Never a dull moment at Tamarack.
Wild footage from Carlsbad, California, captures a powerboat motoring toward the Pacific through Agua Hedionda (aka Carlsbad Lagoon) outlet at what appears to be a considerable clip — just as an incoming set begins marching toward shore.
You can probably guess what happens next. See the clip, linked here, and below.
As children filming from nearby react in disbelief, the boat races directly toward an approaching wave. The bow climbs the face, clears the crest and suddenly launches completely into the air before slamming back onto the water.
“Oh my god! Look how fast he’s going!” one kid yells as the speeding boat approaches the surf line. As the hull flies high into the air over the cresting wave, another spectator screams, “No way! He just launched it!” The kids gasp in shock as the boat slams heavily back down: “That was insane! Is he even allowed to do that?”
The Instagram post documenting the scene summed it up simply: “Never a dull moment at Tamarack Beach.”
Tamarack, part of Carlsbad State Beach, is one of North San Diego County’s most popular surf zones. Agua Hedionda Lagoon connects directly to the Pacific between Tamarack Avenue and Cannon Road. The city describes the 66-acre outer lagoon beside the ocean separately from the 295-acre inner lagoon, where permitted recreational powerboating is allowed.
Exactly how fast the boat was traveling in the video is impossible to determine from footage alone, and there is no indication the operator received a citation.
But California boating regulations raise an obvious question.
Related: Watch: Sperm Whale Sinks 52-Foot Yacht in Terrifying South Pacific Attack
State law limits motorboats to 5 mph within 100 feet of a swimmer and within 200 feet of a bathing beach, among other designated areas. Operators are also required to maintain a safe speed appropriate for prevailing conditions and sufficient to avoid collisions.
Inside Agua Hedionda’s regulated inner lagoon, Carlsbad also maintains 5-mph transit corridors, while the lagoon’s overall maximum vessel speed is 45 mph.
Whether any of those specific restrictions were violated would depend on precisely where the boat was when it accelerated, its actual speed, and its distance from swimmers and the beach.
Legality aside, charging directly into an active surf zone carries another obvious problem.
Sometimes the ocean provides its own speed bump.
And this one had a launch ramp.
“Old guys: FULL SEND!”
Related: Watch: 20-Foot Rogue Wave Capsizes Yacht in the Middle of Pacific Ocean
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