You're Being Boarded

American motorboat owners can be counted in hundreds of thousands and the number is growing yearly all up and down our great system of inland waterways and in countless coves and harbors of our vast coastal areas the boating season brings small craft of many types some skippers like they're floating fast a mile a minute plus with frills to match others seek only a place and outing with their families or friends but it all adds up to a mounting toll of accidents many serious Sun tragic nearly all avoidable to make this great in growing sport safer Congress has passed certain laws and charged the Coast Guard with their enforcement regulations based on these laws are published in a pamphlet known as the motorboat regulations you can obtain copies from any Coast Guard district office the motor boat regulations provide certain minimums of safety for a small craft a motor boat under these regulations includes any vessel propelled by machinery and not more than 65 feet in length except tugboats and tow boats propelled by steam unless documented by the custom motor boats equipped with permanently installed motors must be numbered except public vessels and motor lifeboats on inspected vessels since the minimums of safety equipment required on your boat are governed by its size the regulations divide motor boats into four classes class a less than 16 feet in length class 1 16 feet or over and less than 26 feet class 2 26 feet are over and less than 40 feet last 340 feet are over and not more than 65 feet if your vote is over 16 feet in length equipped with a detachable motor it must be numbered only the coastguard can assign numbers to motor volts here's a new owner making application for a cent the procedure is simple since a certificate of award of number is not issued as a license or permit but rather for purposes of identification no physical or mental examination is required all it's needed is a bill of sale or other acceptable evidence of ownership satisfied on this score the clerk completes the certificate iving in name of both its dimensions engine number name and address of owner builder etc they certificate then goes to the officer in charge of the motor boat registration unit and when he has checked it against the papers his signature makes it valid that's all there is to getting a set of numbers as the owner accepts the numbers and his certificate he must also accept the responsibility that goes with them of course there's plenty of satisfaction well now this skipper can get out and enjoy his book he assures the clerk his motto will be safety first this is the new skippers boat a class to the law requires that his certificate be kept on board at all times and that the awarded number be painted on or attached to each ball in block characters of good proportion not less than 3 inches in height proper numbering is only one of the legal requirements for your fall the regulations cover them in detail and the motörboat Act which they implement is summarized in the pilot rules Bible of all good boatman in the interest of public safety the cost drive trains and sends out boarding parties to see that boat owners and operators obey the law in general motor boats bearing this decal are not boarded since it is evidence that they have been okayed by courtesy examiner's of the Coast Guard Auxiliary as motor boats are liable for required equipment only when underway they are usually boarded either during operation or when they have just returned from a run if you own a non commercial boat you need not be around when it is examined you can even let your friends take it out alone but you are responsible for its equipment and failure to meet the minimum requirements can bring severe penalties what the Coast Guard wants however is not revenues from violations but dividends from safety let's see how this new skipper will make out courtesy is an unfailing rule of boarding officers or not at the expense of duty all violations no matter how minor must be reported before proceeding with the general examination the certificate of award of number must be checked boarding officer will verify that the certificate is made out in the name of the present owner and that it's number corresponds with the one on the powers this examiner and his assistant intent on doing a good job are taking no chances yes the number checks now offer a look at the skipper's equipment life preservers are examined with great care the regulations state that you must have one of approved type for each person on board and both with detachable motors aren't exempt from this rule the court jacket such as those being examined here is legal for all classes of motor boats if in good condition but when the canvas cover is old and rotten it's obviously more apt to take than save a life so the examiner rightly rejects it and the owner will have to get a new one this type the cork ring boy is also legal for all classes of motor boats if in good condition the buoyant cushion illegal for all except class three boats makes a better pillow than a life preserver when examining the engine compartments of motor boats boarding officers give particular attention to flame arresters the regulations provide that there be one such approved device on each carburetor accumulations of gases in bilges can lead only to trouble your engine and fuel tank compartments therefore must have at least two ventilators baited with coals or their equivalent for removing these dangerous gases what can happen when that regulation is violated well take this skipper for instance he planned a pleasant little fishing trip with his friends topside all was in order and the boat handling smoothly but below where trouble usually starts things were far from right that leaking fuel line had filled the bills with gasoline vapor an explosive so powerful that a mere half-pint of it is equal to 5 pounds of dynamite much more than enough to blow up their boat when the mixture rates the flashpoint one more spark was enough to touch it off and the skipper complied with the minimum safety requirements for his boat this would not have happened next to an explosion fire is the worst hazard on your boat and the best insurance against it is adequate extinguisher protection such as the fixed carbon dioxide system the equipment must be properly installed and maintained boarding officers are required to verify that it is of approved type and capacity and that its controls are readily accessible for quick use in case of emergency motorboats of the two larger classes having this system must also carry portable fire extinguishers of approved type and capacity one for those of class two two for those of class three when not equipped with a co2 system boats of class one such as this and also a boats of class aid must have on board one portable fire extinguisher boats of class two two and boats of class three free boarding officers must ascertain that all such extinguishers are of approved type and capacity and in good working order the laws and regulations prescribed that motorboats of classes two and three shall carry sidelights red to port and green to starboard join from right ahead to two points of a speech beef they shall carry a white foul light on or near the stem showing through ten points on either side and are double that of a port or starboard light more devout subclasses 2 and 3 shall also carry a white Stern life higher than the bow light and showing all around the horizon if a light is obscured it constitutes a violation since it is not fully visible a dinghy is a good thing to have on board though not required equipment but our skipper must either move it or mount his Stern light on a higher staff for motor votes of classes a and one the laws and regulations prescribed a simpler arrangement of running lights all you need is a white Stern light and the combination pork and starboard light on the bow the angles of visibility are the same as for the larger classes motor boats of class two must have on board a hand or a power operated sound producing device capable of giving a blast of two seconds or more joy and audible at least one mile that one meets the test what our skipper is playing safe or class one votes this much less noisy little item will do class a boats don't need any only power operated sound producing devices are legal for class three votes they must be at least as efficient as those on class two votes motor votes of classes two and three must have on board a bell that will sound a full round tone now let's consider motor boats carrying passengers for hire to operate such craft a motor boat operators licence is required this commercial boat owner is applying for one to the office of marine licenses his first step is to present character letters to the license clerk when these have been examined and found to be in good order the clerk gives him a sheet of instructions and a license application to fill out citizenship military service employment record service on vessels these are among the questions to be answered by the applicant when the form is completed the clerk checks it for omissions or evasions the applicant then goes before the officer-in-charge who takes his own that the statements he has made are correct in every detail the clerk now sends the applicant for a physical examination his body must be south since the lives of his passengers may depend upon it his eyesight must be keen his color sense normal having passed his physical the applicant is taken before the license examiner and questioned on his ability to operate a commercial motor boat these questions are brief but to the point they brought the applicants knowledge of the motörboat regulations the pilot rules seamanship engine maintenance firefighting life-saving first-aid and related subjects this applicant has the right answers and is of good character so his papers are stamped approved and he's issued a license to operate motor boats carrying passengers for hire this license the examiner informs him is valid for a term of five years but can be suspended or revoked or negligence or inattention to beauty or for violating the motörboat regulations that won't happen to him this skipper is sure he's in business now and he's going to play it safe this is the skipper's book a class-3 type 12 neck tonnes to be exact and 42 feet in length it's almost as near as his license which he proudly posts on the cabin bulkhead from now on it's up to him the blue albatross has been out with a fishing party and is about to dock since reporting officers have observed tear under way the skipper will be liable for her required equipment instead of numbers her name is on the bounce that's because commercial motor boats of five net tons or more are not numbered but documented by the collector of customs however they must have on board all equipment prescribed by the motor boat act and regulations all in good working order the boarding officers note that her name and hailing port are properly displayed permission to board is requested courteously as always and granted for a skipper with full legal equipment has nothing to feel when examining documented vessels warding officers first ask for the owners marine document they are required to verify that it is made out in the name of the present owner and hasn't expired it's official number must be carved on the main beam the license too is carefully checked the name on it must be that if the present operator and it's date must be within five years of the date of issue engine compartments are given a thorough going-over to see that flame arresters are of approved type properly installed to see that vibration hasn't shaken anything loose and the villages are efficiently ventilated the laws and regulations require commercial craft like pleasure votes to have enough life preservers for all persons on board they must be of approved type properly stamped and dated it is mandatory that motor boats carrying passengers for hire have on board in addition to one preserver per person an added number is suitable for children at least 10% of the total this skipper has them stowed on the portside like an a class 3 boat this one must carry three fire extinguishers here we see two of the 1 quart carbon Tet type the examiner suspects this one is defective mm-hmm he's right and extinguisher isn't legal equipment unless it works properly so it looks as if our skippers got to get tagged with a violation but no or he has this big carbon dioxide extinguisher of approved time allowed to count for two smaller ones on class three volts so there's no violation motorboats carrying passengers for hire must show the same lights as pleasure craft of the same classes and boarding officers are required to examine them with particular care these party boats often leave their docks before bog returned after sunset and upon the proper functioning of their lights may depend the safety of all onboard whistles are required on such boats they must be of the right type well secured and able to produce the proper blasts Apparel must be carried as on pleasure craft of classes two and three and is tested for effective talk that completes the examination the blue albatross has on board the required equipment all in good order also some important optional items such as a compass essential for accurate navigation and a radio fall to maintain contact with ships and Shore points and in emergencies to call the Coast Guard party fishing would be much safer and there will be far fewer rescue calls if all commercial boats were as well equipped as this one but many of them and many pleasure craft are not so to make this great in growing sport safer for American motor boat owners large numbers of boats must be examined each year the coastguard asks owners and operators to bear in mind that the main object of the boarding program is not to exact penalties for violations but to promote safety on the water