Two weeks

Well I'm now an hour short of the two -weeks-without-a-post-mark.

Not a lot to report for the last 11 days, however the last two have been rather interesting.
I have been away at a course, a RYA (Royal Yachting Association) Safety Boat course.

I have been learning how to rescue vessels in distress, while being limited to a 6 man RIB.
Basically we have been capsizing a whole range of vessels in order to be able to right them again. Seems a bit repetitive, however when you are out there doing it, you don't notice that you are righting the same boat for the 5th time.

So we have capsized and turtled (completely upside-down) the following types:

Laser Pico Single Handed Sailing Vessel.
Topaz Omega Double Handed Sailing Vessel.
Dart-14 Catamaran
Canoes
Kyacks
Windsurfers

There was very little theory, most of it we learnt or worked out for ourselves when put in the position of having to deal with it.
Basically the rule is, if its small its easy, help by all means. If its large, try and get its crew to do the work,

We ended on a high too, we actually did a proper rescue. Well...
It was a private yacht that had lost all engine capability. He was managing to sail up Plymouth Cattlewater very well, tacking and gybing all the way, however as the river narrowed he didn't have any room. So we volunteered to tow him to his mooring spot, rather than call out the Coastguard/RNLI. It was a text book operation, with us managing to get him bang on.

So I now have another piece of paper to add to my logbook. I am certified.