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April 2019
Inside this issue:
Social Director Report
Sponsors & Supporters
Commanders Report
Looking Ahead
Overboard
Collision Regs Quiz
Boating Experiences
Squadron Officers
Ripple Rock Squadron
Ripples from the Rock
Social Report—Kevin Kavanagh
60th Anniversary Celebration
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Ripple Rock Power Squadron. Six
full decades of teaching safe boating in the Campbell River, Discovery Islands
area, what a remarkable achievement!
We live in an incredibly beautiful place for boating. People come from around
the world to sail in Desolation Sound, fish for salmon in Discovery Passage, or
transit our waters on the way to the Inside Passage and Alaska. With all this
beauty and all these boaters comes increased danger and risk of serious acci)
dents.
So, sixty years ago a dedicated and experienced group of boating enthusiasts got
together and applied for a charter to form a local chapter of the Canadian Power
and Sail Squadron. We received our charter on June 17th and have had groups
of volunteers teaching safe boating ever since.
We would like to invite you to celebrate with us. You do not have to be a current
member, if you have taken courses with us in the past, or just want to reconnect
with our safe boating community we would love to see you there. More details
to follow on our website. You can also visit our booth at the annual Ocean Pacif)
ic Day in April.
Call for Volunteers
If you would like to stay current with the latest information and topics in safe
boating, meet with like minded boaters for cruises and workshops, or get in)
volved with any area of our organization you are invited to join us. You will be
welcome.
Please come to any course evening, Wednesdays from 6:30 till 9:00 at the St.
Peter’s Church Hall, visit with us at the Ocean Pacific Day event, or phone
Kevin Kavanagh at 250-203-7125. Our regional and national award winning
Ripple Rock Power and Sail Squadron can only maintain the level of quality in
our courses with the skills and energy each new volunteer brings.
Please volunteer!
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Sponsors & Supporters
Discounts may be available.
The rate is set by the business where applicable.
Please enquire before any purchase & show your Membership Card.
A-1 Radiators Ltd
Advanced Marine Power Ltd.
Advantage Travel The Travel Place
Altech Diesel Ltd
Beaver Aquatics
Bill Howich RV & Marine
Boatland
Cloverdale Paints
Daigle Welding & Marine Ltd.
Discovery Marine Centre
Discovery Harbour Fuel Sales
Encompass Marine Ltd.
Island Inkjet
Ideal Tackle
Waypoint Insurance
J.B. Radiators
Lordco Parts Ltd.
Lube-X Fast Oil Change Centre
Madman McKay’s
Napa Auto Parts
North Island Propeller Ltd.
Ocean Pacific Marine Supply Ltd
Periscope Promotions
Plastics Plus Fabricating
Redden Net Ltd.
R.H. Printing Ltd.
River Sportsman Ltd.
Salmon Point Resort
Sinnott & Co. Law Corp.
St. John Ambulance
TEC Marine Surveying
Topstitch Upholstery
Tyee Chevrolet Oldsmobile Ltd
Tyee Marine & Fishing Supplies
White’s Diesel Power & Marine
Ripple Rock Squadron
Box 481
Campbell River, BC V9W 5C1
Phone: 1-250-923-6587
www.ripplerocksquadron.com
Commander’s Report - March 2019 - Brian Cruise
Well, I’ve just come inside after my first sunny afternoon of gardening. Could
spring truly have arrived in Campbell River? The truth is, gardening season has to
happen early in the year for me or it doesn’t happen at all. As soon as I can get out
on my boat comfortably, I’m on my way to Squirrel Cove and Desolation Sound.
So I need to get the gardens cleaned up fast!
Our Squadron has a great spring season planned, starting with the highly anticipat)
ed ‘graduation’ of our latest class of safe boaters. We have 15 in this year’s class
and they are keen to hit the water with their newly acquired skills. Classes are still
running on Wednesday evenings from 6:30 to about 9PM at St. Peter’s Church hall.
All Squadron members are encouraged to drop in to refresh your skills and to meet
the students and our potential new members. And yes, there are always a few of us
‘old guys’ hanging around too.
Our AGM is coming up soon. The most important business will be finding new members for our Bridge. We
are looking for members who have an hour a month to attend Bridge meetings and to help with the events we
host each year. Our Social, Membership and Executive Officer positions are all vacant and we really could
use a hand from members, new or long standing, who have a bit of time and interest. For more information
on what’s involved, please drop me an email [[email protected]] or give me a call [250-923-6761].
You will see later in The Ripples that we have some great social events coming up over the next couple
months. In addition to our night classes, come join us on May 2nd for the AGM at Driftwood Restaurant and
for our season opening cruise to Gorge Harbour on the weekend of May 10th to 12th. On June 17th, Ripple
Rock Squadron will celebrate it’s 60th anniversary with a birthday party! More details to follow on our web)
site.
That’s all for now. But I’m thinking that if only my boat was two feet longer, I could do my gardening on-
board. Hmmm …
Brian Cruise
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Looking Ahead for Spring 2019
DATE: EVENT: CONTACT:
April 6, 2019 Ocean Pacific Marine Show Ocean Pacific
April 10 & 17, 2019 Radio Operator Certificate (Maritime) Course Lionel Botting
May 2, 2019 Annual General Meeting and Dinner Any Bridge Member
May 10-12, 2019 Spring Cruise to Gorge Harbour Any Bridge Member
June 17, 2019 Ripple Rock Squadron’s 60th Anniversary Party Any Bridge Member
Overboard - by Capt. Geoff
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A slip, a misstep; going overboard can happen in an instant. It can happen at sea, when the boat takes an unex)
pected lurch, or in the harbour, when the deck has just been hosed clean.
For the person going overboard, in these waters, first off there is the issue of cold water shock, the gasp as you
enter cold water, the hyperventilating that usually follows and the not so gradual loss of ability to use your fin)
gers, then arm and legs.
For anyone left on board, there is the question of what to do. Hopefully the person in the water is wearing a
PDF, but if not, unless they can immediately and easily climb back aboard, I advise getting a PFD to them
first. If they can put the PFD on before their fingers lose the ability to secure it, they won’t have to work so
hard to stay afloat. If it is bright coloured, they will be easier to see. If the boat is anchored or at the dock, you
can focus on getting the person back aboard. At sea, maneuvering the boat to keep the person in sight, and to
help them back aboard obviously makes life more complicated.
A person in the water, particularly without a PFD is very hard to see; basically all you see is their head. Mark)
ing the spot with your GPS’s MOB button is generally not much use in this area. You can confirm this by
stopping in the middle of Discovery Pass during a significant flood or ebb and pressing the MOB button. You
will see that you are quickly separated from it as the current carries you (and a person in the water) away.
Markers that move with the current, such as a MOB pole, or if there is not a lot of wind, a lifering, floating
free, will work much better.
Most people assume they can get back aboard by themselves. However it is often not as easy as it sounds.
Even raising yourself a foot out of the water to get over a low gunnel can be very difficult with wet clothes,
wet hull and clumsy fingers.
A few years ago, the pleasure craft regulations changed. Most vessels with a freeboard of over .5 meters (1’
8”) must have a “preboarding device”. Transport Canada defines a “preboarding device” as a ladder, lifting
harness or other device that does not include any part of the vessel’s propulsion unit and that assists a person
to gain access to the vessel from the water.
If your vessel has transom ladders or swim platform ladders it already meets this requirement. (Copied from
https://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/marinesafety/tp-menu-515-4377.html)
TC mentions a lifting harness, which is an option I’d like to expand on. In my opinion, a device called a
“Lifesling” (or something equivalent) can be an excellent safety addition to your boat. It is essentially a float)
ing belt that looks a little like a soft horseshoe style lifering on the end of a long line. Once the person in the
water puts the lifesling around their chest, they can be brought aboard using a deck winch or block and tackle.
Trying to pull someone aboard by taking hold of wet clothing or numb hands is very difficult. Even if you
have to pull the person in by hand, having a rope to pull on makes it much easier. If the vessel is underway
and it is rough, the lifesling can be towed behind the boat while the boat circles the person until they can grab
it, like getting a tow line back to water skier. Here is a link to a YouTube video that may make this process
easier to understand. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnhjOhWD4j0
If you were alone aboard when you went into the water, you obviously need other options. If you have a lad)
der that folds up out of the water, can you release it from the water? If you are at the dock when you go in,
where is the nearest dock ladder?
Each boat and crew are different, but thinking about this and other emergency situations before hand and put)
ting together a plan and equipment could avert a tragedy. It is important to think of the broader issues when
doing this; can your partner handle the boat if you go overboard, or make a distress call on the radio?
Enjoy boating around Campbell River, it is a beautiful cruising grounds. But keep a close eye on the currents
and the weather. And be prepared for an emergency, because they can happen. For more information, please
check out our website at https://www.ripplerocksquadron.com, and consider taking our boating 2&3 course to
learn how to read a chart and compass and lots of other things.
Page 6 Ripples f rom the Rock Apr i l 2019
Overboard - Continued
Collision Regs Quiz
You have heading from Francisco Point towards Baker
Pass and see these lights dead ahead. What are you
looking at, and what, if anything are you required to
do under the collision regulations?
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Share Your Boating Experiences - Brenda Coates
We would like to invite all of our squadron members to share with us some of their boating stories and pic)
tures.
We are hoping to offer the newsletter to our members on a monthly basis and we thought that it would be a
wonderful opportunity for everyone to share some of their good, or bad, experiences on the water.
If you have something that you would like to submit for the newsletter, please send it to me at:
I look forward to sharing your adventures.
Collision Regs Quiz Answer
You are looking at a vessel of less than 50 metres in
length and it is heading directly towards you. This is a
“head on” situation under the Collision Regulations
(Rule 14). The rules require both vessels to alter to star)
board so each shall pass on the port side of the other.
Captain Geoff recommends brushing up on your collision
regs by going to the "On The Water" page of the web)
site www.ripplerocksquadron.com to check our basic in)
troduction to Collision Regulations.
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Ripple Rock Squadron Bridge Officers
NAME POSITION PHONE
Brian Cruise Commander 250-923-6761
Kevin Kavanagh Past Commander 250-337-8462
OPEN Executive Officer
Tony Robson Training & Supply Officer 250-923-6175
Paulette MacLean Treasurer 250-923-6175
Jacqueline Rice Secretary 250 923-0229
Grant Jones Membership / Privacy Officer 250-923-7492
Kevin Kavanagh ATO ROC(M) DSC 250-337-8462
Lee Andrew Chief Proctor 250-850-0979
OPEN Social Director
Anne Bosshart Historian 250-923-6304
Brenda Coates Ripples Editor 250-202-8406
Geoff Sanders Web Director 250-287-2133
OPEN Publicity Officer
Lionel Botting ATO ROC(M) DSC 250-830-1726
We welcome members to attend all Bridge meetings.
Call ahead (250-923-7376) if you have a topic to add to the agenda.
Anyone interested in posting items for sale, please send information to Brenda Coates
at [email protected]. Pictures can be included.
