BoatUS Rolls Out On-Water Training Program

After completing a successful pilot program in 2018, the BoatUS Foundation for Boating Safety and Clean Water and several partners are launching the BoatUS Foundation On-Water Training Program. It offers a range of up to five courses at 40 locations across the country held in conjunction with local boat shows or as stand-alone weekend events at clubs, marinas and professional on-water training facilities.

“Course One: Introduction to Powerboating” and “Women Making Waves,” each three hours long and taught aboard 20- to 26-foot single-engine powerboats, are offered at $149 and may include boat show admission. Both introductory and women’s courses offer the same curriculum. To continue the curriculum, there’s also “Course Two: Precision Docking and Boat Handling”, “Course Three: Open-Water Boat Handling”, and “Course Four: Open-Water Advanced Maneuvering.”

All five courses offer the opportunity to learn centering the wheel, shifting, steering and throttle control, stopping, station holding, understanding the “weathervane” effect and how to use “the boater’s eye” technique to safely navigate. Class sizes are limited to four students per vessel, ensuring each student gets sufficient time at the helm under a U.S. Coast Guard-licensed captain.

The first locations to announce hosting the training program in 2019 include the Miami International Boat Show, February 14 to18, Miami, Florida; Wharf Boat & Yacht Show, March 29 to 31, Orange Beach, Alabama; In-Command Seamanship Training, April 6 to 7, Wickford, Rhode Island; Bay Bridge Boat Show, April 12 to14, Stevensville, Maryland; Holiday Harbor Marina, April 13 to 14, Acworth, Georgia; and Fleet Boat Club, June 8, Rochester, New York. The remaining slate of courses will be rolled out throughout the year.

Curriculum was created by the National Safe Boating Council and approved by the National Association of Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA).

Key partners, who provide training vessels and instructor training include Freedom Boat Club, National Marine Manufacturers Association, Annapolis Boat Shows, Annapolis School of Seamanship, In-Command Seamanship Training, Fleet Boat Club, Holiday Harbor Marina and Resort, Coastal Marine Management, and West Marine.

For more information visit BoatUS.org/On-Water. Organizations interested in hosting training should send an email to OnWater@BoatUS.com.