We have every hope that the 2020 boating season will be here soon. We’re all staying at home and social distancing but there are things you can do to get your boat ready to go even if you can’t get on board right not. You probably brought lots of your stuff home last fall, so let’s go into the garage or basement and check these out:
- Be sure that you’ve got wearable, properly sized life jackets for each passenger, including children and pets. If you stow inflatable vests, make sure that their cartridges are up to date. Here’s a good how-to guide for inspecting your inflatable PFD’s.
- Inspect your man overboard recovery gear and ensure that your ditch bag is complete.
- Check the expiration dates on your flares and make sure that fire extinguishers are fully charged.
- Replace old charts and tide books. Updates may also be available for your GPS software, so check with your dealer or go to the manufacturer’s web site
- Navionics: http://store-mirror.navionics.com/home/download
- C-Map: https://store.c-map.com/?technology=4D
- Raymarine: http://www.raymarine.com/view/?id=797
- Simrad: https://www.simrad-yachting.com/help–support/Software-Upgrade/
- Furuno: http://www.navnet.com/tzt/en/update/index.html
- Garmin: http://www.garmin.com/us/maps/updates/?/marine
- Make sure your boat’s registration/documentation is current, and that registered boats have the proper registration and mooring stickers to apply to the hull.
- Ensure that your boat insurance policy is up to date and adequate, and that your marina has a copy of your certificate of insurance.
- Make an appointment to get a free vessel safety check from your local power squadron or CG Auxilary. These volunteer inspectors will be able to tell you what other equipment and items are required for your specific boat. If you’re in the area, you can have your boat inspected for free at Kingman Yacht Center on June 13th.
