MIKE WHITEHEAD -- The Harbor Column

Ahoy.

You never know when something is going to happen on a boat. That’s

why, as a professional captain, I train and prepare for the unexpected on

a regular basis.

Just last week, I pulled out of a slip aboard an Azimuth 58, and a few

minutes later I heard a loud thud. My first thought was that my first

officer, Tim West, had fallen while securing the fenders and dock lines.

Then, at the same time that I looked and saw my fellow crew member

still working, yet puzzled from the sound, the boat started to veer

radically off course in the Back Bay, where the depths are shallow. I

thought maybe a dock line had fallen into the water, wrapping the

starboard prop.

I still had throttle but no thrust from the prop. Since we were very

close to the dock, I backed the boat into its slip on one engine, which

most boaters know is difficult. A few tries and finally we made it into

the slip, where we could walk the boat back and see what happened to the

starboard side.

Tim decided to jump in the water to check the prop for anything

wrapped while I went into the engine room to check the propeller shaft.

Well, Tim came up with nothing wrapped, even though I found that the

shaft had separated from the transmission: The loud thud was the shaft

hitting the hull. So off to Balboa Boat Yard we went to have the boat

hauled and repaired.

Summer is approaching fast. Have you prepared for the unexpected?

When I ask boaters, in casual conversation, if they have reviewed

emergency procedures recently, their typical response is: “I have been

boating for 10 years and do not need to worry about that.”

That brings numerous questions to my mind. Did you ever take a class

in the beginning of your boating days? How many times in a year do you

get underway?

You can easily tell a person’s skill level by first just looking at

the condition of the boat and then the docking. If you see the skipper

docking at a high rate of speed with no dock lines ready and no fenders

down while the guests are sticking their legs and arms out to fend it

off, then that is a good indicator that person needs help. How many times

do you see a boat dock and then put the fenders down? However, if the

boat approaches with lines and fenders in place, guests positioned, at a

slow-calculated approach into the dock, then that is a proficient

skipper.

And even if the skipper is experienced, what about the crew or guests

(remember the term “passenger” is a technical term referring to charter

boat operations) aboard the boat? If the skipper should fall overboard or

become ill, could one of the guests stop the boat or know how to radio

for help?

Take the time before getting underway each trip to remind all guests

of the safety procedures, where the safety equipment is stowed, and show

someone the operating controls on that vessel. Follow a few easy steps in

the beginning, and the pleasures of boating become more enjoyable because

the calamity of the sea has been lessened and “Goofy Goes Sailing” can be

avoided. I hope to see you on the water with a smile on your face.

Safe Voyages.

* MIKE WHITEHEAD is the Pilot’s boating and harbor columnist. Send him

your harbor and marine-related thoughts and story suggestions via e-mail

to o7 [email protected] or o7 www.BoathouseTV.comf7 .