OPSS Boating Course

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Course Duration: 13 two-hour weekly sessions

The Ottawa Power and Sail Squadron's (OPSS) premier introductory course is the Canadian Power and Sail Squadrons (CPS) "Boating Course". This course is for you whether you're interested in power or sail. You will learn how to be safe and secure on the water, you will acquire your Pleasure Craft Operator Card (PCOC) and you can become a regular CPS member upon successful completion of the course.

You will also learn the basics of navigation and plotting. In addition, you will gain new boating friends, be able to network with your peers about the waterways within our district and beyond (places to go and not to go) and should you wish, you can join in on any of the OPSS social events.

Course Content:

1. Characteristics of Boats
2. Licensing, Registration, Other Requirements
3. Mandatory Equipment
4. Optional Equipment
5. The Magnetic Compass
6. Preparing To Launch
7. Ropes, Lines and Knots
8. Handling a Boat Under Power
9. Handling a Boat Under Sail
10. Weather
11. Skipper's Responsibilities Before Setting Out
12. Skipper's Responsibilities When Under Way
13. Collision Regulations
14. Canadian Aids to Navigation
15. Emergencies
16. Global Positioning and Charts
17. Navigation

18. An Exercise in Conning
19. Introduction to Plotting
20. Plotting and Labelling
21. Cruising Single-handed
22. Anchors and Anchoring
23. Supplementary Topics
24. Canadian Power and Sail Squadrons

The regular course material includes Student Notes; Homework Folder; Training Chart "A"; Chart No. 1 (Symbols and Abbreviations); Collision Regulations; Government Publications, and CPS Course Plotter.
The spousal material consists of, Homework Folder; Training Chart "A" and CPS Course Plotter.