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Learn the ropes for safe boating

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By STEVEN SOLOMON ssolomon@tampatrib.com

The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 14, 2009

When I was in my 20s, I had an 11-foot sailboat that I would take out on a nearby lake in upstate New York. That was the extent of my "nautical knowledge" when my wife and I moved to Tampa in 2007.

So my big idea about taking advantage of what our new neighborhood had to offer - boating - fell on deaf ears when I told my wife we should look into it. To be fair, she had had a bad experience on a friend's sailboat.

I devised a scheme. I waited until the annual boat show at the Tampa Convention Center and then casually mentioned that I'd like to stop by "for just a few minutes." My wife didn't suspect a thing.

We looked at the boats and tables loaded with maritime gear. My wife chatted with a gentleman selling boat club memberships, which sounded interesting to us. Imagine my surprise when she made an appointment to visit the boat club's marina.

"Captain Matt" took us into the bay, where conditions were perfect. The sky was clear, the chop was light and the dolphins were swimming. We signed up. Tampa Bay, here we come!

After one or two trips out, though, the reality hit us. This was serious business.

How could a single instructional ride prepare us for taking an expensive boat out into a large body of water? There are tides and channels to navigate, and mercurial weather conditions. And Florida doesn't require a license or specific boating knowledge to captain a personal vessel.

We signed up for a safe-boating class with the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. Trained volunteers lead the classes that meet for a few hours each week. In 14 weeks, we learned life-saving lessons along with gaining knowledge of boat types, basic equipment, navigation, nautical rules of sailing a vessel and more.

We were in the middle of that boating course when three men - all highly trained athletes - died after their boat overturned about 35 miles west of Clearwater. According to the lone survivor, the anchor had gotten stuck, and not wishing to cut it loose and buy a new one, they reattached it to the rear of the boat and gunned the engine. The maneuver swamped the 21-foot vessel and tossed them in the water.

It was a tragedy that could have been avoided.

For those of us in the boating class, it was a lesson not to be forgotten. In discussing the ill-fated fishing trip, members of the class pointed out several crucial errors:

• The weather forecast wasn't checked before the group launched or it was ignored.

• A float plan wasn't filed.

• Life jackets weren't worn.

•There was no two-way marine radio or signaling device.

• The boat didn't have an emergency device to transmit a distress signal. Known as an EPIRB - Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon - the device, which can be purchased for about $200, alerts search-and-rescue teams when it's activated.

Boating accidents are far too prevalent. Statewide, 77 people died in boating accidents and 377 were injured in 2007.

So what can be done?

How about this: With boating season winding down, this might be a good time for boaters who have never taken the safety course or need a refresher to sign up.

It's a small price to pay, says Capt. Timothy Close, commander of the local Coast Guard sector.

"Your life and the lives of your family are worth making the time for boating safety and getting the equipment that will keep you and them alive should something bad happen," he says.

ON THE RIGHT COURSE

The Coast Guard Auxiliary, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the U.S. Power Squadron offer courses and information on boater safety. Here are some of the organizations' Web sites:

• www.cgaux.org/ boatinged/

• www.boatus.org

• www.cgaux7.org

• www.myFWC.com

• www.usps.org

Boaters who attend the Coast Guard Auxiliary's About Boating Safely course, a two-session class for $35, receive a certificate of completion and a wallet-sized boater safety ID card issued by the state. A more advanced eight-session class is offered once a year. Flotilla 79, Tampa's Coast Guard Auxiliary that meets at 5108 W. Gandy Blvd., also offers a boating skills and seamanship class from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Wednesdays weekly. Boaters can start on any Wednesday.

Editorial department assistant Steven Solomon can be reached at (813) 259-7624.

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