boater safety course certification

[Susky River Rat]

@MediumMouthBass if you have the skill required to do something you have to have the knowledge/ answered memorized. You can have the knowledge but, not the skill is what I think you’re trying to say.  

[MediumMouthBass]

4 hours ago, Susky River Rat said:

@MediumMouthBass if you have the skill required to do something you have to have the knowledge/ answered memorized. You can have the knowledge but, not the skill is what I think you’re trying to say.  

Best way to describe what im thinking about is this, when i was learning times tables (multiplication) and division when i was younger i couldnt understand it. Public school teachers are horrible near me and the education was lame and boring. So i applied myself 0% and paid 0 attention, so to keep from failing i would memorize the sheets with the answers.

 

I was just as good as the kids who actually studied and learned it, but i didnt learn it i just memorized the answers.

 

When it came to test time and they made me and everyone else show our work on how we got to those numbers i had no clue what to put down. And started getting bad grades once again, if you couldnt show your work it counted as a 0.

And for the tests that were more complicated and had numbers i didnt memorize i had no clue what to do, think, or put down on the paper. But if i actually applied myself then, learned how to do it, i would be able to be given a problem and rely on the knowledge i learned, for how to fix it rather than just remembering the answer.

 

Point is knowledge, memory, skill, and actual hands on learning all go together.

But the best way to retain it is to be passionate about it, and to want to do it.

Anything i ever had to force myself to memorize i probably couldnt tell you it now, but anything i wanted or needed to learn, and knew why i needed it i can remember and still apply.

[volzfan59]

Seems like a good idea to require boating safety courses for competitors. As much as I hate government interference in our lives, it probably wouldn't be a bad requirement for all of us. I'm of the age that I wasn't required to have it. I mean, just like in a street vehicle, we all had to take a class, read a handbook, etc. We all still speed, California roll a stop sign, fail to yield, etc. Heck, I'm retired LEO and I pretty much break some law every time I drive.

 

I am a staunch, old school B.A.S.S. fan, always have been, always will be.#FBD. However, in my opinion this is a C Y A thing for them. This way if anything catastrophic happens, they can say "it's not on us, we made (fill in the blank) take a safety class". Same reason I had to take driver safety class, refreshers and other various classes. 

[Junk Fisherman]

On 6/21/2024 at 2:33 PM, Tennessee Boy said:

I've never been required to have one but I've taken two courses over the years to lower my insurance rates.  It's very easy to do online and doesn't cost much. 

 

This is what I've done as well.  I took the class through the Coast Guard Auxiliary and I saved enough on my insurance in 2 years to more than cover the cost of the course.  Plus, I took it during Covid so it was through Zoom so I didn't even have to leave the house.  

[casts_by_fly]

On 6/21/2024 at 4:00 PM, TnRiver46 said:

TN doesn’t, unless you are born after 1989 I believe. 

 

So most of the top cometitors now then....

 

 

On 6/21/2024 at 8:53 PM, A-Jay said:

Hate to sound like a cynic but

while giving boating safety classes to tournament anglers sounds like a noble endeavor,

it's a total waste of time IMO.

And I mean total. 

This entire nation of vehicle operators ALL pass a rules of the roads test,

and there's roads, and signs and even LEO presence all over the place.

Are the roads safer - No.

Face it, the lakes river & reservoirs have no roads, channels markers yes, but no one knows what they mean or even how to use them. Speed limit signs and no wake warning are completely ignored.

Just like on the road. And with far less LEO presences on the water, 

every single day is a total free for all.  

Jet Ski's, Wake Boats, Water ski towers, tube pullers, Bass fisherman, no one's exempt.

They can advertise and do whatever they want.

We would all like to believe that Classes and education is the answer or maybe it would even help a little but it will not make much of a difference at all. 

It takes real people making unselfish decisions on the water to change anything.

And that will never happen. 

At least not in my life time. 

Folks won't even wear seat belts.

It's just amazing that the carnage isn't worse, but when it happens,

I don't understand why folks act so surprised. 

🥴

A-Jay

 

 

 

+1 for all of this.  In my opinion, its not going to make much difference if any and its a CYA.  Like 12Lb said above, of all the guys on the water the elite pros are probably going to be among the best for boat handling because they do it day in and day out, navigating other boats, varying bodies of water and weather conditions.  Experience is a hard teacher.

 

I too did my boaters safety course during COVID and only had to take the exam in person.  That said, being in a kayak means I'm low man on the totem pole as far as everyone else is concerned.  So the only real rule from the course that I follow is rule #1- "the first rule of boat is don't get into an accident".  Doesn't matter if you were in the right and he caused it.

 

On 6/22/2024 at 5:59 AM, Susky River Rat said:

I’ve hit rocks and logs in the river going 25-30mph. I couldn’t imagine doing something at 60-70mph in a boat. 

 

My dad saw it a couple years ago when he was out (fishing with my best friend none the less).  The launched before first light to get ahead of a line of tournament boats.  As they were fishing you could hear when the boats kicked off and by the time the first one got a hundred yards or so from him the bassboat was doing a full 65+.  The lake was up from some rain and the log that the bassboat hit removed the lower unit entirely.  Dad said it sounded like a bomb went off.  The guys were alright and trolling motored back to the launch.

[Bankc]

I'm for it.  I know it won't make a difference in people's behavior.  But at least you can now say they should have known better. 

 

Though, I think the real problem isn't that people don't know the rules.  It's that people just don't seem to care about people that they don't know. 

[Susky River Rat]

@casts_by_fly after running a jet for a few years I’d be nervous as heck going back to a prop. 

[Johnbt]

Is there a gory movie about boating deaths similar to the 1959 movie about car wreck deaths we had to watch in driver's ed in the '60s? I don't know that it would do any good, but it might scare some sense into somebody. It was much talked about when we were 15.5.

 

It's 27 minutes and it's on Youtube. I won't post a link, but here's one of the comments.

 

"This was shown in my high school to all 16 year olds, as that was the age we were allowed to get our driver's license. During the showing, one girl passed out completely and had to be taken to the nurse's office, and many of us had nightmares for days. Fast forward 51 years, and I am still an accident-free driver. This film had a huge impact on me, and many others my age."

 

Signal 30 (1959)  US Auto Industry

[TOXIC]

In Virginia the requirement for a boating certificate was phased in by age over a few years.  I was old enough that I was in the last traunch of required.  As of right now everyone is required. 

 

All PWC operators age 14 and older and all operators (regardless of age) of motorboats with a 10 hp or greater engine need to take a boating safety course. Once you complete the course, the course completion certificate or card that is provided by the course provider is what is required to operate a vessel.

 

[J Francho]

I can't see any negative in any sort of training. 

[gim]

27 minutes ago, J Francho said:

I can't see any negative in any sort of training. 

 

Thanks for that response.  I'd mark this as the solution if I could.

[Kev-mo]

9 hours ago, Johnbt said:

Is there a gory movie about boating deaths similar to the 1959 movie about car wreck deaths we had to watch in driver's ed in the '60s? I don't know that it would do any good, but it might scare some sense into somebody. It was much talked about when we were 15.5.

 

It's 27 minutes and it's on Youtube. I won't post a link, but here's one of the comments.

 

"This was shown in my high school to all 16 year olds, as that was the age we were allowed to get our driver's license. During the showing, one girl passed out completely and had to be taken to the nurse's office, and many of us had nightmares for days. Fast forward 51 years, and I am still an accident-free driver. This film had a huge impact on me, and many others my age."

 

Signal 30 (1959)  US Auto Industry

Sounds similar to the safety video we watched in high school woodshop. It probably about the same length and gory as bleep!