[sandydlc]

I'm not familiar with it but I did take the Mariner's online course for my 6 pack lic. Interestingly I see they use the same LI chart as Mariner did.

Is there a reason why you want to do it online vs classroom? Power Squadron has an excellent course.

How did you find that online course for your 6-pack license? I'm looking to get my license this year but in-person classes are difficult for me with my work schedule.

Thanks,
Sandy

 

[sandydlc]

I found them at a boat show (see link below). My issue was I traveled extensively for business and didn't want to take away time from my family on weekends. My reason for doing this was more of a confirmation of what I knew and fill the gaps of what I didn't. While I did pass the USCG test and got my 6 Pack, I had and have no intention of using it. Where we boat on the Great Lakes there is a lot of commercial traffic - from ferry's to barges being towed so being confident of what I was seeing, especially at night (different navigation lights) was a special bonus for me. Least useful were the drift and set calculations in the navigation section, since we don't have tides on the Great Lakes. I was impressed with their resource catalog that allowed you to go more in depth into specific topics. There course was more of a learning experience than memorizing answers to questions.

https://www.marinerslearningsystem.com

Thanks! This is the online class I had been looking into as well. I have no intention of using my captain’s license commercially either. My desire to get the license is to enhance my knowledge and increase our safety while cruising to destinations that are further than we’ve traveled in the past. We have cruising grounds in the PNW and Canada that require a strong knowledge of tides, currents and rapids. Also as a woman it gets a little annoying when the assumption is always made that I’m little more than the chief cook and bottle washer on it’s my own boat.

There a class in Seattle that starts on March 25th and runs 3 nights a week for 6 weeks I believe. That would be a tough schedule to follow but I’m looking into it.

Thanks!
Sandy

 

[sandydlc]

I took both the OUPV (6-pack) and Masters Courses in the late 80's-early 90's at Sea School in Panama City FL. My take away is that anything (class room setting or online) you do to learn more about navigating, rules of the road, safety at sea, etc. just better prepares you for what you may run into on the water.

The instructor at the front of the class room can make the course fun and rewarding, or as dull as counting rocks, and, the experience the instructor brings with him and his ability to share and explain things has a huge effect on what you learn and the overall value of the course to you.

Sea School does administer the test as kind of a final exam....and, if you listen and do the work, you aren't going to fail the test.

The 2 courses I took were invaluable and I went on to run some boats for hire (as a fill in for an absent charter captain and to deliver some boats with paying passengers onboard. However, I never got into this to make money. I did it for the experience and the knowledge since we boat in a very complex and high risk area full of every imaginable type of boat from 85' Air Force Drone chase boats going 40 mph (and run by excellent and careful boat handlers), all types of Navy boats (who make up rather own rules, because they think they can!), USCG (great guys who know and understand the rules of the road), DEA & ICE, who go anywhere and everywhere at WOT because they think every trip including going to lunch is a pursuit), Commercial operators, (who take their 1/2 of the channel out of the middle!) , tour boat operators (who only care about getting back to the dock in time for the next trip - to heck with wakes and the rules of the road!) and Bubba in his bass or can-boat who has absolutely no clue what the rules of the road are or mean.

After 911, the difficulty and costs in renewing a license made me question the need for my boating activities. Add to it the concept of proportional liability where a licensed captain can be held liable for an accident when he did nothing wrong "because he should have known better", so I let my licenses lapse and just didn't renew them after about 2005-6. I do the same stuff I always have, but I never charge for my time or for any passenger on the boat and just consider any day on the water in somebody else boat burning OPF (other people's fuel) a good day.

Hi Frank!

So for someone who is just wanting to expand their knowledge and experience but does not intend to use a license as a means of increasing your income, is the notion of "proportional liability" enough of a deterrent to *not* get one's captain's license?

And is it awful that part of my reason for wanting my captain's license is that I'm tired of being referred to as the (very often derogatory) "Admiral"?

Thank you!

Sandy

 

[sandydlc]

I don't know why that upsets you Sandy. An Admiral always outranks the Captain.
https://www.federalpay.org/military/navy/ranks

Oh I know and I don't want to start a whole thing but trust me when I say that most of the time I've heard women referred to as "the Admiral" it hasn't been because she's considered to be knowledgeable, respected and admired. It's generally used to describe a women who might be trying to exert some sort of influence or control in situations while on a boat.

Between my husband and myself I'm the one who has far more interest and knowledge about the mechanical aspects related to our boat. I'm the one who does the research and troubleshooting when we have issues related to most things on board. I'm the one who rolls up my sleeves, put my hair in a ponytail and jumps into the engine room when we have an emergency. When we're in a group of men and someone who doesn't know us starts asking about something mechanical related to our boat, 99% of the time they speak to my husband as if I wasn't even there. Thankfully he's very proud of me and always points in my direction and says, "You'd better ask my wife!".

So yeah, please don't call me the Admiral! On our boat, we're both Captains.

Sandy

 

[sandydlc]

As I said in a previous post, I think anything you do to broaden your knowledge boating, laws, rules, procedures, etc. just makes you a better and safer boater. You can take a course.......and I favor real class room sources taught by experienced instructors over online courses simply because there is a guy in the front of the room to whom you can ask questions. It is interesting how many potential conflicts in the rules of the road there are until you understand the big picture and grasp the rules in total.

You can certainly do the course work and even sit for the test, just don't submit the application for license to the USCG.

The other thing to consider is a state safe boating course. For example, Florida has (or had at one time) an excellent correspondence course that qualified you for t heir in-state licensing program.

Finally, this topic is about the USCG captains course...it isn't about being a competent captain on the water. There is no substitute for time on the water in complex boating areas or with another more experienced Captain. For example, I have been fortunate to have spent a good number of days on the water with Capt. Rusty Higgins. I know he gets tired of my "What if?" questions, but every time I am with him I see something I never seen before or am presented with a situation I've never encountered on the NW Gulf Coast.......and I've been running boats in coastal areas for 35 years.

Thank you Frank, this is really helpful. I have taken (and passed) the Washington State boating course several years ago. We've been boaters since about 2000 and I agree with what you say in regards to learning something new every time we're on the water.

I will probably do the online course and then follow up with in-class sessions in the fall if I can find a class that doesn't conflict with my work schedule. I've also found that belonging to a yacht club has also been invaluable for learning from others with more experience than us.

This discussion has been great!

Thanks,
Sandy