Sailors Practice Safety at Sea Skills at Cal Maritime

A sunny weekend at the end of March saw a (big) boatload of sailors gather for a Safety at Sea seminar at Cal Maritime in Vallejo. Around 50 people were taken through the hands-on course that covered a range of scenarios that might be encountered while sailing offshore.

Among the presenters was Randall Reeves, who had built a pair of wood boxes complete with various leaks and leaky pipes, each with a four-foot standpipe providing the right amount of water pressure to simulate typical below-the-waterline hull penetrations and pipe failures.

The one-day event by US Sailing was preceded by an online segment. Practical elements included pool exercises in which mariners could test their inflatable PFDs and practice righting a capsized raft, extinguishing fires, man-overboard drills, and much more.

Of the 50 “students” who took part in the event, around 18 were Cal Maritime cadets who are preparing for this summer’s Transpac race.