How-to: Seamanship

This past summer was another busy boating season in which thousands of stranded boaters needed towing or other assistance. I used to work for Vessel Assist, a nationwide on-the-water towing service that was bought by TowBoat US in 2003.  Here are some things I learned while we processed calls of all sorts during busy holidays and hot summer days. First, take a boating safety course. Being prepared is the key to avoiding problems. If you understand your vessel, your environment, your responsibilities and a few basics like the rules of the road, it can make the difference between enjoyment and tragedy. Boating safety courses are easy to find and affordable. Second, keep in mind that panic is the enemy. The best way to avoid panic is to be educated and prepared. Everyone aboard the vessel should be able to locate and use a fire extinguisher, the VHF radio, personal flotation devices and signal flares. Talk through the proposed itinerary with family and friends before leaving and know what to do in case of an emergency. Third, understand navigation. A local area chart should be aboard every vessel. Charts mark important areas to avoid such as reefs, rocks, sandbars and restricted areas. In case of an emergency, having and knowing how to use a GPS can decrease response time by allowing rescue vessels to pinpoint your location from the coordinates. Practice judging distance on the water. For example, think of a football field, which is 100 yards. A half mile is about equal to the length of nine football fields. Fourth, know the difference between an emergency and a non-emergency. When determining whom to contact for assistance, consider the following question: are you or anyone onboard in any immediate danger? If the answer is yes, contact the US Coast Guard on channel 16. If your vessel has gone aground, is taking on water or is on fire, or if someone onboard is extremely ill or injured, contact the Coast Guard immediately. If the answer is no, consider it a manageable inconvenience and call a local commercial towing company. Fifth, understand the VHF radio. If you are hailing another party or vessel, use channels 9 or 16. Identify youself and the party you are calling. Once contact is made, switch to another agreed upon channel to communicate. When calling for assistance, use only channel 16. Be sure to give specifics of your location, how many persons aboard, details regarding injuries or illness and any key details of your situation. Listen carefully for the information from the dispatcher regarding your ETAs and next steps. Make sure everyone aboard understands how to use the VHF radio because the person injured or overboard on your next outing could be you. These are simple things but they can save a life or at least improve a day on the water. They will undoubtedly help make the boating experience safer for you, your guests and all of us on the water.   …Read More

  HB Marine and Independence Green Yachts yesterday announced a partnership that will form a joint venture to develop the Independence 60 Luxury Yacht that IGY started a few years ago. The Independence 60 is billed as the “world’s first ‘no compromise’ sustainable yacht.” A combination of solar cells, hydrogen production and storage and fuel cells [...] …Read More

Pacific Expedition Yachts will offer Cummins Mercruiser Diesel Zeus pod drives on its PE60 Expedition Class Power Catamaran. The first hull with Zeus drives is already under construction at Pacific Expedition’s Astoria, Oregon shipyard, with delivery expected later this year. Here’s how Pacific Expedition describes the decision to offer the Zeus drives: The PE60, equipped with twin [...] …Read More

Pacific Asian Enterprises said on its website that it has developed a version of its 75 Expedition Yacht Fisher (EYF) without the expansive flybridge common to most sportfishing battlewagons. The change acknowledges the cruising half of this split-personality ocean-going yacht and gives it a more conventional “Norhdavn look.” I took the liberty of scanning a print [...] …Read More

As our readers know, the publishing world is in the midst of an upheaval as publications and readers turn to online outlets to deliver content. Naturally, we at OceanLines feel we’ve been helping to lead our audience of cruisers and passagemakers to that new online world of resources. Well, the publishing powerhouses continue to evolve [...] …Read More

North Pacific Yachts said it has delivered the first NP38 Sedan to a North American customer. The boat was on display at last week’s Seattle Boat Show after arriving on 16 January from the shipyard in China.  We have the first photos of the NP38, both during initial sea trials in China and as she [...] …Read More

Kadey-Krogen said this week that it will have a Krogen 58′ and the 48′ North Sea with the redesigned galley and bridge, which we wrote about here on OceanLines recently. P.A.E. advises that their final plans for the upcoming Miami boat shows include the 75 EYF and the 62 at Collins Ave., — more formally know [...] …Read More

  Torqeedo keeps adding new models to its line of electric outboards. The latest is the Travel series with two new units offering power equivalent to 1.5 hp and 3 hp, respectively. The Travel 503 and Travel 1003 not only offer more power than their predecessors but are tougher and are completely waterproof to IP67 standards. According [...] …Read More

FLIR this week announced expansion of both its fixed M-Series and handheld First Mate series of night vision devices. They’ve covered several different price points now with the First Mate monoculars, which we wrote about here on OceanLines. The M-series also gets a new, less-expensive version that drops the low-light camera and carries only the [...] …Read More

Kadey-Krogen Yachts recently announced that it has begun delivering an updated version of the venerable Krogen 48′ North Sea trawler. The boat was introduced in 1996, and like all boats, it has evolved and changed as a result of owner feedback and advancements in technology. Key changes to the Krogen 48′ are an enlarged galley [...] …Read More