Our “America’s Boating Course” class (ABC) ended on March 20 with 14 students taking and passing the final exam. Eight of the students were pleased and interested enough to become members of our squadron. For those that want to get their California Boating Card, they can now go online to the California Department of Waterways to apply for their Card. It’s a simple process that requires the submittal of $10 and a copy of the certificate of completion they received from us.
All 14 students opted to take two more weeks of lessons covering the supplemental material in the ABC textbook on navigation and charting. While this material is not required to obtain a certificate of completion from us or to obtain the California Boating Card, it provides a very good grounding in the use of charts and navigation techniques while serving as an excellent introduction to our more intensive Piloting class. (National is developing a replacement for Piloting called “Marine Navigation” that is supposed to be available in 2019.)
Steve Young will be teaching our Marine Electrical Systems course on Tuesdays from April 24 to June 19. Next up is Steve York who will be teaching the Partner in Command seminar during Boating Safety Week on Saturday May 19 from 9AM to 12PM. Partner in Command covers some basic boating techniques that are useful for crew to know in general and especially if called upon to operate a boat if the captain is unable to do so. We’re looking to schedule a Piloting class with John Profant during the summer, after the Marine Electrical Systems course finishes up. Following this we will be offering an Engine Maintenance course from September 11 to November 20 taught by Pete Seagoe. And finally, we will be scheduling another ABC class for the fall time period.
All in all our education staff is keeping pretty busy – If you have any questions or suggestions feel free to contact me at rdciolino@cox.net or 805-682-4543. Sail safely!