NOAA Cracks Down on Jet Ski Rescuers on "Of Men and Mavericks" Movie Set

Interesting comments after the article:
http://santacruz.patch.com/articles/noaa-cracks-down-on-of-men-and-mavericks-movie-jet-ski-rescuers

NOAA Cracks Down on Jet Ski Rescuers on "Of Men and Mavericks" Movie Set

The federal agency that has upped fines to $2,500 to local Personal Water Craft riders for fighting their tickets, gave out tickets to PWC riders who used the banned craft for lifesaving during the movie filming in Half Moon Bay last week.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration enforcement officials swarmed over the set of the surf movie "Of Men and Mavericks" last week in a helicopter and ship, reportedly handing out three tickets and threatening more, according to the surfing website, Surfline.com.

The site reported that on Thursday a NOAA officer got on a Half Moon Bay harbor loudspeaker and threatened the PWC riders who were leaving the harbor to work the big waves and help rescue actors, if needed, on the surf movie set.

A few weeks ago star Gerard Butler had to be pulled from the waves by a PWC (also called jet skis) after he was severely held down by a wave. He was hospitalized afterwards.

The NOAA official told the lifeguards over the public address system that they would be ticketed unless they moored onto a bigger boat or stayed in the channel. The PWC riders, ignored the warnings and rode out to the big waves offshore, where the filming was. Three of them got tickets when they returned.

The tickets start at $500 and can go up over $100,000 if the person who gets it chooses to fight it. NOAA is charged with protecting the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, one of 13 natural areas set aside in 1992.

PWCs are banned in the Bay except for certain areas, because they allegedly are a threat to wildlife. Big-wave surfers say the small speedy craft are crucial to save their lives and claim they are the only way to get them speedily out of the far off shore waters when they are injured.

Boats with the same engines as PWCs are allowed anywhere, but surfers say the smaller craft are more maneuverable in troublesome surf.

Friday, NOAA was back, with a Fish and Game boat and a helicopter, taking down PWC serial numbers.

"They probably spent about $300,000 of our tax dollars to get a few skis at Mav's," stuntman Mark Healey told Surfline. You can see pictures of the NOAA enforcement here, photo 16.

Last year NOAA fined two Santa Cruz PWC riders who used their craft off Moss Landing while they practiced for Mavericks on the big waves there. The pair, Scott Jarrett and Jeff Martin, chose to fight the ticket, claiming that NOAA's maps of the restricted area were wrongly drawn.

The surfers said the area allowable for jet skis is actually in an area where protected mammals go to get away from the big waves and the mapped-out path doesn't lead to the waves.

As a result of their choosing to fight the fine, the agency, which judges its own cases, raised their ticket from $500 to $2,500.

Last week NOAA was behind the investigation of marine biologist Nancy Black, who was indicted for allegedly feeding whales in 2005 and tampering with a videotape used as evidence and lying about it. If convicted, she faces 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine.

Black formerly worked for the National Marine Mammal Laboratory, a part of NOAA. She was also a member of the Sanctuary Advisory Council, which help makes policy for protecting the refuge to NOAA.

Black's attorney, Lawrence Biegel, said the researcher who ran whale excursions from Monterey, had picked up a piece of blubber already floating in the ocean, tied a rope to it to keep it close to the boat, and filmed whales eating it.

"She was never hiding what she did or how she did it. In fact, she was acting with the knowledge of other marine mammal scientists, some of whom work for agencies of the federal government," he said. Biegel said Black had a permit granted by the federal government to conduct the research," Biegel told the Huffington Post.

Biegel said any editing done to the films was standard, since they were routinely given to passengers on the boats from the company Black is a partner in.

NOAA has been under fire on the East Coast from journalists and legislators. An investigation by Dan Rather showed the government agency had stockpiled a $100 million fund from assets seized from fishermen. Rather produced documents from the Freedom of Information Act showing NOAA enforcement officials used the money for cars, yachts and even a trip to Asia with one of the judges who pronounced sentences and seized assets from the alleged violators.

Rather's show called "Something Fishy,'' documented a federal agency run amok.

Despite repeated requests, Congressman Sam Farr (D-Carmel) whose 17th District includes the Monterey Bay Sanctuary, has declined to comment on the investigation of NOAA or its alleged actions on either coast.

http://www.outdoors720.com/2012/01/of-men-and-mavericks-surfing-film-shoot.html

'Of Men and Mavericks' surfing film shoot at Mavericks bring citations


Big-wave surfers at the famous Mavericks in Northern California are not allowed to use personal watercraft as a safety measure unless the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issues a high surf advisory.

That ban of PWCs goes for Hollywood, too.

The lights, camera and action of Hollywood recently descended upon Mavericks near Half Moon Bay, Calif., to shoot surfing action scenes for "Of Men and Mavericks," a surfing movie about the life of surfer Jay Moriarity, whose big-wave surfing exploits helped put Mavericks on the map.

Last Thursday morning, a day before the shoot wrapped up, NOAA officials showed up at Mavericks to enforce the ban of PWCs in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. The ban is said to protect the wildlife.

According to Surfline.com, a NOAA official got on a loudspeaker and warned those on PWCs who were on their way out to work safety for the movie that they'd be ticketed "unless they went out [and] moored to a bigger boat and stayed in the channel."

That didn't happen, of course.

Ironically, in December, actor Gerard Butler was caught in a set of big waves. He was held down underwater for two waves before popping up and being pulled out of the punishing surf by a safety patrolman on a PWC. The actions likely saved Butler's life.

On Thursday, NOAA wasn't in the business of helping to save lives. It issued three tickets to the PWC safety patrolman working on the movie. "Heated discussions" were involved.

Surfline.com reported that on Friday, the California Department of Fish and Game had a boat and helicopter tracking down PWC serial numbers.


Said Surfer/stuntman Mark Healey, "They probably spent about $300,000 of our tax dollars to get a few skis at Mavs."

Turns out, the movie producers on "Of Men and Mavericks" got the shot they wanted on Thursday. Apparently, they were shooting for a similar wave -- one famously caught on video -- that wiped out Moriarty and made he and Mavericks famous.

From Surfline.com:

Thursday's swell - while chunkier than Tuesday's -- was a perfect opportunity to nail some serious footage. A dozen Pearson Arrow guns, colored the same as Jay's famous Surfer mag cover wipeout, were sprinkled throughout the lineup. Guys like Anthony Tashnick, Greg Long, Twiggy, Ryan Augenstein, Kenny Collins, Travis Payne and more were all vying for the Iron Cross money shot. A helicopter with a crazy, $250,000-camera circled just above.
Mark Healey had a shocker at Jaws and flew over to Mav's for Thursday morning. "It's completely ironic," he laughed. "Greg Long is an actor playing Jeff Clark - and I'm doing Greg's stunts 'cause Clark's a goofyfoot! So funny."

Healey, a part-time stuntman by trade, is no stranger to big Hollywood productions. He was hired on to, well, eat [expletive] as Jeff Clark. "I had to try get smoked," he said. "So I was taking a lot of chances. I figured eventually my number would come up. It did. They got the shot."
Incidentally, "Of Men and Mavericks" is scheduled to be released Oct. 26, 2012.


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Laws, rules and regulations like that should always have a Human Life or Rescue clause.

When regulations get ridiculous...