Sticker Shock: USCG Auxiliary Inspections

Believe it or not, there is a free sticker you can put on the mast of your boat that helps you either avoid, or pass, a US Coast Guard safety inspection. Shocking? Volunteer USCG Auxiliary Vessel Inspector Gerry Gregg described the approximately 30-minute process you can do from the comfort of your own slip, in the Sightings section of our current May issue.

What kind of stranger would come aboard your boat for free just to help you avoid or pass a safety inspection? Gerry Gregg has been sailing for over 30 years, and in 2000, Gerry and his wife Darby bought a Passport 42 from the Latitude 38 classified ads. They prepared their boat for cruising in Grand Marina, Alameda, before leaving the Bay Area for points south (and east) in 2005. They arrived in Italy in 2010 after cruising to Panama, Florida, Portugal, and Spain. They concluded their cruising life after sailing in the Med for two years, then sold the boat in Florida in 2014. Now retired and living back in the Bay Area, Gerry thought he’d offer some of his sailing and safety experience, learned across all those miles and years, to fellow Bay Area sailors. That’s a pretty good deal.

There are several reasons you might be motivated to do this. It’s free. You might avoid being stopped by the Coast Guard. And then there’s safety. Why not have an experienced, certified sailor like Gerry Gregg spend a few minutes aboard double-checking all your safety gear so you, your family and your crew are safe? And if you pass, you get a free sticker! Kids love them and so does the Coast Guard.

Compared to mandatory equipment for this year’s Transpac or Baja Ha-Ha, the basic safety gear that is both advisable and required to sail the Bay is relatively minor but also supremely important. If you invite Gerry or any of the Bay Area’s certified inspectors aboard before you sail, you may be able to avoid the interruption of the actual Coast Guard inspection while you’re on the Bay. The USCG inspections are also free but, unlike the USCG Auxiliary inspections, they can be very inconvenient and may result in fines. Owners of inspected vessels think of it as a way to SOS — “Save Our Saturday” — by reducing the chance of inspection while having a good day on the water. Is it a guarantee of avoiding inspections? That’s impossible, but it can help to have a sticker showing you’ve done it voluntarily at your slip.

Regarding what’s involved in the actual inspection, read in our May issue what our new friend Gerry and his fellow inspectors do when they meet you at your slip almost anywhere in the Bay Area.