Sailing Education Adventures

uscg

Written by Office

Lack of Communication Triggers USCG Search and Costs Taxpayer $

A recent story about a massive search by USCG for a sailor who took longer than expected to return.
Broken VHF and no cell range triggered the search (Ex-wife who cares).
This is a challenging situation: If your comms gear fails, there's a lot more to worry about than just your own safety.
SEA takes safety and trip planning seriously. To learn more and prepare for your own offshore trips, attend our high quality Navigation Planner sessions to find out more.

Coast Guard rescues 50-foot Chinese junk boat near Astoria

The Coast Guard rescued two people on a 50-foot sailboat that was taking on water about seven miles from the Columbia River.

Shortly before 1 p.m. Sunday, the Coast Guard got a report that the sailboat Flying Dragon’s engine had failed and the boat, which had two people aboard, was taking on water. The Coast Guard launched a 47-foot lifeboat to the scene, and a crew member went onboard the sailboat and pumped out about 500 gallons of water.

See Full Article here

National Safe Boating Week

Written by Office

Sailing Education Adventures joined the National Safe Boating Week last May 21th, Saturday at the Travis Marina / Presidio Yacht Club.

SEA provided rigging and safety demonstrations as part of the national event to promote safe boating and distributed over 100 PFD to passing families, youths and curious visitors.
There were life jacket fittings, food concession, music, games, and a sailing demonstration. A big thank you to volunteers Wayne McIntosh, Barbara McVeigh and Pierce Reisinger for helping with demos, fittings and coordination.
We would also like to thank the USCG Auxiliary and Gail Giacomini for their support in organizing a great event! We'll be back next year.

For more information www.safeboatingcampaign.com

See more photos of the event below.

Navigation Planner

Written by Office

Date: April 17, 2012
Time: 19-21
Location: Crissy Field, San Francisco
Cost: $15 Members | $20 Public
Category: Adventure Sails

Get ready for offshore sailing in SEA's two hour prep session for all Adventure Sails.
It will be reviewed in our Navigation Planner sessions by skippers with their crew as part of the Trip Planning process.

Collisions and Liability

Written by Mark Miglio

Collisions And The Question Of Liability

Finding fault can be tricky at sea. The bottom line is to be conservative; take evasive action, even if you think you’re in the right. Here’s why.

With some collisions, fault is obvious, like the collision that occurred when the skipper of a 45-foot powerboat in Florida slammed into the stern of a 31-foot boat late one night in a narrow waterway. The skipper of the larger boat had been drinking heavily and his boat was traveling at almost 50 mph, over twice the posted speed limit.

But with many collisions, perhaps most collisions, assessing liability isn’t so easy. Last summer, for example, a small fishing boat and a trawler collided on a clear day on the Chesapeake Bay after having each other in sight for almost 10 minutes. Seas were calm and the open stretch of water near the mouth of the Potomac River was remarkably free of other boat traffic. The first boat, a 26-foot center-console, was heading north, off Smith Point Light, and its skipper said later that he thought his boat was moving faster and would pass in front of the trawler. He admitted that his attention was focused elsewhere.

The second boat, the trawler, was headed northwest toward the Potomac River. The trawler’s skipper said that he was well aware of the smaller boat but his boat had the right of way and he held his course until a few seconds before the collision — far too late to move out of harm’s way.