Officials Address Ocean City Boogie Board Controversy - WMDT 47 News - Delmarva's Choice

OCEAN CITY, Md. - Ocean City boogie board regulations lead to a public outcry.

For more than 30 years, boogie boards, also known as beater boards, were restricted to a length of 42 inches for safety reasons. "The longer boards weigh more - when they're pushed by a wave, if they get away from somebody, they could cause injury to people. The bigger board actually takes up more space - they are more likely to hit somebody. We've had people with serious injuries as a result of boards before," Beach Patrol Captain Butch Arbin said.

Boards exceeding 42 inches, can only be used in surfing areas, and boogie boards manufactured today, are much longer - most of them 54 inches. "And now some kids that previously before may have not been stopped were stopped and that's why the word is out that we've changed the law, we've made a new law - none of that's true. The surfing community - the kids using the beater boards, got together and started basically a phone and email campaign. And all of a sudden, this issue exploded in one day," Arbin said.

As a result, the beach patrol is relaxing enforcement. "Right now, we're just relaxing enforcement of the length of the board only. If they're being used unsafe, if a person on a board is actually hitting other people or endangering other people, we're going to stop that activity. My only agenda is safety. That's all it ever is," Arbin said.

Officials are now working with surf shop owners to come up with a proposal to present to the city council. "We're going to extend it to a point where we feel like it doesn't make it any less safe than the 42 inch boards, but what we're really concerned about is the behavior of the users. That's what we're really going to focus on. Use the longer board, but use it safely," Arbin said.