What's In It For Me?

Education Not a DVD. Not an online YouTube video. We have live classes with instructors who are experienced boaters. Ask a question specific to your waters or boat and you will get an answer you can use. These are quality courses that are still affordable, backed by a national organization that has been doing this since 1914.

Group Therapy. Well, maybe that´s a stretch, but you can learn a lot hanging around with a group who´s been on the water collectively for as many years as we have. If you don´t find the answer in one of our classes, you´ll probably find it talking to the member you just found out lives around the corner. If she doesn´t know (yes, we have our share of female captains), she probably knows who does.

Social. We like to get together year round. We´re on land in the winter, on the water in the summer, and we double-up and do both in the fall and spring. We´ve got raft ups and cruises, dinners and holiday parties, and a speaker series with some top-notch presentations. You can just do the education classes if you want, but we bet you´ll find your way to a social event sooner or later.

Safety. We have members who will inspect your boat. Our American Heart Association CPR & First Aid instructors teach courses specifically for boaters. We´ve had picnics where we´ve shot off flares. We´ve thrown people in the water to see if the inflatable life jacket really works. Have you ever put out a real fire with a fire extinguisher? We have. We lit a can of diesel on fire twenty different times so everybody had a shot at it. We have fun doing it, but the point is boating safety and we won´t forget that.

Discounts. Everybody likes saving money. Most insurance companies will give discounts to members. And why wouldn´t they? We´re always talking about safer boating. But we´re a pretty big organization nationally, and we´ve got some good product discounts worked out too. From charts to software, online boating stores and PC´s, small boats and even seafood, we probably have a discount program you can really use.

Membership

What does it take to be a member? A checkbook. (Just being honest).

We´re all volunteers but we still charge annual dues to keep the organization going. The only other requirements for membership are an interest in boating related activities and an eagerness to meet likeminded people. You don´t need a boat! Many of our members used to have a boat, are considering buying a boat, or just enjoy other people´s boats. Here´s our meeting schedule. We invite you to join us for a social event and maybe one of our speaker series.