Interesting Article that included “Ten Lessons Learned”
Jul 24, 2010
Folks,
I read an interesting article in the August 2010 “Yachting” magazine. The article was called “Enrolling in the School of Hard Knocks – Lessons learned aboard a ship of fools” by George Sass, Sr.
The article included the following “Ten Lessons Learned” and I thought it was worth re-posting here.
- Never go offshore with strangers unless you can verify ahead of time that at least some of them have offshore experience.
- Don’t be afraid to question the captain or owner about the safety gear aboard his/her ship.
- Ask the captain or owner about key maintenance issues, such as engine service, through-hull inspections, rigging inspections, etc.
- Get the most accurate, up-to-date weather forecast possible and know how to interpret the data.
- Be prepared by knowing how to run the boat yourself, if necessary.
- Familiarize yourself with your route by studying the charts ahead of time.
- Learn the basic functions of the ship’s navigation and communications equipment before you leave the dock.
- Carry a personal back-up GPS and laptop loaded with appropriate charts capable of running on self-contained batteries.
- Go through a complete safety checklist with the owner and other crew members including MOB procedures, location of all through-hull fittings, emergency bilge pump systems, life jacket access, emergency communications systems (including flare kits), abandon-ship procedure, first-aid kit inspection, fire extinguisher locations, engine room firefighting systems, location and working status of flashlights, and more.
- Do not add or make any last minute changes to the ship’s systems or electronics without a thorough evaluation and testing of this new gear.
I feel the above advice is very useful and could help prevent unnecessary disasters aboard your vessel.
Sincerely,
Steve Charlebois
