The US Coast Guard Auxiliary, Mathews Flotilla 66, offers the following optional courses and seminars.
Being safe while enjoying your favorite outdoor activity just got more convenient.
Boat Virginia Boating Safety Course
Saturdays 8:30 am to 4:30pm, Free. A USCG Auxiliary certified instructor will lead the sessions, held at the Mathews Volunteer Rescue Squad classroom in Hudgins, Mathews County. This course is free to the public but advanced signup is required due to facility size limitations. A minimum of 5 participants is needed to conduct the course; the classroom maximum is 15.
Each participant will be notified when they are confirmed for each session – if registration exceeds the maximum of 15 participants, additional sessions may be added to accommodate. This course meets the requirement for VA Boating Safety Certification. Upon completion of the course & exam the participant will receive their safety certification card.
FREE CLASS
“Navigating the Chesapeake”
TBD on next class date
Email USCG Auxiliary Training Coordinator, Mike Moore, to sign up or with questions on this course or other class offerings: mikemoore.cgaux@gmail.com
“Navigating the Chesapeake” is a one-day chart navigation seminar will be held at the Cole Building in Deltaville, 9 am – 3 pm. This USCG Auxiliary Seminar intends to teach the traditional charting method of using a paper chart to plan cruises, to determine where you are, and to avoid problems.
The emphasis on using traditional tools on a paper chart should help create a physical image for each navigation task performed and increase appreciation for the calculations and functions being performed by electronics. This knowledge will greatly assist the navigator if the electronic tools are not available on the vessel.
The seminar material furnished by Flotilla 66 will be a Student Study Guide, emailed to the students to print a copy before the class.
Students are encouraged to procure a copy of NOAA Chart 12225, which is named “Chesapeake Bay from Wolf Trap to Smith Point” for use in the classroom, along with a set of charting tools similar to West Marine Model # 2689214. Students may purchase these items from West Marine or other sources, such as: www.oceangrafix.com or www.nauticalchartsonline.com. We will also have these items for you to borrow on class day if you are unable to source your own materials.
Our overall goal with this seminar is to build navigating confidence so you may enjoy the Chesapeake Bay, or any waterway, and get home safely. There is no final exam. There will be snacks and coffee provided, students should bring their own water and make their own arrangements for the one-hour lunch break at noon.
“Sailing Skills and Seamanship”
TBD, Cole Building in Deltaville
Email USCG Auxiliary Training Coordinator, Mike Moore, for questions on this course or other class offerings: mikemoore.cgaux@gmail.com
WHAT, WHERE, WHEN
Saturday 9am to 3pm, Free. The US Coast Guard Auxiliary, Mathews Flotilla 66, offers a survey class of “Sailing Skills and Seamanship”, at the Coast Guard Auxiliary training facility on Ball Park Road in Deltaville – upcoming session date is TBD. The presentations will go over sailing fundamentals such as nautical and sailing terminology, sail theory, the points of sail, sail shape and trim, tacking, gybing, and sailing a course. Running and standing rigging will be discussed as well as line handling and useful knots such as hitches and bends will be taught and practiced. Safety gear and practices will be discussed.
This is a survey course – no exam will be administered. For more information about the course, prospective students please contact Instructor Mike Moore, Flotilla 66 at: Mikemoore.cgaux@gmail.com
COURSE PRE-REQ
The only pre-requisite for the class is completion of a state or National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) safe boating course. This class will be limited to 15 students.
COURSE MATERIAL
There is no charge for the course but students must supply their own text books. Most modern sailing guides will cover these topics but the Coast Guard Auxiliary’s textbook “Sailing Skills and Seamanship” and the “Annapolis Book of Seamanship” closely follow the course presentation and are recommended.
Did You Know. All Personal Watercraft (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 is what is required to operate a vessel.
*PWCs include motorized crafts such as Jet Skis, Sea Doos & Wave Runners.
Have a courtesy Vessel Safety Check at your boat.
The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary has certified vessel examiners who will perform a free Vessel Safety Check (VSC) at your boat at a time of mutual convenience. There is no charge and no consequences if you don’t pass. The USCG Auxiliary goal is simply to help make boating as safe as possible for you, your family and your friends, through education. Personal pleasure craft only (non commercial craft).
Suddenly In Command (SIC)
Saturday 9am-noon, $20. Imagine you’re a passenger on a boat and the captain becomes incapacitated or falls overboard. Or perhaps you’ve just become a new, first-time boat owner. You are Suddenly in Command. This boating safety primer is designed for those not generally at the helm, and will provide basic boat safety to help you be better prepared for an emergency. The cost for this course covers all materials.
You will learn about your vessel, nomenclature, and operating principles such as starting the engine, basic boat handling, and your onboard equipment. We’ll review common boating mishaps and how to minimize them. This course is a must for family members in case something happens to the boat operator. Each participant will receive a course completion certificate and boat safety whistle.
Your Instructor: Meet Mary. Mary McCoig is the lead instructor for Suddenly In Command; she will be supported by other members of USCG Aux Flotilla 66. Mary is a certified crew member on Coast Guard boats and owns several boats of her own. She started boating recently so can relate well to the core concerns of class participants who are less familiar with the ins-and-outs of boating.
Boating Skills & Seamanship (BS&S)
Weeknights 6pm – 9pm, 12 weeks, $40. The U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary’s Boating Skills and Seamanship (BS&S) course is a comprehensive boater certificate course designed for both the experienced and novice boater. The course consists of eight core required two-hour lessons, plus five elective lessons providing up-to-date knowledge for handling boats under all conditions.
Cost covers course materials; classroom locations may vary (in Mathews County). Course Modules include:
- Which Boat Is For You? – Types of boats, hull design, uses of boats, materials for construction, types of engines, and buying a boat.
- Equipment For Your Boat – Requirements for your boat’s equipment, legal considerations, boating accidents, and substance abuse.
- Trailering Your Boat – Choosing a towing vehicle and trailer, balancing the load, the right ball and hitch, launching and retrieving a boat.
- Handling Your Boat – Fueling your boat, single vs. twin propellers, anchoring, trimming, leaving the dock, small boat safety, and weather.
- Highway Signs – Buoyage system, ATONS, light characteristics, chart symbols.
- Rules of the Road – Boating traffic, stand-on and give-way vessels, traffic separation, diver-down rules, anchoring, narrow channels, restricted visibility, small boat safety, and inland waters.
- Introduction To Navigation – Piloting tools, charts, plotting, and compass.
- Powering Your Boat – Types of engines, ignition systems, batteries, and troubleshooting.
- Lines and Knots – Line or rope, materials, measuring, knots, bends, hitches, splicing, securing lines.
- Weather and Boating – Wind and boating, waves, fog, sources of weather information.
- Your Boat’s Radio – Functions of radios, selecting you VHF radio, channels, radio procedure, and types of radio calls.
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