So, Rick, do you recommend this rating for us knock-about joes? Did you learn anything?
A few things for sure. I could put you to sleep with the regs and the OMG info.
Why did I do it?
I was in between album projects and sitting in that dark recording studio I thought, "Why not get a captains license during my time off?
I sail several times per week, year round. I'm addicted to it, I have many friends that are captains and charter owners and it's been a bucket list thing.
The other day I had a conversation with a good friend of mine down the coast in Orange Beach, Alabama who has had his Master and six pack license for four years. He told me in 2015 he did over 200 charters (on his own boat), delivered a beautiful Swann 77 from Rhode Island to Europe and even raced in the Pensacola Yacht Club's Race to Cuba last month. He got paid for every trip!
Now, I don't want to charter our boat full time but the way I see it, when I move up to an Ericson 38 or 38/200, I can possibly use some of this as a business expense.
Also, I love being offshore on passages. My friend (mentioned above) is going to plug me into opportunities to do deliveries to Europe and the Caribbean. It would be nice to go in with credentials and be compensated beyond the obligatory plane ticket home.
I did did learn a lot though Christain. I leaned the inland and international regs about whistles, fog signals, passing and overtaking situations, deck safety, fire fighting, proper abandon ship routines, SOLAS, flares (not expired...lol), how to maneuver on inland waterways and who has right of way (this only appears in the inland rules only on a river). The lighting section was worth the cost alone. We see a lot of different vessels around here at night. From tows and barges to warships, oil rigs, shrimpers and party boats. I now understand how to identify each by their lights.
I also got the sailing endorsement. Piece of cake and I recommend it to everybody.
The hoops you have to jump through after all of this are the true drudgery. Drug tests, background check, TWIC card, physical, eye exam, hearing, notarized oath, CPR and first aid certs and documented sea time (which can go back to the 70's if needed).
For my next tedious feat I will attempt to build a scale model of Admiral Farregut's flagship entirely out of toothpicks and insert it in a Mountain Dew bottle while whistling Frank Zappa's "St Alphonso's Pancake Breakfast".
