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No cost, no penalty vessel safety checks, which up until last season were given by U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and U.S. Power Squadrons volunteers at launch ramps, boat clubs and marinas, are back. Boat owners can now request in-person safety checks from the Coast Guard Auxiliary or download a DIY checklist and perform the inspection themselves.

DIY virtual safety check: A new virtual safety check continues the tradition of no-cost inspections by offering a combination of an easily downloadable virtual safety checklist – the same used by actual vessel examiners – along with online guide that makes it easy for any boater to perform their own examination. To start, visit: bit.ly/CGAux_SafetyCheck

Doing a DIY virtual safety check does two things: It can give first-time boat owners a line-by-line recipe for making their boats safe. It can also greatly increase the chances of any boat successfully passing an in-person vessel safety check. Examiners note that it’s often just one or two items, such as expired flare or a burnt-out navigation light, that prevents a boat from earning a passing grade. The Auxiliary and Power Squadrons also note that some boaters desire to earn a vessel safety check decal to display aboard the boat, which can only be earned through an in-person vessel check.

In-person vessel safety check: While COVID has affected many groups, including the Auxiliary and Power Squadrons, each is endeavoring to get vessel examiners in the field this year. The easiest way to find out if a marina, boat club, or launch ramp will be the site of a scheduled vessel safety check event is to contact your local U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary or U.S. Power Squadrons. You can also request an individual vessel safety check at cgaux.org/vsc, but note that scheduled vessel safety events may offer the surest way to earn a vessel safety check decal this season. All in-person vessel safety checks follow COVID safety protocols.

If you enjoyed the first five books of Michael C. Grumley’s Breakthrough Series, you’ll be pleased to know he’s released book six, Echo. In this action adventures series, scientists have discovered that dolphins are capable of communicating with humans in far more complex ways than were ever previously imagined. The impact this has on the world, and especially the team of researchers and an elite military team tasked in protecting the project, continues in book six. From the author: It began with a breakthrough. In interspecies communication. Leading both John Clay and Alison Shaw through a series of startling discoveries and life-altering revelations. Divulging who we really are as a species. Why we are here...and who is here with us. And the greatest lesson of all, that our brains are not as rare and unique as humans had assumed. But rather just one of three brains between three extraordinary species. All influenced by a fluke of evolution and something that should never have existed on Earth in the first place. Something we are now finally on the verge of understanding.

It will take more than just one brain to do it. More than just one species. And courage from all three.

Courage in the face of those still trying to stop Clay and Alison before their stranglehold on the world is lost.

But Clay and his team already know the truth. That there is no courage without fear, and no victory without sacrifice.

You can purchase the book on Amazon at: https://amzn.to/2Q27iXS

Richard Bjorneby, 26, of Darien, landed a record-breaking African pompano (Alectis ciliaris) off the Georgia coast Saturday, March 13, 2021, and has been certified as the new state record holder for that species. Bjorneby caught the 47.8-inch (total length), 40-pound, 0.48-ounce fish near Navy Tower R4 aboard the vessel Anchored Up, captained by Johnny Wildes. The fish breaks the previous record of 37-pounds, 1.28-ounces held since August 2019 by Alvin Dezern of Brunswick. Doug Haymans, director of DNR’s Coastal Resources Division, which oversees the state’s Saltwater Gamefish Record Program, said Bjorneby’s catch is a credit to the years of experience he has as an angler. Richard Bjorneby with his record- “This achievement recognizes not only the size setting pompano. of the catch, but Mr. Bjorneby’s skill as an angler Photo provided by GADNR and the sportsmanship displayed in landing a record-setting gamefish,” Haymans said. Bjorneby landed the African pompano using a 6-foot, 6-inch Shimano Talavera rod with Penn Slammer 7500 reel with 85-pound braided Spiderwire line and a diamond jig as bait at the end of a 3-foot, 60-pound monofilament leader on a swivel.

The catch was weighed at the Georgia DNR regional headquarters in Brunswick on Monday, March 15, 2021, on scales certified by the Georgia Department of Agriculture. The Saltwater Gamefish Records Committee, comprised of DNR marine biologists and staffers, approved the new record Wednesday, March 17, 2021.

Bjorneby will receive a certificate signed by Gov. Brian Kemp acknowledging his record catch, and the record will be added to the list published at CoastalGaDNR. org/RecreationalFishing. It will also be included in the 2022 Georgia Sport Fishing Regulations guidebook.

For the current list of men's and women's saltwater fishing records, as well as information on how to submit a catch to the Georgia Saltwater Gamefish Record, please visit CoastalGaDNR.org/RecreationalFishing.

In recreational boating, cellphones are just fine for routine communications. So why do you need a VHF radio – either a handheld or fixed mount – on your boat? Because in an emergency it’s the only thing that can directly connect you to the U.S. Coast Guard’s Rescue 21 system, giving you access to high-tech emergency response and Digital Selective Calling (DSC) capabilities that can hasten your rescue.

To ensure your VHF radio is ready to go for the season, here are five tips from the BoatUS Foundation: 1. Check the antennae, power and ground to the VHF radio, and batteries/charger if a handheld. Rusty or ill-fitting connections rob your radio of range. Hand held VHF batteries need to be fully charged. 2. Read your radio’s manual so you know features like squelch, scan, and hi/lo power settings. Familiarize yourself with the most important VHF radio channels. 3. For those with non-DSC VHF radios, automated VHF radio check systems are no longer available. However, you can make a short radio check voice call on VHF channel 9 (do not tie up the distress channel 16). 4. For those with DSC VHF radios, enter the U.S. Coast Guard coast station group identity “003669999” into the radio’s DSC memory. Once stored, 1. select “Test Call” from the radio’s DSC menu; 2. select the U.S. Coast Guard number you just entered; and 3. transmit the call. Your DSC VHF radio’s display should indicate when that test call is acknowledged and display the acknowledging station’s nine-digit identity. Note that the identity may be different than the group identity you previously entered. 5. Get your DSC-VHF radio’s Maritime Mobile Service Identity (MMSI) number by going to BoatUS.com/MMSI. MMSI numbers are free for BoatUS members or $25 for nonmembers. Don’t forget to enter the new MMSI number into your DSC VHF radio and ensure GPS connection is made (if DSC-VHF radio doesn’t have internally).

More information on VHF radios can be found at bit.ly/VHF_RadioInfo. BLACKBIRD CHARTER CO.

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