Sea Tow Foundation announces 2024 National Boating Safety Awards winners

2024 National Boating Safety Awards © Sea Tow Foundation

The Sea Tow Foundation, a leading nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting boating safety, along with its esteemed Boating Safety Advisory Council, is thrilled to announce the winners of the 2024 National Boating Safety Awards.

These awards, now in their sixth year, recognize outstanding efforts to promote boating safety within the for-profit sector of the boating industry.

The winners of the 2024 National Boating Safety Awards are listed below:

The Marine Manufacturer award goes to Bayliner Boats for their National Safe Boating Week Daily Safety Tips campaign. Bayliner demonstrated a strong commitment to boating safety through a highly successful mix of videos and social media posts. Their partnership with Freedom Boat Club helped further amplify their safety messages during National Safe Boating Week. The Honorable Mention for this category goes to Yamaha for their National Safe Boating Campaign with safety ambassador, Hunter Bland.

The Media Outlet award goes to Bullitage Media, Inc. for their Water Ways TV: "60 Seconds of Safety" recurring segment. Each episode of Water Ways TV includes a short segment dedicated to boating and water safety, providing digestible, impactful safety tips to their growing audience. The series, available on various channels across Canada, SmartTVs in the U.S., and YouTube, reached an impressive number of views per episode.

The award for Gear & Equipment Manufacturer goes to Garmin for their 2024 Safe Boating Campaign. Garmin continues to be a leader in promoting safe boating year-round, particularly during National Safe Boating Week when they partnered with The Qualified Captain to expand their safety messaging.

This year's Marine Trade Association award goes to the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA) for their Discover Boating Top Safe Boating Tips video series in partnership with Progressive. NMMA's comprehensive campaign reached over 3 million people across platforms like YouTube, social media, and email, and their materials were freely available to other organizations, further extending the reach of this critical safety message. The Honorable Mention for this category goes to the Marine Industries Association of Southwest Florida (MIASF) for their "Know Before You Go" campaign.

The Social Media Influencer award goes to BoatClass for their Organic Social Media Boating Safety & Instruction Campaign. BoatClass utilized short-form reels and partnered with other marine industry companies to promote safe boating practices. Their innovative use of reels and community engagement led to high interaction rates, as viewers actively discussed alternative safety practices in the comments, enriching the conversation on boating safety.

New this year, for companies who don't easily fit into any existing category, the "Marine Business - General" category for 2024 was awarded to Freedom Boat Club for their New Member Safety Orientation and Comprehensive Training Program. Freedom Boat Club combined face-to-face interactions at new member orientations and dock briefings with digital training and communications, delivering safety information and instruction to boaters.

This year's Community Boating Education category resulted in a tie between two outstanding programs:

1. BoatClass for their on-water training program, which has partnerships with organizations like NASBLA and Freedom Boat Club and has helped them successfully target new and experienced boaters.

2. Whitman Marine Training, recognized for their broad community outreach and training programs that include classroom courses and on-water training modules. Whitman Marine Training's approach combines face-to-face training, social media engagement, and partnerships with local marinas.

"We are proud of the hard work that these remarkable organizations undertook as they lead the way in promoting safe boating across the industry," said Gail R. Kulp, Executive Director of the Sea Tow Foundation. "Their innovative campaigns and dedication to safety have made a profound impact, contributing to a safer boating experience for all."

The Sea Tow Foundation's National Boating Safety Awards were presented at the International BoatBuilders' Exhibition & Conference (IBEX) on Wednesday, October 2 in the Tech Talk Theater on the Exhibit Floor.

For more information about this year's winners, please visit www.boatingsafety.com/page/Awards.