David Eastwood from the Coast Guard Auxiliary in Boothbay Harbor is offering an eight-hour, four-session Boat America course. It satisfies the Maine boater education requirement and may reduce the cost of your boat insurance.

Saturdays & Sundays, March 7, 8 & 14, 15 from 4:00–6:00 pm. Snow dates are March 21 & 22.

$70, members receive 20% off

TOPICS INCLUDE:

Introduction to Boating: types of power boats, boating te1ms, sailboats paddle boats, and engine types.

Boating Laws: Boat registration, regulations, hull identification numbers, required safety equipment, Federal boating laws, state boating laws, and accidents.

Safety Equipment: life jackets, fire extinguishers, sound-producing devices, visual distress signals, anchors, and other safety equipment.

Safe Operation and Navigation: buoys and beacons, aids to navigation, navigation miles, docking, and the dangers of alcohol on the water.

Boating Emergencies: hypothermia, boating accidents, man overboard, capsizing, emergency radio calls, carbon monoxide dangers, and weather.

Trailering: types of trailers, lights, hitches, towing a trailer.

Sports and Boating: water-skiing, hunting and hunting geai·, personal watercraft operation, and other boating tips.

This course satisfies the New Maine Boating Law: to operate a boat over 25 hp, on inland and coastal waters persons born on or after January 1, 1999 must have taken an in-person Boat America course, pass an exam, have the state's Boat America card, and be registered in the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife data base. Completing this course satisfies the requirements.