umm guys there is not a road on the water … I dont get it
My favorite part is the, “if passing withing 1/2 mile of each other, each boat should sound their horn once”.
That’s probably the most asinine law I’ve ever read. The navigable portion of the Niagara River isn’t even a half mile wide, so by law, every single boat that meets should be sounding their horns. You’d need to bring a six pack of compressed air cans to go from the North GI bridge to the Strawberry Island via the east river on a sunny weekend.
is this a permit test or something?
The best part is, there is no permit/license.
I believe this is more intended for commercial ships…not sure i would need to ask my old man half those questions…hes a captin.
It doesn’t work exactly like that…
It’s written as: “The rules apply to all vessels on U.S. waters inside the COLREGS line of demarcation.”
That means everything from a rowboat to the biggest freighter.
No, the USCG doesn’t just randomly ask rules of the road exam questions.
Since the rules apply to every vessel, every operator is required to know them. That’s how the USCG sees it. So that said, if you are every in a collision/allision you violated the rules of the road. End of story.
So basically, the next time you see two sailboats running side by side you really should know which has the right of way over the other so you will have a better chance of being able to predict their course changes to insure a safe passage of your boat. Say that you’re approaching a sailboat from astern on his port side and suddenly he turns to port. According to the rules you are required to get the fuck out of his way. Do you know why? There are 3 reasons, if you don’t know them all you shouldn’t be on the water. Don’t just dismiss what I’m saying, really think about it for a few minutes.
Also, when Joe Blow on his pleasurecraft, comes and starts to assclown around me with total disregard for the rules and safety I immediately call the USCG. They come take care of the problem. I’m not willing to put my vessel and my license in jeopardy over some dumbfuck that doesn’t know that rules that shouldn’t be on the water. If he runs into me, it’s my fault too. That sucks for me.
On a sidenote, the whistle signal within 1/2 mile rule is retarded. I understand why it is the way it is, but it is grossly impractical.
Here’s a kicker for you…if you are in a collision with another boat, did you exchange whistle signals to insure a safe passing? If you didn’t, there’s another citation…
You know what’s worked for the 20 years I’ve been driving boats? Give a sailboat plenty of room since they can’t turn for shit. That’s a JayReg, it works great. It comes from the Big Book of Common Sense, something about half the real laws didn’t even consult.
And no, I’m not going to learn every single rule for every classification of boat on the water, and yes, I still consider myself a more than safe and responsible boat operator.
Uh oh, I agree with the JayRegs in terms of being on the water. That puts them automatically into law on the Bipartisan Common Sense Act
lol
Do whatever works for you, just don’t hit anything or let anyone hit you.
My main thing with memorizing every regulation is generally people that are a threat to you do not know every regulation, or any. You’re almost better off not knowing what they’re supposed to do, since then you have to pay attention to what they are doing, and drive your boat defensively. The more rules you know, the more you subconsciously assume that other boats will follow them. Then they end up lodged in your bow.