (power)boaters returning to the ramp totally drunk. One fell down while I was speaking to him and gashed his head. I spoke to the others in his party to make sure that someone else (less impaired) was driving their tow vehicle.
I’m actually glad to have seen it because it reinforced my own vigilance around anyone else in a motorized vehicle - on land or water. At least on the water, we can often enjoy the areas where power boaters don’t go.
blades
Angell, not to prolong this thread, but were your wife’s paddles feathered or straight?
Still going?
Heck, at least make it funny. Angell left the room a while ago.
"they deal routinely with kayakers"
General comment (not a reply to Mr Touchy or addressing his particular situation specifically):
No matter how I slice that comment (and most on water law enforcement likely has same take on it), it’s a BIG negative, and something all paddlers should be actively working to change.
Certainly no shame in taking help when needed, and if in doubt - give a shout, but it also should not be a routine thing for these guys to be plucking us out either. Small wonder paddles are largely seen as nuisances or worse on the water. On balance, seems like we probably earn it (and in general principal is also why some paddlers seem rather less than sympathetic to some others).
To clarify,
I guess I got what I deserved for jumping into a 100 post flame fest. But, the reason I asked Angel to clarify about him wanting to hit someone in the back of the neck with a paddle, was that this comment caused some confusion for other people trying to assess the situation. He didn't say these other boaters were intentionally harassing him. As someone else pointed out, it sounded like they were just not aware of their wake was causing problems for a beginner with limited skills the wake, wind or tide.
He clairified that it was just a knee jerk reaction, so that was fine. And I was just trying to point that out. Someone called me on the phone when I was making that post. But you can also see why so many people read this as them having too little experience, then got angry.
Even now, it's hard to tell exactly what happened.
Had I articulated my point more clearly, I think there would have been a different reaction?
As I said in my first post, rec paddlers (homeowners) have much more control over boaters on a (private?) lake up in NC.
There was also an article in the newspaper about jetskiers. They wanted to open a rental place on the harbor that was blocked.
Maybe the jetskier was harassing them? I don't know because the original post was kind of mottled with all this other conflicting information.
Anyway, I got what I deserved for jumping into a 100 post dispute. I can see why he would be confused, or think I was being too critical. However, that was my assessment for what it was worth.
Edit: I think Angel intended to have a good time paddling with his wife. I hope this is a good learning experience they can benefit from and keep on paddling! As someone said, alls well that ends well.
Elvis Has Left The House…
while the fans debate whether Jailhouse Rock or Love Me Tender was better, Elvis was last seen paddling out on some lake, thinking even mean powerboaters were better company than PNetters since they were all on the water, rather than on the keyboard.
Supposedly, a storm is south of us, orginating from Carolina coast. Wish I snuck out of work and hanging at local RI break… 
Hard to talk trash when one is getting trashed.
sing
RUDE POWERBOATERS
Good name for a band.
Jackl
It was just a little background info that showed his distain for power and that he most likely has had problems before and has not learnd from it. So if I like more info and background then yep that is the type of person I am.
Deja vu
http://www.newsminer.com/news/2008/jun/01/rocking-boat/
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/Jun/17/no-headline—byrd_cnk/
http://www.outdoornewswire.com/v/current/htdocs/etc/sa.php/63617465676f72794e616d653d536561204b6179616b696e672663617465676f72794c6162656c3d5365614b6179616b696e67266c6f636174696f6e3d323030372f30342f313137363735343933332672737349643d34383431 (yacht collides with kayak) also: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10433145
http://bobanddora.blogspot.com/2007/10/saturday-september-29-2007-middle-river.html
http://www.worstofwilmington.com/ (scan down for commentary)
I wasn’t the one who pulled first
but my deleting covered his tracks (almost) so everyone blame me.
Reading & posting is an option and of course so is deleting.
Richard Grove
now down to 100
now down to 100
{sigh}
bill
original question was
original question was:
“What are some things that you do to reduce the likelihood of mishaps brought on by rude power boaters?”
The only anser is “Find a place to paddle with no motor boats.”
I prefer to take my chances and enjoy the wakes when possible. When I do paddle around motor boats, then I watch my surroundings and the other boats and adjust course as needed so as not to put myself between a boat and a hard place.