Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr. V
Oh sure, when I fly out for my two week vacation this summer, I'll be sure to make time to take a boating course in NH.
Get real!
I live 3000 miles away; the LAST thing I want to do is blow a day in some classroom.
But as I said, I'll probably take a course offered locally by the Coast Guard Auxiliary which will yield the now all-important boating certificate.
I was surprised to find that the penalty for operating a boat in NH without the boating certificate was so trivial.
Couple that to seemingly low chance of discovery, and a risk analysis becomes inevitable, at least for those with a scofflaw gene.
Thanks to the one responder who actually chose to answer my question.
As for the rest of you ...
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This seems to me to be the same question as for a car driver's license. To operate a car in NH you are required to have a valid driver's license from a recognized authority. There are fines for driving without a license. The chances of a random stop are slim. If you screw up and get caught not having a license makes everything worse. Yet very few play the no car license game. People go and get their car license, putting in the time and money to take written and road tests and, in some cases, required driver education classes. Why should boating be any different? In many ways operating a boat is much more difficult than a car. I think the training requirements should be much more than they are, including a hands on training and on-the-water exam. You should be allowed to do it in your home state and have it transfer just like a car license does. Why do people resist this common sense requirement? Because it's inconvenient? Fine, go somewhere else and boat.