Tred Barta supports new MOBi-lert safety system

by Colin Patterson on 28 Sep 2007 American Fishing guru and US television celebrity Tred Barta has embraced an innovative Australian invention designed to help assist with prompt man overboard rescues. Barta saw the MOBi-lert system at the Miami Boat Show in July and was reportedly so enthusiastic about the product that he ordered one for his own boat. He’s not the only celebrity team who has been impressed by the new product: Croc One the expedition vessel of the late Steve Irwin has also been fitted with a MOBi-lert system.

Peter Gedye and the MOBi-lert sales team were promoting their system at the Cruisers Yacht stand when they were spotted by Barta. Gedye described what happened next:

‘He saw the system, and saw us there at the stand, and said ‘hey, I’ve got to have this system. For safety’s sake I’ve got to have it on the boat. And I want to promote it because I think it’s great.’’

Tred Barta is a legend in the world of bluewater fishing. He is credited as having caught more big eye tuna on rod and reel than anyone else in the world and is widely acknowledged as ‘the’ voice of the US bluewater fishing industry. He has used his celebrity status to support a number of childrens’ fishing tournaments including the Barta Camp Woodie in June and Barta’s Boys & Girls Billfishing Tournament in July. At both these tournaments Barta gave the MOBi-lert system away as prizes.

Barta is reportedly very careful about which products he endorses so his support for this new safety system carries a great deal of weight. Barta believes that many television and outdoor celebrities are over endorsed and as a result have lost their credibility. He said that ‘if you stand for everything, you stand for nothing.’




Gedye confirmed that Barta was backing the MOBi-lert system simply because he liked the product and understands the value of having an effective man overboard safety system on board.

‘He’s doing promotions for us and it’s because he believes in the product.’

Barta may also be supporting the product because of the family friendly nature of the MOBi-lert system. The systems have proved popular with boating families especially those travelling with younger children on board. Barta believes that activities like fishing help bring families closer together: ‘families that hunt and fish together stay together’ so any product that addresses the safety of families at sea is likely to appeal to him.

Gedye agrees that having good safety equipment on board and practising MOB drills are some of the way parents can achieve peace of mind when travelling with their kids.

‘I’m not saying they rely solely on it (MOBi-lert) but certainly it gives them a sense of well being; I think it gives them a sense of peace’ he said.

The MOBi-lert crew monitoring system can help increase the chance of a quick rescue should a crew member go over the side. Produced by Mobilarm, the safety system is designed to reduce the risk of a man overboard situation becoming fatal.

The way it works is simple. Just seconds after a crew member hits the water an alarm sounds on the boat. The position of the vessel is also logged via GPS.

Each member of the crew needs to wear a small waterproof transmitter. These are called Pendants. This transmitter keeps constant contact with the main MOBi-lert receiver which is located on the boat. The transmitter sends out radio signals and if something happens to stop these transmissions, the receiver realises that something is wrong, and the system moves into emergency mode.

Peter Gedye explained how the system operates:

‘How it works is that the receiving system detects loss of transmission. When the pendant is under the water it is still transmitting, but the receiver can’t receive it because the salt water stops the transmission. It blocks it. So it’s simply that lack of transmission that kicks the system into gear.’

Almost as soon as the base unit detects a loss of transmission an alarm sounds which alerts the crew that someone is in the water.

‘Several seconds after someone falls overboard a way point is recorded and then in another few seconds an alarm goes off. A way point goes into your own chart plotter or to our system, depending on which MOBi-lert model you have.’

This short delay allows you to enjoy a wet and wild day on the water without a false alarm going off every couple of minutes. You can also reduce the volume of the alarm signal. It will keep on beeping quietly to let you know that the MOB alarm has been activated.

Once a rescue attempt is underway, the alarm will change when the boat is 100 metres away from the recorded way point. The alarm will change again when you are within 50 metres of the way point. This feature will be particularly helpful in rough seas or when visibility is poor. As well as the alarm, a visual display on the receiver’s console will help you steer back to the crew member.

Gedye commented that one of the advantages of the MOBi-lert system is that even if a crew were unable to perform a rescue the recorded way point means that a search by other vessels will be much more accurate.

‘It’s a well known fact that the people on the boat are far more likely to be able to rescue you than anybody else. But if by chance they can’t find them, can’t rescue them, or can’t do anything they still have the way point. They can put out a mayday and they will know the exact position that the person went in.’

‘And that’s so much better than saying ‘where’s your boat now?’ because your boat position may bear no relation to the position of the person in the water.’

MOBi-lert products are suitable for fibreglass boats up to about 65ft and can handle up to eighteen crew members, which is basically the bulk of the cruising and recreational boating market. The system works well on fibreglass vessels because ‘to a radio wave a fibreglass boat is transparent.’

‘We have had a few problems with steel boats simply because it’s a wireless system. Steel stops the transmission. So if someone was wearing one of the Pendants, and was to go into the engine room, it would sometimes stop transmission getting through and so it would be shown as an alarm.’

Mobilarm has developed a second generation of products which are designed for recreational boats over 65ft, large commercial vessels and will also be suitable for steel boats. The likely release date for the second generation of products will be early 2008.

Gedye emphasised that the second generation of products will not replace the first generation because they are intended for use by different size and types of vessels.

‘One product is not going to overtake the other.’

MOBi-lert systems are distributed in the US by Defender, West Marine, Landfall Navigation, Consumers Marine Electronics, Viking Life Raft, Hamilton Marine, Charleston Yachts and Fawcetts Annapolis.

Contact details
Phone : 00 +61 (08) 9315 3511
Fax : 00 +61 (08) 9315 3611
Email : peterg@mobilert.com

www.mobilert.com

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