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replacing aging hoses and fittings), improper tying off and rainfall. You must account for rising
and falling tides whenever you tie off or anchor your boat. If you tie your boat too tight to a dock,
it will heal over as the tide goes out. If your boat is tied too loose, then it can get trapped under a
dock when the tide rises. It’s always best to use a spring line. If you don’t know what that is,
then you definitely haven’t taken a boating safety class or done
the reading required by this manual. If at all possible, try to use a
slip instead of just tying off to one side (as was done in the
photo). It’s much easier to avoid accidents by tying off in a slip
than it is on a straight dock or sea wall. Learn how to properly tie
up your boat! You must also be aware of changing weather. In
tropical areas it’s not unusual to have extraordinarily heavy
rains. Near shore and offshore boats are typically designed with
self-bailing decks. That means you do not need a pump to
remove water from the deck…but it doesn’t mean you can dock
your boat and forget it. A typical gravity fed 1.5” drain can only
drain 35 gallons of water per minute. Your boat may have only
one or two such drains in the deck. A boat can collect considerably more water than that in a
heavy rain storm. When this happens the excess weight (water weighs 8lbs per gallon) can
force the deck drains below the waterline. This causes water to flow from outside to the inside of
the boat and cause it to sink. As a result, you should never leave your boat unattended in the
water without a cover that keeps rainwater from accumulating inside.
Youngsters
We’d all like to think that our children can
safely operate a boat. The truth is that
they probably can…in unchallenging
conditions. The problem is that they’re
training, intelligence and life experiences
are insufficient to handle anything other
than flat calm sea conditions with no
boats or navigational obstructions around
on a day with no unexpected events. If
only life could be that carefree. Since it’s
not, people without a valid unrestricted
automobile driver’s license and a safe
boating certificate should not operate the
boat. If the person is under the age of 18,
they should be directly supervised by an
adult onboard at all times. A motor
vehicle driver’s license does not prepare
a person for boat operation, but it is
indicative
of
the
maturity
and
responsibility necessary to operate a
moving vessel safely. Moreover, the
requirements for operating a motor vehicle teach youths to avoid panic when hazards and
unexpected conditions arise. These lessons easily translate to the water. Notice that in addition
to sinking the boat, the kids in this photo didn’t wear their life jackets. You can almost hear them
saying they are “fine” or “it was no big deal”. They’re so inexperienced they’re incapable of
determining what a “big deal” is. You’re the adult, so act like it.
