Pensacola YC offers Spring 2020 Safety at Sea Seminar

Safety First for Sailors seminar at Pensacola YC © US Sailing

Safety Training can save your life. Now's your chance to get the boating safety experience you need, before you need it. The Pensacola Yacht Club Satori Foundation will host a US Sailing sanctioned two-day Hands on only Safety at Sea Seminar and Offshore sailing workshop on March 21 and 22. At the same time your family can enjoy a Spring Time beach getaway in beautiful Pensacola, Florida.

The seminar will be held at Pensacola Yacht Club where Bayou Chico meets Pensacola Bay. The PYC Satori Safety at Sea training course is a two-day event. Saturday morning will feature a Offshore Sailing Workshop. Hands-on training for an international certification will begin Saturday afternoon and conclude on Sunday.

The hands-on practical experience with feature groups rotating through outdoor stations on the dock, on the beach, the terrace and in the pool. Participants will learn how to inflate their PFD, float huddled together for warmth, climb into an inflated liferaft, launch flares, put out a fire and recover a crew mate who has gone overboard. Rigging storm sails and other safety gear will be demonstrated as well.

Only people who have completed their US Sailing Sanctioned Offshore Safety at Sea (online or in person) within the last 365 day from the date of that course, can attend a hands-on training to upgrade their certificate to an International Offshore Safety at Sea. If they are outside of the range, they will have to retake the course either online or in person.

Enrollment includes a code to take the online course for attendees who have not completed the on-line course or completed a US Sailing sanctioned Offshore Safety at Sea course. PYC will provide a code for them to register for the online course. US Sailing will provide the codes to PYC who will in turn distribute the code to their attendees.

Attendees will receive an upgraded Certificate from Offshore to US Sailing International Offshore (World Sailing compliant) Certificate if the attendee has documented proof of having attended a US Sailing Sanctioned Offshore Safety at Sea course or taken the US Sailing Online Offshore Safety at Sea course within the last 365 days. The online course MUST be taken prior to the hands-on training.

Enrollment in Pensacola's US Sailing Sanctioned Hands on only training course requires previous completion of the Online Offshore Safety at Sea Course or an in-person US Sailing Sanctioned Offshore Safety at Sea course within 365 days of our course. A code for the Online course is included in your Option 1 enrollment fee.

This online course is equivalent to the in-person US Sailing Sanctioned Offshore Safety at Sea course. You will receive a US Sailing Offshore Safety at Sea Certificate at the completion of your online course.

Pricing: Includes Hands-on Training, Saturday Cocktails, Daily Continental Breakfast and Soup, Salad & Sandwich Buffet Lunch.

• Moderated and taught by experienced, lifelong sailors who include some of the top names in sailing and safety.
• Designed for boaters going well offshore and those cruising the coast — all cruisers and racers, from novice to expert.
• Appropriate for a wide range of boats — small, large, monohulls, multihulls (and powerboats, too) — that are sailed anywhere — near shore and offshore.
• Curriculum is certified by US Sailing, with special attention to conditions and challenges of the host organization's sailing area.
• More than 1,000 sailors attend safety seminars around North America every year and many bring their families and crews.
• The certifications are good for five years.

The primary moderator is Bruce Brown. Mr. Brown was the chairman of the independent review panel for the 2012 Newport to Ensenada Race involving the loss of yacht 'Aegean' and her crew. He was a presenter at Volvo Ocean Race SAS Seminar in Miami. He is a instructor in the 100T USCG License Program and a presenter USCG Marine Industry Days. Brown is a published author of numerous safety related articles. He has been the lead moderator at the CCA Newport Bermuda Race safety seminar and much more.

The second Moderator is Bill Biewenga. Biewenga is an accomplished inshore and offshore sailor. He has accumulated well over 400,000 sea miles including 41 transatlantic crossings, over 60 passages to and from the Caribbean, several TransPacs and Bermuda races, numerous record attempts, deliveries and races, as well as participation in 4 round the world races. He has experience as a skipper, navigator, weather analyst/router, watch captain, helmsman, deck hand, and project manager. He has sailed in the Great Lakes and virtually every ocean of the world.

Registration is now open through US Sailing Regatta Network: Pensacola SAS Seminar.

Information about the seminar offering is available at satorifoundation.com.
Information about Pensacola accommodations is here.
See also pensacolayachtclub.org