Gothamist: Rower Missing in Harlem River Presumed Dead

keith

Tue, 25 Oct 2005 14:55:15 -0500

For that particular area, it also has a lot to do with tides and currents, which are surprisingly complex in the East, Hudson, and Harlem rivers. I kayak reguarly but have never bothered with those waterways simply because they're too congested. I do like the Gowanus Canal though. Regulation of the waterway is very tricky -- it's a public feature and should remain publicly accessible and not just a venue for commercial traffic. This country is already too roped off, fenced off, and posted as it is. No one that paddles the Manhattan circuit does it without full knowledge of how dangerous it is. They should be allowed to make that choice for themselves, and not have it decided by a committee of bureaucrats. The drowning is tragic, but I'm willing to bet that the deceased would not want to see his death used as a case for restricting waterway access.

tien

Tue, 25 Oct 2005 12:35:56 -0500

these guys were rowing before work. and generally, rowing early means calmer water. plus, you have the rest of the day to do other stuff. like work out on the rowing machine.

mig

Tue, 25 Oct 2005 12:10:29 -0500

what i don't get - why rowing needs to happen in the dark.

MT

Tue, 25 Oct 2005 11:58:18 -0500

'Boaters with different missions' isn't just a problem uptown. Every night when I take the Staten Island Ferry home I'm convinced we are going to collide with one of the private ferry craft or one of the party cruise boats as they come speeding through the channels. I seem to remember reading a bit of history about how NYC banned private ferry service after a particularly horrible collision. Why do we have to wait for these awful accidents to happen before change is made? NYC needs to step up and regulate the waterways again.

harlemgal

Tue, 25 Oct 2005 11:57:43 -0500

Why are you saying that the rowers crashed into the motor boat? is that what really happened? original news stories said that the motorboat hit the rowers.

Don

Tue, 25 Oct 2005 11:54:32 -0500

On behalf of all the other 41-year-olds out there, let me protest your characterization of 41 as "middle-aged," you whippersnapper, you!