One of the great outdoor participatory events of the year unfolds later this week at Cypremort Point.

The Iberia Rod & Gun Club Saltwater Fishing Rodeo that starts Friday and ends Sunday — bookends around the Fourth of July — will be the 55th such fundraising event for the conservation watchdog of Iberia Parish. Local outdoorsmen volunteer their time to man the scales, keep up with the leaderboards and try to keep everybody cool in more ways than one.

Action around the scales can get hot and heavy at fishing rodeo headquarters along Quintana Canal. Fishermen from all walks of life, in boats big and small, unload their catch there with hopes of finishing with a first-, second- or third-place redfish.

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It’s a good time for all — fishing rodeo officials, fishermen and spectators.

But the holiday weekend event can be ruined in a hurry by a careless moment on the water, one that leads to a boating accident that damages property or hurts people. That’s when the good times get ugly.

And this has been an ugly year for boating in Louisiana through the first six months. Boating fatalities are increasing with each passing month.

Independence Day weekend is one of the heaviest boating periods of the summer, according to the National Safe Boating Council. The fishing rodeo, with its many followers, adds to the congestion on the water.

Boating safety must be at a premium each and every time the boat leaves the dock, especially this weekend.

Please, boat operators, don’t drink and drive, for everyone’s sake. Everyone aboard needs to wear a life jacket.

The fact that life jackets have evolved into comfortable, stylish models makes them easier and more convenient to wear.

“A life jacket’s not going to do any good unless your’s wearing it. But the bulky styles that may have discouraged life jacket wear in the past have been replaced by superior options that both feel and look good,” said NSBC Executive Director Virgil Chambers.

Boating accident survival is enhanced considerably when the victim is wearing a life jacket. About 90 percent of recreational boating drowning victims weren’t wearing a life jacket.

Increased awareness of life jacket safety can reduce the number of deaths on the water, just as avoiding drinking and driving lessens the chance of a boating accident.

Keep this in mind this weekend whether you’re moving from hotspot to hotspot or casting and reeling in the saltwater divisions, freshwater division or kayak division of the fishing rodeo.

Enjoy the event but keep it safe.

DONSHOOPMAN

SENIORNEWSEDITOR