: Nooooooo!!!! DO NOT put blinkie lights on your boat. Blinkie lights
: signal distress. It is the equivalent of standing on your deck
: yelling, "HEEEEELLLLLPPPPPP!!!! SOMEBODY HELP ME!"

: Stick to the rules and be safe. One white all-around light is all
: you need. A proper red/green bow light is fine too. Nothing
: beyond that, and please no blinkie lights and no different
: colored lights. It's kind of like a language. Red/Green/White
: are arranged to make sentences. Three whites atop each other-
: "I am towing a vessel so steer clear of me 200 meters to my
: stern." Red over white- "I am fishing, don't go behind
: me or you will get tangled in my lines." Green light-
: "You are seeing my starboard bow." Flashing Strobe
: "HEEEEELLLLPPPP!!!" ... and so on. Multi-colored
: lights add confusion and also can be mistaken for shore lights
: which can often blend in with the lights on the water.

: Nothing directed at you Etienne. I just saw a need to clarify the
: light thing because it is often brought up here about strobe
: lights, flashing lights, colored lights, etc. If none of the
: above is convincing enough reason not to do it, then I have one
: other- it just isn't proper looking!

Reminds me of last Monday, went for my first paddle as the ice had cleared over the W/E and carefully placed the freshly inflated air horn - which I usually lash on deck - in the boat. Sat down gingerly - bit out of practice - right on the horn which had mysteriously moved and set off every dog for about a mile around. worse, I jumped at the noise and lost my footing, butt stayed on the horn while legs desperately scrabbled to keep terrified rest of me out of the freezing water . . .

Postscript: help did not arrive.