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A bustling summer makes me think of safety and best practices. I watched a 40’ sailboat come in this week. Wind and current were both out of the north and he was docking near the head of G. He came in, way over by the marina slips, then waited to turn until he was very deep into the flat of G. He made his turn so deep I thought he was going to hit the flat, but he knew exactly where he was. He completed his turn sharply which took off all his way and he stopped exactly in his spot on the dock. His wife stepped off and dropped a line on the cleat and I had nothing to do as I stood by ready to assist. A real pro.

I watched another boater come in with a 50’ cruiser. She was a new skipper but she had a mentor with her who coached her through docking. She had a brisk wind on the nose and yet parallel parked her 50’ boat in a 60’ space, with boats at either end. It was a remarkably good job from someone who described herself as an amateur.

I also watched a new boater leave the dock. Wind and current were again out of the north, and he was tied on the flat of G. The boat was 25’ with a single outboard. He started the engine, signaled and we pushed his nose out, then his stern. He got fixated on using his bow thruster and the hydraulics were not turned on, so he focused on that instead of driving his boat. He got out with no incident on his second try, and didn’t need his bow thruster at all.

There’s no substitute for practice – knowing what skills need to be honed, and finding the right opportunity or mentor to help you improve. Much like the experienced pilot I saw recently doing touch-and-gos at the Skagit Regional Airport, just practicing their basic skill maneuvers of takeoff and landing, over and over again. An important aspect of formal pilot training and the safety culture that goes along with it that simply is not part of other pursuits. While some people practice docking and departing, it’s not part of the common practice of the boating community. It would be great if it was. Safe docking, everyone!

– Chris Omdal, harbormaster