Please select your home edition
Edition
RS Sailing 2021 - LEADERBOARD

This year, a National Safe Boating Week like no other

by Scott Croft 14 May 2020 07:52 PDT May 16-22, 2020

National Safe Boating Week, which begins this Saturday, May 16, and runs through Friday, May 22, is the traditional early boating season reminder to help recreational boaters embrace safety all season long. However, the important National Safe Boating week recommendation urging life jacket wear is now joined by an equally important boating safety message — how to stay safe during the time of COVID-19.

"While we're learning new things about the virus almost every day, we don't anticipate additional safety challenges on the water this year," said BoatUS Foundation for Boating Safety and Clean Water President Chris Edmonston. "We have a responsibility to look out for all of us sharing a launch ramp, marina or boat club dock as well as those assigned to keep us safe on the water or entrusted with the care and maintenance of our boats."

The BoatUS Foundation offers two National Safe Boating Week tips:

1. Do everything you can to social distance: Boats should maintain a 50-foot separation on the water and not raft up; wash your hands and/or use sanitizer frequently; and pack all essentials. Additional tips can be found at the National Safe Boating Council’s CDC-based Tips for Navigating Social Distancing + Boating. The Marine Retailers Association of Americas offers boat storage facilities such as marinas, dealers or boat clubs a downloadable Communicate Safe Boating to Your Customers with tips for arriving at a marina, launching, storing and returning to the dock.

2. Your life jacket will save you. If there was one action a boater could easily take to dramatically increase safety aboard, it's wearing his/her life jacket more often. According to U.S. Coast Guard statistics, approximately 84% of those who drowned were not wearing one. "The best life jacket is the one your will wear," says Edmonston. "Inflatable life jackets are light, comfortable, keep you cool on a hot day, and are easily worn because you forget you are wearing one." Boaters also need to have a properly sized U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jacket for every person aboard, and can borrow a child’s life jacket for free at over 575 BoatUS Life Jacket Loaner Program sites.

For more information on National Safe Boating Week, go to safeboatingcampaign.com.

Related Articles

TowBoatUS Sacramento opens in Delta Region
Provides 24/7 on-water assistance to recreational boaters California's Delta region, an incredible boating paradise and home to more than 700 miles of navigable waterways and thousands of recreational vessels, now has professional on-water assistance available with the opening of TowBoatUS Sacramento. Posted on 3 Jul
Capt. Doug & Melanie open TowBoatUS Rocky Point
Capt. Doug & Melanie Nelson open TowBoatUS Rocky Point, Minnesota Straddling the U.S.-Canada border, Lake of the Woods is a vast expanse of pristine waters more than 70 miles wide with an incredible 65,000 miles of shoreline and nearly 15,000 islands. Posted on 12 Jun
Kathy Sinnett honored with Women's Sailing Award
Continuing the tradition in epitomizing the leadership to promote chances for women Since 1999, the BoatUS/NWSA Leadership in Women's Sailing Award has recognized extraordinary women who have inspired, educated and enriched the lives of women through sailing. Posted on 11 Jun
All the hurricane preparation info boaters need
Atlantic hurricane season starts June 1 Recreational boaters whose vessels have been impacted by a hurricane and came out relatively unscathed know it all starts with a plan. Posted on 29 May
Capt. Anthony new owner of TowBoatUS Santa Cruz
Capt. Anthony Capriccio is the new owner of the company that provides 24/7 on-water towing A former employee and captain for TowBoatUS Santa Cruz, an on-water towing and assistance company for boaters, has stepped up into the ownership role at the company. Posted on 25 May
Douglass Marine expands on East End
With the opening of TowBoatUS Orient, New York A long-standing East End family business providing boat service, repair and storage on the tip of Long Island's North Fork is growing. Posted on 16 May
TowBoatUS Pittsburgh ready to assist boaters
New owners for TowBoatUS Lake Anna, VA The 24/7 on-water towing and assistance service for recreational boaters with ties to nationwide fleet of more than 600 towboats has come to Pittsburgh's Three Rivers. Posted on 8 May
TowBoatUS adds port in the Big Apple
Miller's launch opens its second TowBoatUS on-water towing port on Staten Island Miller's Launch, a commercial marine service provider on Staten Island's northeastern Stapleton waterfront has opened it's second on-water towing and assistance port for recreational boaters, TowBoatUS Staten Island. Posted on 3 May
Three TowBoatUS Ports under new ownership
Assisting boaters from Sandusky River to Fairport, Ohio On Lake Erie's West/Central Basin, TowBoatUS Sandusky owners Capts. Jimmer Kennedy, D.J. Huntley and Jason Majoy are new owners of TowBoatUS locations in Vermillion, Lorain, and Cleveland. Posted on 1 May
National Women's Sailing Association Conference
“Knowledge – Skills – Fun” while celebrating NWSA's 35th anniversary in St. Petersburg, Fl. The National Women's Sailing Association (NWSA) is expanding its 2025 National Women's Sailing Association Conference, presented by American Sailing, to three days. Posted on 18 Mar
Cyclops Marine 2023 November - FOOTERNorth Sails Loft 57 PodcastMaritimo S Series