Proper boat mooring

[simcoediver]

I think some kind of large sticker should be on the boat that is tied up to a mooring so that it is visible from a distance.The recent discussion on boat safety is not at issue here.That is completlely irrelevent to this thread

 

[pufferfish]

Tom R once bubbled...
I put it out in to this forum,

What would like to get in return for your donation.

A Sticker already done.

A Tag

Something else.

Remember membership is only 20.00 and 100.00 for commercial endorsement.

Tom

What percentage of divers who dive regularly in Kingston are POW members? I imagine it is no where near 100%. For twenty bucks I think a membership, tag or sticker, and seasonal access to all POW buoys is a very fair deal. It is all the divers though who use the buoys and wrecks for their enjoyment but do not contribute that you need to go after. And yes I had never heard of POW until it was mentioned on this board. Put POW on the mooring buoys so people know who is doing the leg work out there. I know people don't like to be strong armed into a pass but really $20 for a season is nothing and if they were properly educated about POW and its role in their dive enjoyment (ie. no POW, no buoys) then I think they would gladly pay a daily fee or buy a season's pass when getting their fill.

Hey Simcoe you were asking about mooring protocol which does tie into boat safety IMHO. Leaving a boat with no one on it while diving is a safety issue and a no, no. Having a dive boat tied up without O2 on board is not great either. A non-functioning radio at a mooring site is a huge safety issue as the other dive boats cannot communicate with you. Coming up alongside a mooring and leaving your inboard engines idling and spewing exhaust while other divers are on the surface waiting to descend is just plain stupidity. These are all mooring protocol issues and not irrelevant to this thread.

Now if you want to complain about the POW discussion hijack you might convince me there

 

[Tom R]

Members of POW are available to speak to dive clubs, the only problem is that only Ottawa and Toronto is reachable during the week, and that is barely. But during the Winter months Members can travel a little further to educate clubs within reach.

Tom

 

[wetman]

Whats the relation between POW and SOS? why are there two different organizations like that? We had SOS at our local club last year i think but it might be hard to convince people that we needed a kingston specific agency down our way as people here dive everywhere from toby to way up north (and i thought i was north enough, the nutbars )

steve

 

[dvbtkptn]

I have been sitting at the side of this message board for the past three years and have been interested in many of the topics of conversations that have taken place, You are now talking about one of the topics that is near and dear to my heart. POW,

INFORMATION OF ALL

POW( Preserve Our Wrecks Kingston Inc ) and SOS (Save Ontario Shipwrecks) were started in and around the same time 1981, as a result of unauthorized salvage and or damage to artifacts/wrecks. POW/SOS are a group of individuals who volunteer their time towards a common goal of Shipwreck preservation.

While SOS receives some of it's funding Provincially, POW on the other hand is funded only by donations from the diving public/clubs and comercial members( ie. dive shop's, charter operators & members), and it's main consern is the shipwrecks in the Kingston, Picton & Pt Traverse area. POW is also an affilate member of SOS

POW has twenty world class moorings that are monitored by charter operators, POW Executive & regular members on a regular basis in an attempt to prevent thefts and damage to the wrecks and moorings. POW will attend club meetings if asked, we attend shows/symposiums to raise awareness of our historic ship wrecks a non-renewable resorce.

Mooring lines and blocks are maintained by people like Big Jim (mooring project co-ordinator), Dan, Tom (NTD shop owners), Spencer, Harold, (Charter operators) Rick & Barb (members) and others, who do this on their own time and expense along with paying dues and mooring fees. Each line depending on it's length costs approximately $150.00 not to mention the locating lifting and towing of the mooring blocks (average weight 2500lbs) to the different wreck sites.

This year POW received from SOS a generious gift of 10 buoys and have placed them on 8 wrecks sites in the Kingston area and 2 in the Point Traverse area. POW will in the future be attempting to purchase similar buoys to complete the instilation of perminent mooring buoys on all wrecks currently moored by POW.


Preserve Our Wreck IS ALWAYS LOOKING FOR NEW MEMBERS

Single membership is $20.00, Family membership is $30.00, Club Membership $50.00, Corporate Membership $100.00 and Project Membership $100.00. but most of all we need YOU not just as a paying member but someone that will get involved in the organization. Should you want more information on POW go to
WWW.gts.org/pow.html or PM me leaving me your address and I will forward you information on POW.

POW Annual General Meeting is to be held November 16th at 1:00 PM we are just trying to confirm the location now.

 

[Groundhog246]

Tom R once bubbled...

I think most of you are taking this out of context, maybe not. Maybe concerns is a better though

Wreck markers are not the only things out there, fishnets of all types are out there also. Marked with a jug

I don't think I took it out of context. Certainly not having sufficient PFD's on board is unsafe (and illegal) as is too many divers (or non divers).
No oxygen, how many doing shore dives have oxygen? While I think having it aboard is a great idea, I'm not sure that not having it is unsafe. Just having it isn't enough anyway, you're supposed to have someone trained to administer it.

] Pufferfish saidTied to mooring with no one left on boat during dive
Broken non-functioning VHF radio

Will agree on these. I carry both fixed and handheld VHF's on board. I'm considering a backup GPS (actually a new primary and keep the current one as backup)

Pufferfish saidGas inboard cruisers with rear/side exhaust idling near dive sites while diver's are on surface preparing to decend (huge CO poisoning risk)

I won't disagree, but again more of a boating than a diving issue. Would also apply to PWC's and outboards. In fact 2 strokes will kick out a lot more CO than a 4 stroke due to less efficient combustion. Mine's a diesel. Also the rish from those spinning props if someone bumps it into gear. A real law on dive flags (minimum distance to be maintained) might help. But then again, I've seen dive boats, private and charter, steaming along with the flag up (maybe they've got some really fast swimmers or DPV's).

Tom R saidWreck markers are not the only things out there, fishnets of all types are out there also. Marked with a jug
Also if a diver finds a jug with no bottom sounder you can be in 200 ft of water before you know it.

I'll agree with these issues. There was a post here a while back from someone who spotted what sounds to me like a Lake Huron net buoy (black spar) and dove on it SOLO to see what was there. Fortunately he didn't find anything.
I don't see that type of behaviour as strcitly a diving issue as stupidity is everywhere. Every winter snowmobilers go off the marked trails and injure or kill themselves. The drive acroos almost frozen lakes. Downhill skiers go off the trails and get hurt.

In summary, I don't think we've got a big risk problem with people diving off their own boat (I for one will continue to do so). But they should (and if I was in the area I would) pay to use POW (or SOS, etc) moorings.

I did see the article on bringing them up in the spring and it looked like the type activity I'd get into (a dive with a mission).

 

[Tom R]

A Groundhog looked around and stated .... I don't think I took it out of context. Certainly not having sufficient PFD's on board is unsafe (and illegal) as is too many divers (or non divers).

Yet many of you still book charters on boats like that.

Diving SOLO, see ya wouldn't want to be ya.

In summary, I don't think we've got a big risk problem with people diving off their own boat (I for one will continue to do so). But they should (and if I was in the area I would) pay to use POW (or SOS, etc) moorings

Not a problem send your donation off to

Preserve Our Wrecks
55 Ontario Street
Kingston, Ontario K7L 2Y2

or

Save Ontario Shipwrecks
R. R. #1, Box 19
Athens, Ontario
Canada K0E 1B0


Tom R

 

[Groundhog246]

You'll never find me, knowingly, on a vessel without the proper safety equipment. On my own boat, my wife and I have (and wear) inflateable PFD's with an integral harness (in rough weather, it's better to tie in and stay on or at least attached to the boat, than count on floating till whoever's left aboard can trun round, find you and pick you up again. And yes we do practise MOB procedures. At over $200 each, not cheap, but you only get one chance to get it right and what's your life worth. Our kids aren't old enough (16) to legally wear inflateable pfd's, but they do have good quality, bright coloured "standard" ones. An aquaintance once said, you're biggest regret in safety equipment wil be the piece you need and wish you had bought (she once spent 4 days shipwrecked on a reef with 3 others, so she may be a bit biased).
It's really amazing how many people buy the absolute CHEAPEST lifejacket they can to meet the regulations. Kinda like buying the absolute cheapest reg & bcd.

 

[Tom R]

The Groundhog made the following comment

It's really amazing how many people buy the absolute CHEAPEST lifejacket they can to meet the regulations. Kinda like buying the absolute cheapest reg & bcd.

Well said

Tom

 

[pufferfish]

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POW