After an evening at the PIC Coastal Classic Boat Prep and Safety Clinic, hosted by the New Zealand Multihull Yacht Club, any plans to write about outboard-motor maintenance were set aside in favour of something more pressing. The session wasn't aimed exclusively at racers. It was a reminder, relevant to anyone who takes a boat out, that the groundwork laid before you leave the marina shapes everything that follows, whether your destination is across the Hauraki Gulf or a quiet anchorage for the weekend.
Speakers Simon Hull, Adrian Percival, and Megan Kensington took the room through safety habits that transfer to any vessel and any voyage. The thread running through everything they said was simple: most problems are avoided well before the lines come off the dock, and good habits built early and repeated often are what separate prepared sailors from reactive ones.
One of the most practical suggestions raised was the value of a safety diagram kept aboard and accessible to everyone on the boat. Knowing the locations of seacocks, fire extinguishers, flares, first-aid kits, and emergency equipment in the abstract is one thing. Having it mapped clearly so any crew member can act without needing to ask is another. Skippers were encouraged not to rely on memory alone. Check that lockers actually open, confirm that lights, radios, and batteries are functioning as they should, and work through those minor jobs now rather than discovering them underway. Quiet preparation rarely feels urgent, but it consistently proves its worth.
Crew induction was another theme the presenters returned to repeatedly. Whether the people joining you are experienced sailors, first-time guests, or family members along for a weekend trip, a proper walkthrough should be standard practice. Where is the safety gear stowed? How does the radio operate? What's the process for starting the engine if the skipper is incapacitated? How do you put a reef in? These are not questions that should arise for the first time at midnight in a building breeze. Practising the basics in daylight, rotating through different roles, and giving everyone a chance to handle each task builds the kind of familiarity that translates into genuine confidence when conditions deteriorate.
The clinic also covered the practical equipment every boat should carry and every crew member should know how to use. Lifejackets, now considerably lighter and more comfortable than older designs, should be worn after dark and whenever the wind climbs above 15 knots. Tethers and harnesses belong on before anyone leaves the cockpit, because preventing a person from going overboard is always preferable to recovering them. A registered EPIRB is now a requirement for Cat 3 vessels and represents sound preparation for any offshore passage. Each crew member carrying a personal torch with a red-light mode protects night vision during watches. A well-stocked first-aid kit, kept dry and within arm's reach, with at least one trained first-aider nominated aboard, rounds out the essentials.
Burnsco, a proud supporter of the PIC Coastal Classic and a long-time safety partner to Kiwi boaters, stocks the full range of this equipment. EPIRBs, strobes, harnesses, and first-aid kits are all available through them, making it straightforward to top up whatever a safety check reveals is missing.
The presenters were equally clear that looking after people matters as much as maintaining equipment. Cold, hungry, and tired crew make poor decisions, and the consequences can compound quickly offshore. Keeping food and water accessible, preparing hot drinks or soup for longer passages, and wearing proper wet-weather gear even when the sky appears cooperative all contribute to a crew that stays sharp. Rotating helms and trimmers before fatigue takes hold, rather than after, produces better sailing and faster reactions. Good seamanship often traces back to straightforward comfort and considered planning.
Running through safety drills before they are needed is not a formality. A man-overboard recovery practised in daylight, then repeated at night, builds a very different kind of readiness than simply knowing the theory. Simulating a power failure, reefing in a real breeze, and making sure every crew member can transmit a Mayday call correctly are the exercises that make an unexpected situation manageable rather than overwhelming.
If the boat hasn't had a thorough safety check this season, that is the logical first item before the next trip departs. Work through it with your crew or family, make note of what needs attention, and follow it with a visit to Burnsco to fill in any gaps.
The PIC Coastal Classic Boat Prep and Safety Clinic was a timely reminder that safety starts long before you cast off. The same care given to keeping a boat looking its best before summer should go into the preparation that keeps everyone aboard safe. The unglamorous work done well ahead of departure is what makes each trip go smoothly, and that is what gives a skipper real confidence once the lines are finally away.
