The following organizations have provided funding for this into the outdoors television series.

(Music) Have you ever wondered what it would be like to patrol the US waters?

What about learning how to drive a boat or even what we like to plan and go on an epic fishing adventure?

Well, all these ideas sound like a blast, but you always have to make sure you know the proper boating safety practices before heading out on to any body of water.

Lucky for you, I'm here to help you do just that come along as I catch up with my good friend Zac.

We've made arrangements to meet some special experts on the matters of boating safety.

Hey Phoebe!

Hey Zac!

Have you ever wondered what a vessel is?

A vessel like a vase of flowers?

Well, yes, but that probably won't get you very far in the water.

I'm talking about a sea or pond or lake worthy vessel like that one or that one and that one over there.

Hey, it looks like a boating.

Safety experts have arrived.

Now that's a vessel.

All aboard this vessel as we go into the outdoors.

(music) “Grab your gear and” “Lets explore.” “As we discover” “The wild outdoors.” “Science.

Discovery.” “Is what we do.” “You can make our Earth.” “A bright and better planet.” “By joining us.” “In this wide open space.” “Into the Outdoors.” (Music) When I started my safe boating journey.

I wanted to learn from the experts.

Who knows the ins and outs of boat safety better than the U.S. Coast Guard?

(Music) I met up with Petty Officer Mike to introduce me to the Sheboygan crew.

(Music) First up, the coxswain.

What's the cost?

It's an old word that dates back to the 14th century, combining the French word "coque", meaning canoe or boat with the old Norse word "sveinn", meaning service.

So literally the servant of the boat, practically the person in charge.

A lot of times there has to be somebody that is accountable for everybody, right?

So I make sure we're all safe and make sure we all have our life jackets on and make sure that the people that we're helping are safe as well.

And I make sure we don't crash the boat or hurt anybody in the process.

If you think about it, we should all be like coxswains on our own boating adventures by making sure everyone is safe and wearing their PFD's.

The coxswain gets to steer the vessel.

It's not like a steering wheel, like a car.

It's more like a controller on a video game.

So it's a lot of fun to drive.

And they're in charge of the vessel signals.

Here's the main horn.

This is a signal to other boats with the Coast Guard intends to do like getting off the pier.

If somebody is in danger, they will do this or play the siren.

So other boats know to get out of the way, and this is the navigation signal.

This one lets the other boats know that there is a large vessel around, you know, in case of fog.

Every coxswain has a number of crew members.

This vessel has two.

Here's one.

So I'll take you down to the survivors compartment here right through these hatches.

Here's where they keep a lot of extra equipment for when they're called to a case.

Some of the crucial equipment includes lifejackets, medevac boards, first aid kits, pillows, blankets, air horns.

Everything the Coast Guard needs to help distressed boaters and get them to medical professionals if needed.

They also have flares.

Tow bit callers.

What's a tow bit?

So a towbit, which is on a raft deck is what we use when we're towing in a vessel to basically take our line and secure it.

So then our boat has full control of theirs.

So most times they run out of gas or they have engine problems.

So we'll go out, tie up to them, bring them back in til say, they're on boat ramps here and tie them up to the pier and they can go about their way.

I was beyond impressed by just how prepared the Coast Guard was when it came to having the necessary safety equipment on board before you embark on your boating journey.

You want to do the same.

Making an equipment checklist prior to going out is a fantastic way to help make sure you don't forget anything essential.

Finally, there's a person that keeps the whole ship running.

The engineer.

He knows the inner workings of this vessel inside and out.

Down here is just how you steer the boat and where all the water actually comes through the boat in order to keep everything kind of cool.

The engineer makes sure that the vessel is in peak working order so that the crew can go out at a moment's notice and there's always an engineer aboard in case anything goes wrong.

You know, I suppose we should all be like a Coast Guard engineer when go boating and make sure our craft is in ship shape.

Is your boat and peak working order?

And if something fails, what's your backup plan?

Do you have the right gear and communication devices?

Now that we've seen the crew, let's get to know the Coast Guard officer and see what tips he has for new boaters like me and do.

What made you want to join the Coast Guard?

Well, joining the Coast Guard was actually pretty simple.

Me and my buddy, we grew up in Dallas and we're on the lake all the time.

Didn't really know much about the Coast Guard, but we knew the military was the best fit for us.

And 15 years later, that's where we are.

What is your relationship as a Coast Guard to the boating community?

My favorite part is getting on, get on the boat, going through the gear, educating people, and we'll try to fix whatever we can on the spot and tell them this is what you need to have.

This is why.

And hopefully, we'll get off with a with a good boarding items that are inspected during a vessel safety check include: life jackets, registration, navigation lights, ventilation, fire extinguishers, distressed signals, battery covers and extensions.

These are all currently required items by the state and federal laws.

If you'd like to have your watercraft inspected by a Coast Guard auxiliary member, you can request an appointment via the Coast Guard website.

Unfortunately, if you don't have the proper amount of lifesaving equipment, we will more than likely have to send you back to the pier until you can fix that.

That's strictly because we don't want anything to happen out there.

You know you don't want your boat take on water all sudden and then you're short a life jacket or you get stranded out in the middle of the lake and you have no flares to signal that you're in distress.

The biggest thing is to make sure is know your gear, you know how to use it before you need to use it and then know where it is.

That's kind of a common occurrence.

We'll get on a boat and people will have life jackets, but we ask where they are and they have to rough around for them and find them.

If you're smart about boating safety, you don't have to search for a PFD, because you're already wearing it.

The only exception to this rule is if you're above twelve or within the enclosed area of a houseboat or cruiser or within the area enclosed by railings on a party, barge, cruiser or houseboat while the boat is not underway.

Even so, so the best chance to survive a dangerous situation out on or near by the water, you should consider wearing a PFD at all times.

You know, the Coast Guard in general is very small, we have, you know, around 40,000 people.

We're out here on the water during maybe a search and rescue case, people are put in positions where they have to take action.

one of the recent cases we had here came out of nowhere.

We were on our way back south from doing a north run.

We're about ten minutes out and we heard over the Channel 1-6 that sounded like something struck the North Wall.

So it's kind of hard to mistake that sound because there's not much going on in the middle of the night.

We knew right away that something probably happened, so we rushed over there about seven and ten minutes out and we get to the North Wall and there were two members on the brick wall.

Luckily, they landed up on top of it.

We actually had two boats out that night.

Luckily, we put people onto the break wall and they administered first aid.

Paramedics came on scene and they took them.

Sometimes the constant maintenance and you know, the day to day stuff gets monotonous, but that just proves that we have to be ready.

You know, any time.

So far, I've learned that while every boat's a little bit different, everyone has a role to play.

Now that I've seen how one crew works, it was time for me to try my hand behind the wheel.

If you haven't learned to drive a boat yet, maybe you'll pick up some tips as Zac and I give it a try with Matt.

Matt, program director at Seas, has a number of instructor certifications for both sailing and power boats.

So today we're going to get out on the power boat, and I'm going to teach you the basics of how to safely operate a 17 foot power boat on your own.

You guys are going to both get to learn how to drive today.

Sound good?

Yeah, sounds great.

All right, so let's go ahead and climb on to the boat.

Looking to expert advice is always a good idea whenever operating a vessel.

Here's how the boat works.

This is a wheel steer boat.

This is called a center console powerboat, so you turn the wheel to the left.

The boat's going to go to the left.

You turn the wheel to the right, boat's going to go to the right.

Then we have a throttle right here, too.

So one of the things we're really going to work on today is throttle control and making sure when you're in gear and when you're in neutral and we're going to use really light power on this.

A lot of what we're going to practice is slow speed because that's actually harder to do.

The faster the boat's going, actually, the easier it is to control.

But when you're in a tight, closed area like a harbor, that's slower speeds going to really make a difference.

You want to make sure you know how to get the boats around.

Did you know that as of 2021, 77% of deaths that occurred on boats had an operator that did not receive boating safety instruction.

On the flip side, only 12% of deaths occurred on vessels where the operator was known to have received nationally approved boating safety education.

The math doesn't lie.

Getting certified in boat safety can help save your life and your boating companions.

So let's come in one at a time, Zac, I'll have you come up first.

I just want you to get a feel for taking the wheel back and forth and look behind you.

See how much the engine turns.

And go ahead, go all the way to the far ends of each side, and you can kind of see how far it turns over.

Now, move over to the throttle here, so there's no buttons or anything to press on this one.

This button on the side, just watch the engine for a second, that just tilts it.

So you really don't want to touch that while we're doing the practicing because the engines are already down.

Straight up and down is neutral.

Now go ahead and push it forward just so it clicks.

Feel that solid click there?

That means it's in forward.

That's in gear.

So bring it back to neutral.

There you go.

Now go into reverse and feel where that spot is.

It's a little bit farther back right?

Now, back in the neutral.

So when you're steering the boat, you want to go through that clicking stage kind of quickly.

So try to do it nice and fast without overdoing it.

Yep.

There you go.

Before we drive the boat, there's one more thing we need to learn about.

Next up, I want to make sure you guys really remember to wear this kill switch.

Also known as the engine cut off switch.

This is a very important thing, and these have been required here for years now because there have been deaths around the world and around the country because somebody didn't wear this.

They fell off the boat and it's really dangerous.

It can circle around you, but it's out of control, and once the boat's going fast, nobody's going to get in the way to stop it.

It's just going to go until it runs out of gas.

So it's incredibly dangerous.

But this will prevent that.

I did some additional research when we got back to shore, and according to the United States Coast Guard operator inattention, inexperience, improper lookout, excessive speed and machinery failure ranks as the top five primary contributing factors in accidents.

So go ahead and wear this around your ankle.

That's a great place to put it, because then it reaches all over the place and now pull it tight with the little black piece there because this is what you're going to want to connect with.

So I like to put it on my ankle so it doesn't get tangled in the wheel around the throttle.

And if I have to move around, I can kind of use my whole length of my body.

Some people have put it on the wrist, but then if you're using the wheel, it can come undone and we're going to practice in a second.

What that'll do.

So let's put that piece of plastic right in here.

See, it kind of pulls that plug up.

And then the engines in neutral already, because you guys put it straight up down.

Now go ahead and turn the key and get the engine started.

There you go.

So now I want you to practice, I want you just pull that kill cord out and see what happens to the engine.

See how it automatically shuts off?

So that's why they call it an ECOS or engine cut off switch.

It instantly cuts off the power to the engine.

Once we understood how the boat worked and how to be safe while driving, I got to get behind the wheel and take the boat for a spin.

Since I'm one of the younger trainees, my mom had to ride with me.

Depending on your age and the state you live in.

Parents or guardians will need to accompany you on a boat.

Even with a certified instructor.

Always check your local regulations before you go out on the water following the Coast Guard and your state's boating regulations help save lives like yours and your families.

So take the time to know before you go.

(Music) Being behind the wheel of a power boat was a little nerve wracking at first.

I've steered a kayak before, but with the kayak when you stop paddling, the kayak stops, but a powerboat keeps moving.

Thankfully, we kept it slow, and after a few turns around the harbor, you made it back to the dock and then it was Zac's turn Something that surprised me about boating today was just how much the wind impacts your ability to keep control of the boat.

It's been pretty strong winds out here today.

And so if we were just sitting and not really moving at all, the boat would slowly start to move in the direction of the wind.

So there was a lot of times today where we'd have to fight the wind in order to get the boat to go where we had to.

And then the second drill that we did today was you had to try and keep the boat to go in a steady circle without moving out too much.

It was a big challenge because of the wind and because of the tough maneuvers you had to do.

You would have to put the boat in reverse and then crank the wheel the other direction and put it in forwards and put it back.

And it was just this endless cycle of lots of moving and the wind.

It was pretty challenging and and it was honestly it was a work out, moving the wheel back and forth and the throttle.

I know if I practice more, I'll improve.

I had a lot of fun today and I'd definitely like to do it again.

A little bit of forward and I think you're going to nail it.

So good now.

Fight the urge to do anything right here.

OK. See how taking our time and learning the correct operational stats for Matt allowed Zac and me to safely pilot the boat.

You can do the same.

Before getting on any type of watercraft, go over its controls.

Bring an adult if needed and practice before going out onto any larger body of water.

It's always a good idea to get an expert involved whenever you're trying out a new kind of vessel.

Whether it's a kayak, stand up paddleboard, personal watercraft, or anything else you take out in the water.

A great way to get an introduction into all kinds of boating safety practices is to get your boating safety certification.

Ask your parents to visit the USCGboating.org for a list of Coast Guard recommended courses.

(Music) After Zac and I got done with visiting the U.S. Coast Guard and Matt, I made my way to a different lake for one more adventure.

Hey, Noah.

(Music) Hey Phoebe, how's it going?

Good.

Well, are you excited to go fishing today?

Yeah.

Well, I'm excited to get on the water here, but before we go, we've got to make sure we have the boat all ready to go and all of our safety equipment is ready to go.

So will you help me check all that stuff out?

Of course.

All right, let's get to it.

So the first thing we need to check before we put the boat in the water is to make sure the plug is in the boat.

Otherwise, the boat might sink right?

Sink?

Did he say sink?

I'm going to check that boat plug again?

I always do one quick walk around the boat just to look to make sure everything looks OK. That's all on unhooked.

That feels good.

Trolling motor feels nice and solid.

Make sure our trolling motor turns on.

Trolling motors on.

With the outside of the boat looking good.

We checked out the inside.

We're going to have this nice and open and clean.

A clean boat is a safe boat.

And a boat with the right capacity for what you were doing.

This boat can safely carry six people, so Noah and I have plenty of space.

Every power boat under 20 feet has a capacity plate, so always check to make sure you are within the boat's capacity before getting out on the water.

So have you ever seen one of these before?

Yes, I have.

All right.

Well, then you know that this is a throwable PFD.

Now I want you to take a look at this label and make sure it says U.S. Coast Guard approved.

You see it on there?

Yep.

Good.

So any time you get a piece of equipment, you're going to take out in your boat, always make sure it's U.S. Coast Guard approve.

That means it meets all of the standards, and that thing will save your life when you need it.

Now, an important thing with this is to make sure it's always somewhere in the boat that it's easy to get to.

You can't have it in a compartment hidden away somewhere because sometimes you don't have enough time to react.

Now let's talk about PFD's or personal flotation devices.

You're going to be wearing.

This guy here, this red vest.

Now this is the right size for you.

But to double check, you want to check this label on the inside.

And it better say U.S. Coast Guard approved, right?

Even has the approval number and all of the information based on the size of the person it's designed for.

And the one that I'm wearing is this guy.

I don't know if you've ever seen one of these.

No.

This is an automatic PFD that is designed to automatically inflate when submerged in the water.

It also includes a manual inflation cord.

If someone is ejected from a fast moving boat or bumps their head and falls overboard, they might not be able to locate and pull the cord.

That's why the water activated inflation feature can help save lives.

These are a really nice option, but you've got to make sure you check out all of the regulations.

Some states have different requirements for how old you have to be, how big you need to be to use this style versus the kind you're going to be wearing today.

So this will be mine.

You're going to get the red one.

And that's what we're going to have on board for PFD's.

PFD's make sure you'll stay afloat in case you get thrown into the water.

It is also important to be able to signal for help if you get into trouble.

This means having signal equipment on board like flares, beacons and communication devices like cell phones and radios.

Always check what you need for the boat based on the size of the body of water you plan to enjoy.

Now the next, and I think, is one of the most important pieces of equipment to have in any boat, especially any boat that has an engine that runs on gasoline.

Is this bad boy?

Fires on the water are unbelievably dangerous.

So I always make sure to get a marine grade fire extinguisher.

And one of the most important things to check is this dial right up here.

Now, make sure that needle right there is pointing in the green, right?

Green means good.

Red is bad.

So we know that our fire extinguisher is safe.

We have our PFD's on board.

Continuing on with the safety part of things.

I always have a first aid kit on board because let's face it, we're going fishing, right?

There's hooks, there's pokey fish.

Sometimes you get scratched up a little bit, so I always make sure we have stuff on board to take care of it right away.

So nobody gets an infection.

And you can keep fishing and enjoy the rest of your day.

Now, one of the last things I have on board here, this might just look like a regular tackle box, but it's actually a toolbox.

I have all kinds of extra stuff on here because let's face it, sometimes things break when you're using them, so always make sure you at least have a handful of tools that allow you to do lots of different jobs on your boat.

So with that, we got our plug in.

We inspected the boat.

I know the boat has fuel.

All the batteries are charged.

We have all of our safety equipment ready to go.

Before I forget, I want to make sure I share our float plan with you.

I have some people who know that we are launching at this boat launch today.

We're going to be fishing on this lake right now at this time, and they know that we're going to come back to this boat launch and they know about what time we're going to be planning on coming back.

That's cool.

You always want to have a float plan.

It doesn't matter if you're in a big boat like this or if you're just going out in a kayak or a canoe.

It's always important to make sure somebody knows where you're going.

Right?

Yeah.

Creating a float plan ahead of time and giving it to a trusted person helps guarantee that help can be called if you experience any trouble out on the water.

What do you think?

Should we put on our PFD's and get the boat launched?

Yeah.

Awesome.

Let's do it.

(Music) Wow.

Going fishing is a lot more than trying to catch fish.

I hope the other anglers out on the lake here are as boating safety, smart and prepared as Noah.

Plus, now that I know the basics, I want to sign up for boating safety and actually get certified.

OK.

The boat's in neutral so I can take my kill switch off.

That's our structure, and I'm going to sneak up to the front of the boat, to the boat, and we'll get some lines in the water.

Sounds good.

Awesome.

We're going to use a couple of different techniques today, but the first technique we're going to use is called a drop shot.

This is one of my favorite ways to fish for just about everything.

So we've got our hook.

A little ways below it, on the end of our line is our weight, and what that does is it keeps the bait up off of the bottom.

So it's out of the snags, out of the weeds, out of the rocks.

That's right in the fish's face.

Wow.

While we're waiting for the fish to bite.

Noah explained to me some of the most common mistakes anglers make when it comes to boating safety.

First, I learned that many anglers increase their risk out on the water when alcohol is involved.

In fact, alcohol use is the leading, known contributing factor in fatal boating accidents where the primary cause was known.

It was listed as the leading factor in 18% of deaths.

Next, we discuss how eight of every ten voters who drowned, were using vessels less than 21 feet in length.

So just because you're on a small, medium sized vessel doesn't necessarily make it safer.

Finally, we chatted about the Coast Guard's relationship with anglers.

Noah said how he believed that the Coast Guard plays a pivotal role in helping educate new anglers and keep anglers of all ages safe out on the water.

(Music) That's a good one.

Oh, yeah, that's definitely good.

That looks like a small mouth.

What do you think it is?

Just big?

I don't know, big!

Keep reeling keep reeling.

Oh, nice one.

OK, lift up.

Nice job.

Oh, Look get that thing.

Oh, nice.

That's big.

Well, that's your first Somalia.

That's a really nice one, too.

So look at the colors that you see.

It's kind of sand colored.

So these guys like to hang out in sandy, rocky areas and there their camouflage kind of matches that right?

Yeah.

Take a look at his eyes.

They're kind of orange kind of crazy looking, nice, chunky fish.

Think we should let him go?

Yeah.

All right.

Cool.

Let's get this guy back.

Nice fish.

(Music) Off he goes.

And then off we went back to the dock.

Thankfully, we didn't have to test out the life jackets on the water, but thanks to Noah, I still got to see an inflatable PFD in action.

So there you go.

So if I fall in the water, it's nice and bright yellow, you can see it really easily.

And then this is actually like a little snorkel, so I can actually regulate the pressure in this thing so I can push on the end of it and deflate it.

Or if it runs out of pressure, I can blow on it like a straw and it'll inflate the vest.

Kind of cool, right?

Yeah, feel that right there.

Feel cold that is.

You see the frost on it.

So that's from that CO2 cartridge going off.

Isn't that wild?

Yeah.

But if you're in the water, this thing fits nice and snug.

It keeps your head above the water, no matter what.

It's pretty easy to see me, right?

Yeah.

So there you go.

That's how the inflatable's work.

My boating adventures have just begun, but I know any time out in the water I'll be wearing a PFD, I'll know the gear I'll need in case of emergency, and if I have any questions, I found some great experts to help keep me learning.

Come learn right along with me, and get your boater safety certification.

There's always more to learn when we go into the outdoors.

(music) “Grab your gear and” “Lets explore.” “As we discover” “The wild outdoors.” “Science.

Discovery.” “Is what we do.” “You can make our Earth.” “A bright and better planet.” “By joining us.” “In this wide open space.” “Into the Outdoors.” The following organizations have provided funding for this into the outdoors television series.