Boating Classes
New Boating Skills and Seamanship class to start on March 1, 2012
The Whittier Flotilla is hosting the Boating Skills and Seamanship class in the fall. We have room for 90 students at the BP Energy Center, 900 East Benson, and have Lowered Our Price to $50 to encourage more folks to attend. In addition, a person paying the full price may have his(her) family members audit class free of charge but they must share a book. Family members wishing to test for a certificate should register in the class and pay $25. Participants paying $25, share a family member's book and may take a test and receive a certificate upon passing the test.
Class starts March 1, and runs every Thursday evening through April 26, 2012. Starting at 6 pm and running till almost 9 pm. The plan is to make this the best BS&S course ever and add additional information on Prince William Sound and navigation as we are able.
Interested students should contact Russ or Kathy at 522-5052 or Tom Kane at 441-8182. See more contact information on Poster. Questions about the course can also be directed to Mark Parmelee at 360-3449. Please also contact Mark if you want a flyer advertising the course.
Boating Classes 2012
Classes are taught in Anchorage at the BP Energy Center by the Whittier Flotilla.MAP
See below for course times and descriptions.
To register or get more information, please contact:
Russ or Kathy at 522-5052, e-mail: rkl@acsalaska.net
or Tom at 441-8182,
e-mail: kane2southard@acsalaska.net
**Please Note that the BS&S Course is a 27 hour course split up into a nine week course, every Thursday for three hours each night.
Date |
Classes |
||
|---|---|---|---|
MarchandApril |
Thursdaythis is a 9 week class |
In March1,8,15,22,29In April5, 12, 19, 26 |
Boating Skills and Seamanship @BP Energy Center 6-9 PM. This is a 9 week class. Three hours each class from March 1 through April 26 on Thursdays. |
May |
Thursdays |
17,24,31 |
About Boating Safely. This is a 9 hour class with three hours each night. May 17,24,31, 2012 Starts at 6 through 9pm at the BP Energy Center |
Sept.thruNov. |
Tuesdays |
Sept. 25Oct. 2,9,16,23,30Nov. 6,13 |
Boating Skills and Seamanship @BP Energy Center 6-9 PM. This is a 8 week class. Three hours each class from March 1 through April 26 on Tuesdays. |
Free Nautical Charts from NOAA. Print off these 81/2 x 11 charts and keep in plastic envelopes in a binder on your boat. If space to unroll a chart is a problem then these might be your solution.
http://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/staff/BookletChart.html
The NOAA BookletChart™ is an experimental product that you can print at home for free. They are made to help recreational boaters locate themselves on the water.
The Booklet Chart is reduced in scale and divided into pages for convenience, but otherwise contains all the information of the full-scale nautical chart. Bar scales are also reduced in scale, but are accurate when used to measure distances in a BookletChart. Excerpts from the United States Coast Pilot are included. Most chart notes are consolidated on a single page for easy reference. Emergency information for the charted area is printed on the back cover.
Booklet charts are updated weekly for all Notice to Mariners.
NOTE: During this experimental period, BookletCharts are not being updated every week with Notices to Mariners. Further, some known errors are known to exist, e.g. the "Approximate Page Index" might not match the chart inside. You can tell us about such errors by using the Coast Survey's Inquiry Page.
BOATING SKILLS and SEAMANSHIP BS & S Class
The U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary's Boating Skills and Seamanship (BS&S) course is a comprehensive course designed for both the experienced and the novice boater. The course, now in its 13th edition published in 2007, consists of 8 core required two hour lessons plus five elective lessons, providing up-to-date knowledge for handling boats in all conditions.
TOPICS INCLUDE
- Which Boat Is For You? - Boater's language; types of boats; outboard motors and sterndrives; a hull design; uses of boats; other power plants; materials for constructing boats; your intended use; the Coast Guard Customer Infoline; marine surveyors; buying a boat.
- Equipment For Your Boat - Requirements for your boat; your boat's equipment; legal considerations; substance abuse; boating accident reports; Courtesy Marine Examinations.
- Trailering Your Boat - Legal considerations; practical considerations; the towing vehicle; and balancing the load; handling your trailer; pre-departure checks; preparing to launch; launching; retrieving; storing your boat and trailer; theft prevention; Zebra mussels; float plan.
- Handling Your Boat - Leave with a full tank; fueling your boat; your boat's propellor; cars and boats; twin screws; jet drives; loading your boat; getting started; leaving a pier; "man" overboard; docking; mooring to a permanent anchor; anchoring; towing a skier; heavy weather; small boat safety.
- Your "Highway" Signs - Protection of ATONs; buoyage systems; waterway marks; how waterways are marked; light characteristics; chart symbols; light structures; lights on bridges; electronic aids to navigation; a word to the wise; navigation publications.
- The Rules You Must Follow - Two sets of rules; to whom do the rules apply; what is a vessel; general responsibility rule; general considerations; conduct in narrow channels; traffic separation schemes; vessel traffic services; stand-on or give-way; rules for special vessels; risk of collision; bend signals; restricted visibility; vessel lights and shapes; vessels at anchor; diving operations; distress signals; drawbridge signals; penalties.
- Inland Boating - Types of inland waters; inland navigation; inland seamanship; river currents; maintaining inland waterways; dams; locks; river charts; commercial traffic; before you go. (This lesson typically will not be taught in coastal courses)
- The Rest Of Our Story - Small boat safety; personal watercraft; hypothermia; motorboats and sailboats; carbon monoxide poisoning; float plan; U.S. Coast Guard District Offices; instructions using a course plotter; metric conversion system.
- Introduction To Navigation - Piloting tools; maps and charts; chart features; your chart's general information block; other charted information; your magnetic compass; position on the earth's surface; locating a point on a chart; distance on the earth's surface; measuring distance; course plotting; sources of compass error; correcting a compass reading; positioning; speed-time and distance; dead reckoning; practice your art.
- Powering Your Boat - Types of marine engines; marine engines; selecting a propeller; induction systems; ignition systems; flame arresters; cooling systems; gasoline considerations; batteries; maintenance; winterizing your boat; spring fitting-out; troubleshooting.
- Lines & Knots For Your Boat - Line or rope; rope materials; kinds of rope; measuring rope; selecting your ropes; care of rope; making up line; knots, bends, and hitches; splices; securing lines; dipping the eye.
- Weather & Boating - Sources of weather information; wind and boating; wind and waves; understanding weather; weather and heat; fog; non-frontal weather.
- Your Boat's Radio - Radios used on boats; functions of radios; licenses; selecting your VHF-FM radio; installation; operating your VHF-FM; maintain a radio watch; all channels have special purposes; some "no no's"; copies of the rules; calling another station; procedure words; phonetic alphabet; routine radio check; distress, urgency, and safety calls; crew training.
Many insurance companies will offer discounts on boat insurance to individuals who successfully complete this course.
Individuals who successfully complete the course and exam are awarded certificates and cards.
ABOUT BOATING SAFELY - SEMINAR VERSION
If you are interested in an exciting, in-depth boating safety course, check out the in classroom (seminar) version of our popular online boating course.
This beginner boating class will give you the knowledge needed to obtain a boat license or safety certification in many states. Many boat insurance companies will offer discounts on boating insurance to boaters who successfully complete About Boating Safely.
TOPICS INCLUDE
- Introduction to Boating - Types of power boats; sailboats; outboards; paddle boats; houseboats; different uses of boats; various power boating engines; jet drives; family boating basics.
- Boating Law - Boat registration; boating regulation; hull identification number; required boat safety equipment; operating safely and reporting accidents; protecting the marine environment; Federal boat law; state boating laws; personal watercraft requirements.
- Boat Safety Equipment - Personal flotation devices ("life jackets"); fire extinguishers; sound-producing devices; visual-distress signals; dock lines and rope; first aid kit; anchors and anchor lines; other boating safety equipment.
- Safe Boating - Bow riding; alcohol and drug abuse; entering, loading, and trimming a boat; fueling portable and permanent tanks; steering with a tiller and a wheel; docking, undocking and mooring; knots; filing a float plan; checking equipment, fuel, weather and tides; using charts; choosing and using an anchor; safe PWC handling; general water safety.
- Navigation - The U.S. Aids to Navigation system; types of buoys and beacons; navigation rules (sometimes referred to as right-of-way rules); avoiding collisions; sound signals; PWC "tunnel vision."
- Boating Problems - Hypothermia; boating accidents and rescues; man overboard recovery; capsizing; running aground; river hazards; strainers: emergency radio calls; engine problems; equipment failures; carbon monoxide (CO); other boating and PWC problems.
- Trailering, Storing and Protecting Your Boat - Types of trailers; trailer brakes, lights, hitches, tires, and bearings; loading, balancing, and towing a trailer; towing (and backing) a trailer; boat launching and retrieving; boat storage and theft protection; launching, retrieving and storing a PWC.
- Hunting and Fishing, Water-skiing and River Boating - Carrying hunting gear and weapons in your boat; fishing from a boat; water-skiing safety guidelines and hand signals; water-skiing with a PWC; navigating rivers, and other boating tips.