Safety Training Compulsion

Peppermint

New member
Joined
11 Oct 2002
Messages
2,919
Location
Home in Chilterns, Boat in Southampton, Another bo
Visit site
On my recent Sea Survival Course there where few voulenteers, most where pressed men.

Most where intent on taking part in the Fastnet Race. It's compulsory for, I think a percentage of, crew members to take such a course.

The bulk of the remainder were either getting commercial endorsements or instructors qualifications. Again it's a must have.

Two guys are rowing the Atlantic in one of Chay's adventures. They had to do it.

Three of our number, farther and two grown sons, needed the qualification to run their Spanish jet ski business. They where as mystified as the rest of us as to where you keep your liferaft on a jet ski but the course gets them a tick in the right box.

So is compulsory training sneeking closer as third party organizations demand qualification for you to take part in their activities?

<hr width=100% size=1>
 

Birdseye

Well-known member
Joined
9 Mar 2003
Messages
28,383
Location
s e wales
Visit site
The RYA are unrealistic - compulsory training and licensing are inevitable. The old argument of "if it works, dont fix it" applied until the arrival of the jet ski and the recent sharp increase in powerboat sales. Now we have large numbers on the water with no real nautical skills and an ignorance of the colregs etc.

Mind you, what will trigger the introduction of compulsion will be empire building by organisations such as the MCA and the civil service view that the population need to be organised and controlled. Cant leave Joe Public to do what he wants ! Where will that lead?



<hr width=100% size=1>
 

ccscott49

Active member
Joined
7 Sep 2001
Messages
18,583
Visit site
I have done this course, or rather a much longer (5 Day) course for offshore workers, eight times now and the bloody RYA will not recognise it!! Form a commercial endorsement for yachtmaster, it makes me a little pissed off, that I would have to go and do this mickey mouse RYA survival course!

<hr width=100% size=1>
 

Mirelle

N/A
Joined
30 Nov 2002
Messages
4,531
Visit site
I do trust the MCA

when they say that they have no plans to regulate yachts.

They are a small, understaffed, hopelessly underfunded, department, and they simply could not take it on. They have had enough trouble coping with the recent small increase in the number of merchant ships under the British flag due to the tonnage tax.

I was at a meeting when Ted Osborn of the CA pressed them very hard on this and I found their reply quite convincing.

<hr width=100% size=1>
 

Sybarite

Well-known member
Joined
7 Dec 2002
Messages
27,681
Location
France
Visit site
If licensing is to become inevitable - which I hope for your sakes is not the case - then the French notion of requiring a licence for any power driven vessel over 10hp is not a bad idea. Where sail is the principal means (interpreted loosely) of propulsion no licence is required irrespective of hp unless the boat is more than 25 tonnes.

This would then cover those boaters/drivers(?) who, you claim, are not sufficiently up in colregs.

John

<hr width=100% size=1>
 

tome

New member
Joined
28 Mar 2002
Messages
8,201
Location
kprick
www.google.co.uk
You must be an expert by now at underwater escape after 8 attempts. I always get trapped inside the burbling porky panicker and have to patiently hold my breath until the divers remove him. I notice it's getting easier over the years - don't have to struggle to remove windows upside down underwater any more. Firefighting is excellent training.

Just realised mine expired March. Bugger! This will be 5th time for me.

I did my MN sea survival course some years ago (voluntarily and at own expense) so can get my commercial endorsement if I ever need it. No experience of RYA, but MN was thorough and very good.

<hr width=100% size=1>
 

Peppermint

New member
Joined
11 Oct 2002
Messages
2,919
Location
Home in Chilterns, Boat in Southampton, Another bo
Visit site
Re: They won\'t do it though

It'll be contracted out to a number crunching organization. It's bound to be a complete shambles but it'll generate so much cash how can they resist.

I don't doubt that your instinct is correct and that the MCA contacts you have are being truthful but change is the driving force behind New Labour and self funding change, no matter how crass, is what they do. Of course it'll be found out later that it cost the tax payers millions but it'll be to late then.

I think that with organizations like RORC, Combined Clubs and commercial bodies insisting on bit's of paper for everything that it only needs the insurers to get involved and wham there you are with most of the sailors regulated.

<hr width=100% size=1><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by Peppermint on 24/06/2003 13:41 (server time).</FONT></P>
 
Top