New guy on the ocean worries / horrible radio comms!?!?!?

[ontherocks83]

So I wasn't really sure what to title this thread because it encompasses a few gripes/concerns, but here it is. I have been lake sailing on Lake Winnipesaukee for 25 years and now this is my second year on the ocean. When I first came to Narragansett Bay I was worried people would just look at me and know that I "didn't" belong. Well it only took 2 or 3 outings last year to realize that there are a lot of people on the ocean that are as clueless as there are on the lake.

Besides right of way and colregs issues on the water, the biggest thing I noticed is how so many people don't know how to communicate properly or efficiently on the radio. Maybe it's because I'm prior military or that I'm anal retentive about being succinct and precise, but Holy Crap, there is so much inappropriate and inefficient chatter on the radio it drives me crazy. If I hear any more of "hey so and so you got your ears on?" I might loose it , along with people calling in "emergencies / maydays" because they ran out of fuel.

On Winnipesaukee 15-20 years ago they started mandating boating licenses which at the time we all thought were draconian laws, but now in my late 30's I'm almost starting to agree with why they did it. For example a week or two ago there was a boat fire south of the providence river that several different agencies were responding to. During that process one person called on the radio to one of the agencies responding to the boat fire, that there was a dinghy that had drifted away from its "mother ship" and if they could come "take care of it". Even after said agency reported that they had more important things to do, this individual kept giving reports about the adrift dinghy and clogging up the airways.

I apologize for griping and I don't mean to be on a high horse, but even as a person who is VERY small government and let people be free, sometimes I just wonder how many less problems we'd have if proper training were mandated. (not that it's possible or practical, just more just food for thought).

Am I being ridiculous or do any others have "similar" thoughts/feelings?

 

[rgranger]

I remember when Smith. mountain lake started boating licenses… they were one of the firsts…. Deaths on the lake dropped A LOT…

Seems to be a good idea…all-in-all… but how far down that rabbit hole are you willing to go? There are far more deadly things than boats that any bubba can go buy at the sport counter at Walmart. Easy for this thread to turn political real fast

 

[dlochner]

Unfortunately there are many who are apparently incapable of self-regulation and so for thousands of years humans have tried to find ways to guide people into prosocial behaviors with only mediocre results. Enforcing rules on the airways is a challenge.

One of my "favorites" is the guy broadcasting that someone has an open mic. Hello! we all know that and the person with open mic can't hear you!

 

[jeepbluetj]

"You know, Mrs. buckman, you need a license to buy a dog. You need a license to drive a car. Hell, you even need a license to catch a fish. But they'll let anybody talk on the VHF."

Dunno if licensing is an answer. Strong peer pressure is an answer but these folks have peers that think it's all OK. I don't sweat it much. CG will come on an yell to change channels and/or not radio check on 16. Really, I'm poking about at 5-6 kts. Silliness on the VHF is entertainment.

 

[ontherocks83]

Yeah, definitely NOT trying to go political even though I was a poly sci major and I love the topic, AND I am a certified firearms instructor so I know what Bubba can sell you over the counter. This is just more of a, if people had common sense and had more brains than money on the water than things might be less chaotic. (however I guess that could apply to all aspects of life) really just wishful thinking on my thought. And as a benefit my young children wouldn't have to hear people yelling F You over the radio when boaters start arguing. (little dreams I guess )

 

[Alan Gomes]

One of my "favorites" is the guy broadcasting that someone has an open mic. Hello! we all know that and the person with open mic can't hear you!

Unfortunately, the guy in that video is wrong--at least out here. It is NOT just recreational boaters who are guilty of this. I hear the Coast Guard say the open mike thing ALL THE TIME. I have no idea why they do it because it makes no sense (he is right about that part), and certainly the CG knows how marine radios work. I've often puzzled over this, and it happens quite frequently.

 

[ontherocks83]

I remember when Smith. mountain lake started boating licenses… they were one of the firsts…. Deaths on the lake dropped A LOT…

I know it helped Winnipesaukee although I can't quote the statistics, but I remember when I was younger, a death or 3 every summer was normal from drunk boating to not knowing how to navigate. I even remember right before that law took effect a mother on one jet ski, hitting and killing her son on another jet ski just from being inexperienced. Also the rate that boats hit and sank on the witches (a rocky submerged island) also reduced, due to them having to learn how to read a chart.

 

[All U Get]

It’s like social media on the water, sometimes entertaining, sometimes aggravating. It gets worse on the ICW with boaters wanting to give you a slow pass.

 

[garymalmgren]

Dunno if licensing is an answer.

I have posted this here before.
I am in Japan and NO ONE has a VHF!!!!

You not might like the chatter but just think for a minute what it is like when no one except for those with a full radio operators license has a VHF.

To operate a VHF in Japan you need a LICENSE.
There is only ONE license. A professional one that cost a fortune ($2000 plus) AND you need to be proficient in Morse and Semaphore. Yep Semaphore . Check it out Semaphore - Wikipedia

You should be counting your lucky stars. Not complaining about chatter.
I would trade places in a flash.

gary

 

[DRhoads]

I hear the Coast Guard say the open mike thing ALL THE TIME. I have no idea why they do it because it makes no sense (he is right about that part), and certainly the CG knows how marine radios work. I've often puzzled over this, and it happens quite frequently.

Perhaps they have a hand held and can hear the CG

 

[Dr. D]

A couple of months ago I was participating in a Wednesday night race. The race had three classes starting with rolling starts. The race committee was using channel 68. There was other traffic on the channel as normal on the Chesapeake Bay in the summer. As the second class sequence began, someone came on and said, “Take your race talk to another channel!” Not wise. The Principal Race Officer was retired Navy (SWO) and he laid into the complainer about the allowed use of radio channels. No reply heard.

 

[shemandr]

To OP: Gripes are us! Welcome.
I once endured two ladies talking about a wedding on the VHF, probably channel 71. After about 1/2 some got and gave the offenders holy hell. Silence.

 

[Hello Below]

Unfortunately, the guy in that video is wrong--at least out here. It is NOT just recreational boaters who are guilty of this. I hear the Coast Guard say the open mike thing ALL THE TIME. I have no idea why they do it because it makes no sense (he is right about that part), and certainly the CG knows how marine radios work. I've often puzzled over this, and it happens quite frequently.

Both CGs in the US and Canada seem to be guilty of this. However I believe it is intended to be a reminder to those that can receive (ie all those other than the culprit with the open mic) to be responsible with regard to an open mic in the future.

 

[capta]

The very first thing someone like you, moving from inland rules to international, is that under the international rules nobody has the "right of way". That term can no longer be found in the IRR.
As for radio chatter, I'm not quite sure how you can expect the ignorant and uneducated to be different on salt water from those on fresh, as they can't even manage to stay within the rules on the highways, which they drive almost daily.
I sincerely believe the push toward boater education started out as a noble idea, but it has become nothing more than another revenue source for the states.
I'm also new to the Narragansett Bay area, but I do not expect any more courtesy and attention to safe boating on the water than these very same people show their fellow drivers on the roads.
Even most of the USCG licensed captains need know nothing more than how to pass the test, so don't expect them to operate their vessels in a knowledgeable manner, just because they hold a piece of paper (a book these days) that says they should.
Good luck on your new sailing venue and I hope that, in the end, you find it was a good move.

 

[Hello Below]

A Radio Operator Certificate - Marine (ROC-M) is required by all operators of a VHF in Canada. The training consists of 20 hours of classroom time and both a written and verbal test for successful completion. However, it is obvious that not all folks abide by that. Last month I overheard a communication between a boat and the CCG on channel 16. The conversation started out as an Urgency Signal ( PAN PAN). The chap then requested tidal information for a local and sometimes very busy pass named Dodd Narrows. The CCG responded immediately and after ensuring that there was in fact no Urgency, they moved him to VHF channel 83A. IMHO the CCG could have been a little more blunt in their response. They gave the sailor the information that he was looking for (at great lengths I might add). However, they did go on to explain the proper use of an Urgent Message in a very polite and respectful way.

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

Besides right of way and colregs issues on the water, the biggest thing I noticed is how so many people don't know how to communicate properly or efficiently on the radio.

You have GOT to come to the Vancouver area in British Columbia if you want to see and listen to idiots on the water.

Besides right of way and colregs issues on the water

............................ I have talked to power boaters who have NEVER even even heard of a right of way or the colregs. If you're under sail, LOOK OUT. Many pleasure boaters here honestly believe the bigger the boat, the more entitlement they have.

At least you've got the US Coast Guard to enforce the regulations (which everyone on this site gripes about). Our Canadian Coast Guard is ONLY involved in search and rescue. If you do report insanity on the water, we're told to get the vessel license number and report it to the RCMP (Canadian federal police). Great idea, except many boats up here DO NOT show a vessel license number. And they are definitely not registered in Canada. So all you have is some big stinkpot named INTOXICATION trying to run over other boats.

Let me assure you @ontherocks83 , a week up here in our waters and you'll be itching to get back to your quiet little corner of the ocean.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Last week I heard the Canadian CG report an open mike, but for the first time (that I can remember) they added: In the vicinity of... They know where the signal is coming from. Don't know how that helps.

To Hello Below's discussion of Stupid Dude asking about the current at Dodd Narrows: for those of you not familiar with the area, it is a very narrow pass just south of Nanaimo that only allows transit for about 20 minutes every six hours when the current turns to slack. Stupid Dude was a lunatic. The CG should have given him a What For, but they are truly kind and helpful. I put off going through there for a couple of years until Hello Below and his wife invited me to follow along with them. You simply have to have the current tables, and learn how to read them. Nanaimo wasn't one of my "GoTo" places, anway, but I did confirm that the Canadian ONLINE chart and current tables do NOT convert for daylight savings time while Ports & Passes, the $26 book that has them all, does. I just print out the tables for areas I often transit, and I sail closer to home than Hello Below does.

 

[Kings Gambit]

"You know, Mrs. buckman, you need a license to buy a dog. You need a license to drive a car. Hell, you even need a license to catch a fish. But they'll let anybody talk on the VHF."

Dunno if licensing is an answer. Strong peer pressure is an answer but these folks have peers that think it's all OK. I don't sweat it much. CG will come on an yell to change channels and/or not radio check on 16. Really, I'm poking about at 5-6 kts. Silliness on the VHF is entertainment.

Until about a decade ago, maybe two, you needed a “station license” and call letters to legally operate a VHF radio in the USA. That rule has been suspended for boats but you can still get one. One may need it if going into Canada. One reason the CG starts off with “Hello All Stations.” Your boat is the station location.

 

[dlochner]

Until about a decade ago, maybe two, you needed a “station license” and call letters to legally operate a VHF radio in the USA. One reason the CG starts off with “Hello All Stations.” Your boat is the station location.

And a Restricted Radiotelephone Operator's License as well. However, the requirements for the license was fairly low, the main requirement was writing a check that wouldn't bounce and certifying your ability to record radio calls in a log in English.

 

[Kings Gambit]

I’ve been through Dodd Narrows 3 or 4 times on charter boats. I recall the last time in 2013 the best. A whole fleet of boats leaving Nanaimo and the anchorage at Newcastle Island to arrive there at slack water with a whole bunch of other boats on the other side waiting to come through heading north. It’s barely wide enough at the north entrance for one boat passing through at a time but we were facing “two-way traffic.” If you choose not to go through, then back to the “end of the line.”

Actually, I found the Malibu Rapids more hair-raising.