Im gonna have to get used to folks side pullin if it gets big on the Mississippi COE lakes. I was trollin cranks about a month ago and came up on a boat right in my path that looked like they were spider riggin off the sides like the op is describing. I assumed they were vertical fishing so I deliberately changed my course as to pass them on side opposite of the side they were fishing off of to keep from disturbing them, gave them what I thought at the time was a plenty wide enough birth. They must have been side pullin cause about 10 minutes later they had trolled accross my lines, boat was trolling backwards from the way they were sitting, all the poles were out the port side but they were trolling sideways in the starboard direction. Luckily for me they only hung my longest line but I'm sure I got all theirs tangled. I though I was hung on the bottom until they started hollerin at me and I looked up and saw that they was about 50 yards back from the spot they was in when I passed them. I thought I was doing right by going by on the side that didnt have poles out, I had no idea they were side trollin. I guess if I had gone by in front I would have hung them instead of them hanging me, only way to avoid the situation I guess would have been them paying attention to what was behind them since they were trolling backwards, it was them who crossed my lines after I had passed.