TruDesign Division Blog: Time Spent on the Water Doesn't Always Translate Into Safe Boating Behavior

Why It Might Be Good to Get a Captain's License 

Raritan Engineering Company your TruDesign specialists would like to share with you these topics we thought would be of interest to you this month regarding how time spent on the water doesn't always translate into safe boating. 

Your TruDesign professionals discuss how as a professional sailor, coach and instructor of captain’s courses, I work with sailors of all levels of experience. I have come to notice that many of them have no professional certifications from recognized organizations like the US Coast Guard or Royal Yachting Association.

Reasons range from “I don’t have time” to “I don’t see the point, I already have the job,” and even “I already know everything in those courses, I have sailed 50,000 miles since I was a kid.”

Time on the water does not necessarily translate into safe boating behavior. That is why I believe that all coaches and professional sailors, that is, hired mariners, should obtain a captain’s license for a multitude of reasons that go beyond the title of obtaining your “ticket.”

It propagates safety.

Getting a license does not make you perfect by any means. What it does is make you better than you were before you started the process. Isn’t that the goal of a great professional? Many sailors do not even have a basic understanding of the Rules of the Road outside of the racing rules. 

Other Great Reasons to Get Your Captain's License

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Furthermore, with our modern reliance on technology, I have come across professionals who do not use paper charts. The carrying of paper charts, for example, is just one way that all boaters can be safe in the event of a loss of GPS or power. 

Leading by example.

We all look to our coaches to be the leader of the program. But often in the states, we see kids go straight from the junior sailing program to the coach boat without proper training in powerboat safety. 

Is it Legal?

“Why is it that yacht clubs require their launch drivers have a Coast Guard license, but don’t enforce the same requirement of their sailing instructors ferrying children back and forth on various powerboats?”

Coaches and pro-sailors are hired professionals. At Confident Captain we are of the opinion that the most far reaching compliance with U.S. law is that all hired professional mariners must have a license.

There is always something to learn.

The best sailors I’ve met have made it a point to keep learning for their entire career. There is more to formalized training than the pencil and the chart. The interaction between professional mariners at Confident Captain during any of our courses has always brought the most valuable lessons and insight to the table. 

It is better to be proactive towards answering difficult questions.

It won’t sit well with anybody involved in the investigation. Take a proactive step toward fortifying your career ahead of time by getting a license and engaging in different types of formalized professional development. If your good name is called into question, you will be glad you did.

So don't forget these great reasons to consider getting your captain's license. 1) Doing so propagates safety;  2) you can set a good example for our younger sailors;  and 3) remember that there is always something to learn.

Staying With The Boat And Other Safety Myths

I’m amazed at how long bad advice perpetuates when it’s given in a catchy phrase. An example: Don’t leave the boat until the boat leaves you. This might be the most misguided advice ever to cross the lips of otherwise sensible men and women. Another example: Red sky at night, sailor’s delight.

These stick around not because they are always true, but because they sound good. Don’t be fooled. The ocean is no place for absolutes, even when they rhyme.

Myth 1: You Are Safer On The Boat

Staying with the vessel until it sinks is what sailors did when there was no other choice, before we had VHF radios. If you are offshore without propulsion and cannot arrange a tow, you’re going to abandon your vessel, one way or another. 

Opportunities to abandon a boat safely come in windows that open based on such factors as weather, drift, sea state and the availability of rescue assets. The best time to abandon your vessel is when it is safest for you and those who come to get you.

Getting off the boat is not the same as leaving the boat. If you are going to inflate the raft, get into it as soon as possible, particularly in bad weather. It is always better to climb down into the life raft, dry and well-supplied, than to fight your way through waves, hoping you can make it aboard. 

Myth 2: Call the Coast Guard As A Last Resort

Almost everyone who has called in a mayday picked up the VHF too late. At the first sign of trouble — no matter how confident you are in your abilities — the smart money is on calling a pan-pan and notifying everyone (within range) of your situation. 

Letting the Coast Guard know there might be trouble doesn’t cost anything, but it does open up a world of options that are unavailable if no one knows your situation. 

Survivors call early. Using your radio or phone (cell or satellite) to connect with those who might be able to help is safer for you and for search teams. The more rescuers know about your situation, the more options they have. Coast Guard crews who might be fatigued from earlier missions can call for backup.

If you wait until mayday is your best option, everyone has to scramble, and the chances of a happy ending are much less likely than if you’d picked up the phone earlier.

Myth 3: An EPIRB Is All You Need

EPIRBs are tremendous lifesaving devices. Thousands of people owe their lives to them. Why? They make things easier for your rescuers, not for you. An EPIRB does what its name implies: It indicates a position. More specifically, it indicates its own position, not yours. 

I’ve looked for numerous EPIRBs without finding the vessels from which the signal came, or its owners. What rescuers do tend to find are EPIRBs in a life raft with the crew, attached to a floating vessel after manual activation or safely tied to a sailor wearing a life jacket or an immersion suit.

Remember: A red sky at night can mean good weather in the morning, and there are plenty of times you should stay with your boat. Just acknowledge that the sea is never a place for absolutes. Consider everything at stake, including the risks. 

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Be sure to watch our latest video on TruDesign below. 

via Propagating Safety in Sailing Programs

via Staying With the Boat and Other Sailing Myths