Jetskier Banks bagged as buoy racer

By BRIAN RUDMAN

A few hours after declaring war on hooning boy racers, Auckland Mayor John Banks was pulled over for speeding on his new jetski in Hobson Bay.

Mr Banks and his three child passengers - his two sons and a friend - were not wearing lifejackets, in breach of another bylaw.

And the jetski was not registered, as required, with the Auckland Regional Council.

Asked if this was the example the Mayor should be setting, Harbourmaster James McPetrie said: "I couldn't possibly comment."

Mr Banks says he was ignorant of the rules when he took his jetski out for its maiden voyage early on Monday afternoon.

"There was no hooning, louting or anything like that. We weren't winding it up.

"I'm a boy racer at heart, but I was behaving myself."

He rejected any comparison with the hoonish antics of drivers on Quay St on Saturday night, saying "there was nothing at all dangerous about it in any shape or form".

"The difference is there wasn't a solitary soul around to run over, run across or run in front of, or anything like that."

But the Harbourmaster's duty skipper, Karl Koller, who pulled Mr Banks over, questioned this.

"He was near other vessels and also in close proximity to land.

"As you can imagine, something going as fast as [jetskis] do, there's not a lot of time for error. If something goes wrong you need to be a little bit further away from land to stop yourself ending up on the land."

Mr Koller, who spotted the rule-breaking while on a patrol, said Mr Banks was travelling "well above" the five knots permitted within 200m of shore or 50m of another vessel.

The jetski was planing, which indicated it was doing at least 10 or 12 knots.

Mr Koller said an apologetic Mr Banks was let off with a warning.

"It's an education process. Obviously if they are repeat offenders or have a major attitude ... further things may happen."

Mr Banks said he took bad advice from a jetskier when he arrived at Okahu Bay. The weather was rough and he was advised to go around the corner into Hobson Bay where it was flat and there was no one about.

He said he had lifejackets, buoyancy belts and flares aboard but did not know wearing flotation devices was compulsory.

The boys had wetsuits on; he was wearing shorts and a shirt.

"It won't happen again. It was all a learning curve."

In his first week in office, Mr Banks also had trouble with the traffic rules on land, copping three tickets for misparking his new Bentley.