Coast Guard Auxiliary to offer safe boating course Aug. 17 in Waukegan
Attention boaters!
A special summer session Safe Boating Course will be offered from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 17, at Waukegan Harbor Flotilla 41-5, 9 N. Harbor Place.
The course "About Boating Safely" meets all Illinois state requirements for certification required under new laws. It also provides the boat owner with possible substantial discounts on their insurance by most insurance companies.
The lead instructor for the course is a local celebrity having recently won a prestigious award for Safe Boating Public Education.
Cost is $40.
More information and registration is online www.waukeganaux.com.
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 personal watercraft 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; personal watercraft "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 personal watercraft 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 personal watercraft.
• Hunting and Fishing, Water-skiing and River Boating - Carrying hunting gear and weapons in a boat; fishing from a boat; water-skiing safety guidelines and hand signals; water-skiing with a personal watercraft; navigating rivers, and other boating tips.
The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary is the uniformed, all-volunteer component of the United States Coast Guard. The Auxiliary was created by an Act of Congress in 1939, and has grown to over 32,000 members who daily support the Coast Guard in all its nonmilitary, and non-law-enforcement missions. Membership in the Auxiliary is open to persons 17 years of age and older.
Auxiliary members conduct safety patrols on local waterways, assist in Search and Rescue, teach boating safety classes, conduct free vessel safety checks for the public, provide boating safety literature to dealers, as well as many other activities related to recreational boating safety.
The Coast Guard considers the auxiliary its primary resource for recreational boating safety outreach and prevention, and each Coast Guard district around the nation has established a senior officer and staff to provide tight liaison and coordination between the active-duty Coast Guard and the various Auxiliary units in that district.
And in many inland portions of the country, where the majority of U.S. recreational boating occurs on lakes and rivers, the Auxiliary is the sole Coast Guard presence
For more on the local Coast Guard Auxiliary, visit www.cgaux.org.