Have you ever stopped to read the placard near the helm of your boat, the one that lists the vessel’s maximum capacities? It’s one of those things that’s easy to take for granted—just an afterthought—but overloading a boat comes with serious risks. One recent example comes to mind because it made national news.
“Boy, 7, and Woman Dead After Boat Capsizes in Hudson River,” read the headline in one of the major newspapers near my home in New Jersey. The U.S. Coast Guard believed overloading was