Launch Like A Boss, The quick and cool way to get your sailboat into the water.
This has to be one of the best how to launch a sailboat videos around, no big errors just the coolest quickest and smoothest launch ever.
This video was made for AV-OG-TIL, a Norwegian NGO, working to reduce the harmful effects of alcohol. The aim is to raise awareness around the dangers of intoxication while operating a boat.
Launching is an art form best practiced sober.
Mariner Fatigue by Lou Vest (Click Here to read the story behind the photo)
Tired, lack of sleep and environmental stress factors (sun, heat, cold, vessel movement) are often overlooked by recreational boaters as well as professional mariners and this can contribute to accidents on the water.
A person who has been awake for 17 hours faces the same risk of a crash as a person who has a BAC reading of 0.05 g/100ml and those who are awake for 24 hours will have a driving performance similar to a person who has a BAC of 0.1 g/100ml. – Adelaide Centre for Sleep Research
If being tired is equivalent to being drunk – why does shipping culture equate working hard with not resting?
With all of the studies that have been done on fatigue in the past 80 years, it would make sense to have a consensus about how much rest is necessary to avoid it being a contributory factor in accidents. The only result that is seen time and time again is that fatigue can be catastrophic.
A very nice concise overview of NOAA Chart products, printed, electronic and free PDF downloads.
Remember if you use electronic navigation systems (GPS Chart Plotters) to check which NOAA products if any are supported by your unit or the unit you are thinking of buying, some will use the NOAA electronic charts directly.
Hope springs eternal. Or maybe, given the cold and dreary May (at least on the East Coast), the adage should be re-phrased a bit, as we have “eternal hopes for spring.” In any case, boaters still have time to get their updated charts as boating season starts in earnest.
Coast Survey is constantly improving the nation’s nautical charts, giving customers a greater range of products and services. Which products work best for you?
Paper nautical charts are the original risk management tools at sea. Photo credit: Tim Osborn, NOAA
For official NOAA charts, updated to the time they are printed “on-demand,” you should check out the list of 19 NOAA-certified printers. To ensure the integrity, authenticity, and responsiveness of NOAA chart distributors, NOAA certifies these agents to sell official up-to-date NOAA charts. (NOTE: NOAA will revoke distributor status…
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Resource surveys are not new to NOAA
NOAA has been doing resource surveys since the 1800’s. Some of the surveys from the 1800’s are now being used to help rehabilitate oyster beds using the original surveys showing where oysters used to live before we messed up the resource.
Coastal planners, fishery managers, and oceanographic researchers will soon reap important seafloor and water column data from the coast of Washington, when NOAA Ship Rainier undertakes a special project in the waters within and near the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary in May.
The blue lines indicate NOAA Ship Rainier’s survey project areas. From north to south, the project encompasses Juan De Fuca Canyon (65 square nautical miles), Quinault Canyon (378 square nautical miles), and Willapa Canyon (189 square nautical miles). The teal dots in Quinault and Willapa canyons are the locations of deep underwater natural methane gas seeps being investigated in a University of Washington research project. The green shaded area is the extent of the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary.
The project, which is being managed by NOAA’s Integrated Ocean and Coast Mapping program, grew from NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science seafloor mapping prioritization exercise
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The Conch Shell and the Air Horn
Sometimes boaters have trouble getting a bridge to open for them, there are several reasons why a bridge might not lift as soon as you sound your horn.
The email below is from a Seattle Bridge Operator and was forwarded to me with a request that the boating public be made aware of problems that Bridge Operators have hearing the sound signal requesting the bridge to be opened.
The email speaks for itself.
Some of the data on NOAA charts dates back 150 years with some from Captain Cooks voyage in 1778. A given chart might have data that dates back to 1890 with the depths taken with a lead line and positions by a sextant while other areas of the chart the depths are from a full-coverage shallow-water multibeam echo sounder taken in the last few years. NOAA is starting to indicate on charts when the position and depth data was taken and the expected accuracy, knowing that parts of a chart might have horizontal accuracy worse than +/- 1,600 feet lets a mariner better understand the limits of the chart. (NOAA has been showing the date the depth was last surveyed on many charts for several years)
Hats off to NOAA for adding yet another tool to the navigators toolbox.
It is a major challenge – some might say an impossibility – to keep all thousand U.S. nautical charts up to date. But exactly how out of date is the chart data? Chart users will get a better idea now that Coast Survey is gradually rolling out a new chart feature called the zone of confidence, or “ZOC” box. It will replace the source diagram that is currently on large-scale charts. Source diagrams, and now the improved ZOC, help mariners assess hydrographic survey data and the associated level of risk to navigate in a particular area.
The first charts to show the new ZOC box are 18622, 18682, 18754, and 11328. They were released on April 7.
Both source diagrams and ZOC diagrams consist of a graphic representation of the extents of hydrographic surveys within the chart…
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New Soundproofing / Noise Insulation Materials, bat with adhesive, Mylar Tape and mechanical fasteners.
Last spring I needed to replace and upgrade the Sound Insulation / Sound Proofing on my boat after upgrading and installing a new engine in the boat.
The engine compartment and panels had to be modified with the port side of the engine compartment needing to be moved out 1.5 inches and a new front panel made and Sound Insulation / Sound Proofing added to the new panels.
Picking the right Life Jacket
Selecting the correct Life Jacket or PFD (Personal Flotation Device) today can be a daunting and confusing task. Go into most any well stocked boating supply or sporting goods store and you will probably find what looks like miles and miles of Life Jackets on display, in all sizes, colors and types. Given the fantastic selection of Life Jackets today, you should be able to find one that you like, is suitable for your on the water activity and fits well.
Asking someone what the “right” Life jacket to use might get you a very long explanation of the different types and uses for them with the final word being “depends on your use”
The “right” Life Jacket is the one you have on when you need it. Life Jackets save lives
