Division 7 - District 7 

Boating Skills and Seamanship (BS&S)

A multi-week, comprehensive safe boating program

Next date:
Time:
Where:

Fee: $50 (and only $45 for each additional family member!)
Limited to 12 people - register early - pre-registration is required.

Register online
or contact our Public Education Officer at 1-800-704-4216.

The U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary's Boating Skills and Seamanship (BS&S) program is a very comprehensive set of classroom instruction taught by volunteers who are experienced boaters. It's designed for both the experienced and the novice boater. Open to the public — teens too! Bring the family. Good for personal watercraft (jet ski) users, fishermen, cruising vacationers, sailing boat enthusiasts, etc.

Contact our Public Education Officer at 1-800-704-4216.

Note: If you do not live in or near Brandon, Florida,
locate the courses nearest you anywhere in the US
or in District 7 (FL, SC, GA, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands)

Bonus:
Many insurance companies will offer discounts on boat insurance to individuals who successfully complete this course.

Boaters who successfully complete the course and exam are awarded certificates and are eligible to receive state-recognized Safe Boating ID cards.

Topics include:

• WHICH BOAT IS FOR YOU? -- boater's language; types of boats; outboard motors and sterndrives; hull design; uses of boats; other power plants; materials for constructing boats; your intended use; the Coast Guard Customer Infoline; marine surveyors; buying a boat.
• EQUIPMENT FOR YOUR BOAT -- requirements for your boat; your boat's equipment; legal considerations; substance abuse; boating accident reports; Courtesy Marine Examinations.
• TRAILERING YOUR BOAT -- legal considerations; practical considerations; the towing vehicle; balancing the load; handling your trailer; pre-departure checks; preparing to launch; launching; retrieving; storing your boat and trailer; theft prevention; Zebra mussels; float plan.
• HANDLING YOUR BOAT -- leave with a full tank; fueling your boat; your boat's propellor; cars and boats; twin screws; jet drives; loading your boat; getting started; leaving a pier; "man" overboard; docking; mooring to a permanent anchor; anchoring; towing a skier; heavy weather; small boat safety.
• YOUR "HIGHWAY" SIGNS -- protection of ATONs; buoyage systems; waterway marks; how waterways are marked; light characteristics; chart symbols; light structures; lights on bridges; electronic aids to navigation; a word to the wise; navigation publications.
• THE RULES YOU MUST FOLLOW -- two sets of rules; to whom do the rules apply; what is a vessel; the general responsibility rule; general considerations; conduct in narrow channels; traffic separation schemes; vessel traffic services; stand-on or give-way; rules for special vessels; risk of collision; bend signals; restricted visibility; vessel lights and shapes; vessels at anchor; diving operations; distress signals; drawbridge signals; penalties.
• THE REST OF OUR STORY -- small boat safety; personal watercraft; hypothermia; motorboats and sailboats; carbon monoxide poisoning; float plan; U.S. Coast Guard District Offices; instructions for using a course plotter; metric conversion system.
• INTRODUCTION TO NAVIGATION -- piloting tools; maps and charts; chart features; your chart's general information block; other charted information; your magnetic compass; position on the earth's surface; locating a point on a chart; distance on the earth's surface; measuring distance; course plotting; sources of compass error; correcting a compass reading; positioning; speed-time-distance; dead reckoning; practice your art.
• LINES AND KNOTS FOR YOUR BOAT -- line or rope; rope materials; kinds of rope; measuring rope; selecting your ropes; care of rope; making up line; knots, bends, and hitches; splices; securing lines; dipping the eye.

Contact our Public Education Officer at 1-800-704-4216.

OR:
Find this and other instructive programs at another flotilla in the Tampa Bay area.