By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
We have had several recent successful rescues in which boats sank or capsized. It is only because the persons aboard were able to get off a distress signal that they were saved. This is the time of year we boaters use to get ready for the next boating season rather than

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
Last week we discussed the Aids to Navigation (ATONs) that are part of the Lateral System, which marks the safe channel of navigable waterways. This week the discussion will be about the rest of the ATONs, also known as “Aids to Navigation with No Lateral Significance.” First

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
As a recreational boater, if you have operated your boat along the shore, in the ship channel, or within the Intracoastal Waterway, you have encountered a myriad of floating buoys and fixed structures with various colors, shapes and signs. You may know that these objects in and

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
One of the cutter captains I have worked with has had to do twice what most captains never have to do once in their Coast Guard careers: he had to hit the Collision Alarm and announce over the speaker system to the crew to “Brace for Collision.” His cutter was rammed

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
I almost couldn’t get my boat out of the water the other day. Low tide and high wind combined to make the ramp where I launched very short. Oh, I had a backup plan, which involved calling my wife on my cell phone and having her come to the ramp where I launched and driving my truck

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
Before we get to the main event, here is an important public service announcement: Effective April 20, 2022, you must make sure that you have the new classification of fire extinguisher aboard. The Underwriters Laboratory (UL) label must say “Marine Type –

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
When I bought my first kayak, it was with the intention of using it as a form of exercise as well as a way to enjoy the water. I had a pontoon boat that was a fishing model, and that is what I used when I wanted to go fishing. However, I found that most of the people I began

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla

Vessel Safety Check Time Again
The US Coast Guard Vessel Safety Check (VSC) is an annual program. If your boat passes a VSC, we award a VSC decal that is attached to the port side of your boat. The decal has a year number on it and is a

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
Congratulations if you are the new owner of a kayak. You most likely have many questions, and I would like to take the time in this column to answer as many as possible. This column will explain the registration requirements (if any), the required equipment, and

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
An inherently dangerous activity is one whose nature presents a risk of grave injury or death without the use of and sometimes despite the use of special skill and care. By just thinking for a second we can all come up with several inherently dangerous activities. The first one

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
If you have ever traveled a busy waterway such as the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW), then you have seen the results of crossing another boat’s wake at the wrong angle, the wrong speed, or too close to the other boat. Perhaps you have done one of these things

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
One way in which people gauge the risk of what they are doing is to weigh the probability of an event happening against the severity of injury or death should the event occur and use that analysis to decide whether or not the risk is acceptable. Humans do this all

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
“The Twelve Gifts of Christmas” is a song parody written and sung by Allan Sherman in 1963. It is based on the classic Christmas song “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” and I always substituted Sherman’s gifts when singing the original classic, but under my breath,

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
When trying to decide what type of boat to purchase, one of the most important discussions should be about the hull shape that is best suited for the type of boating you will do. This column will discuss the pros and cons of the most common hull types used for

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
In 1838 the United States passed an act requiring steamboats running between sunset and sunrise to carry one or more signal lights. Color and visibility were not specified. In 1846 the United Kingdom passed legislation enabling the Lord High Admiral to publish regulations

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
Most recreational powerboats have what is called a planing hull. The other major type of hull is called a displacement hull. Ships have displacement hulls. Boats with planing hulls start out in the displacement mode, but as speed reaches a critical point the boat will rise up over its

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
Duck soup is slang for an easily accomplished task or assignment. The term is over 100 years old, but it is still applicable today. For this column it has a double meaning, as this column is aimed towards duck hunters in particular. The assigned task is to come back home

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
The master or person in charge of a vessel is obligated by law to provide assistance that can be safely provided to any individual in danger at sea (46 USC 2304). The type of assistance is greatly dependent on the ability of the assisting vessel’s master to provide assistance without

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
Character is defined as a trait, quality or high moral code. Good character can be developed. Apt is defined as quick, prompt, ready, and being able to respond without delay. In order to be a good boater, you must develop good boating character, which I call aptability. Aptability is not

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
We lost three wade fishermen this past week in our area. They all had two things in common: they were wearing waders and they were not wearing life jackets. You might not think that wade fishing would be a topic for a Recreational Boating Safety article, but in our area

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
Although nearly three-fourths of the earth’s surface is covered with water, nearly all of that water is either permanently frozen or salty, leaving only one percent fit for human consumption. This concept was put forth best in a line from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner:

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
The Texas coastline is 367 miles long. Many people think that the coastline is one long beach, but in reality it is broken up by many bays, channels, and rivers, some of which are navigable and some are not. As for the navigable channels, some are natural and some are

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
Last week we talked about how you could become a well-trained passenger. All boat owners can use some help now and then from their passengers, especially when docking or casting off from the dock. This column will give you some line handling knowledge.

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
This column is about Recreational Boating Safety, and some people may think that the target audience is boat owners. Well, it is, but there is another target audience: the recreational boat passenger. You do not have to be a boat owner to enjoy recreational boating. Being

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
When you look at the surface of the water, especially the waters of the Houston Ship Channel and the different associated bays, unless you are very experienced in interpreting wave patterns you can’t tell how deep the water is in a particular location without using

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
As we all know, the best place to launch your boat is at a good ramp. However, we know from experience that some boats get launched unintentionally, and that is never a good thing. Most of the time this problem occurs due to improperly securing the boat on the trailer. This column will

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
Most people have heard the terms “shipshape” and “seaworthy,” but there are obviously many boaters who do not understand the concepts of those terms. Sometimes when we go to the rescue of a recreational boat that is taking on water and in danger of sinking or just disabled and

By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
We had our 7th Annual Bolivar Rig Run Sailing Regatta on Bolivar Peninsula this weekend. Just before the race the wind speed was zero mph. We got lucky and a slight (4 mph) south wind developed. That’s the good news. The bad news is that the 35 catamarans in the race had to launch