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Articles are of general interest to the entire CCA membership, and are not particular to any specific station. Categories include Feature Articles, Safety Moments, White Papers and For Ocean Racers.

  • RAF demonstration photo by By U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Matthew Bruch - https://www.flickr.com/photos/pacificairforces/8473436702/in/photostream, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=24954152
    “I’ve Heard It All Before” Sometimes, it pays to listen
    Frequent travelers, or those listening to a particularly good podcast, frequently skip the safety briefing because “they’ve heard it all before 1,000 times” and find no value in it. Similarly, when sailing, we become immune to repetitive messages about safety because “we’ve heard it all before.” But there are instances when things ARE different, and we’re foolish if we don’t listen, and listen carefully. Read more
  • Locking ring with positioning marks
    Keep the Rudder in the Boat
    If your boat is equipped with a Jefa rudder system, the design may be the type with a locking ring located above the top bearing to prevent the rudder from sliding out of the vessel. During 2022 and 2023, we discovered four boats equipped with a Jefa rudder system, where the step for pre-drilling the set screw locations had not been performed. Read more
  • Nexba on the beach
    Unanswered Questions: Nexba's Lost Keel

    “Safety Moments, presented at CCA Stations and Posts”

    By Chuck Hawley, San Francisco Station, November 2023

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  • Fire Icon
    Mid-Sized Lithium Batteries: A Warning
    The biggest issue with mid-sized batteries is charging. Think the battery on an E-bike, or even an electric outboard. These batteries are known sinners. The New York City Fire Department counts over 200 E-bike lithium fires per year, primarily when batteries are being charged. Read more
  • A fire extinguisher
    ​​​​​​​Clean Agents: Fire Extinguisher Choices
    Each group was also shown the effectiveness of the inexpensive ABC or BC dry chemical extinguishers, again using a short well-aimed blast at the fire. However, during one of my demonstrations, I accidentally grabbed the halon extinguisher that I had used in a discussion of different fire-fighting agents. I pulled the pin, aimed the nozzle and let forth a brief blast of banned, terrible-for-the-environment, not-Sierra Club approved halon Read more
  • Spontaneous Combustion
    The story in MarineLog on this year’s Summer Solstice seemed both familiar and odd at the same time. A yacht valued at $1,500,000 burned to the waterline, and later sank, while undergoing some routine maintenance at a marina in Washington state. Closed circuit cameras showed that around 2:00 am, the fire started in the cockpit, and then grew slowly over an hour or so before someone noticed it and called the fire department. By then, the yacht was engulfed in flames.… Read more
  • Timelapse shot of lightning
    Lightning Strike: Reminder to be Prepared
    The weather at the ramp was sunny and clear, yet lightning struck the son standing on the bow. The lightning bolt came in his tail bone and out his foot. The son immediately went overboard and started to sink. The father jumped overboard and recovered his unresponsive son from the brackish, murky waters. The mother and other son remained on board the boat and called 911. They were unable to assist further as the boat’s motor shut down due to the lightning strike. Read more
  • Expired extinguisher
    ​​​​​​​New Year’s Resolutions
    But what about the resolutions we make with regard to the safe operation of our own sailboats and cruisers? How many times have you heard a fellow voyager say “Ya know, the next time we’re out, we ought to do a man overboard drill” or “I need to post instructions for how to broadcast a Mayday in the nav station.” With full knowledge that seamanship resolutions may have the same chance of succeeding as those we make about our behavior on land, I nonetheless suggest that we… Read more
  • Cardinal Valor
    Overboard in Warm Water
    A passenger on a Carnival Cruise Ship, traveling from New Orleans to Cozumel, was reported missing about 13 hours after he was last seen onboard. A search ensued, and the passenger was spotted by a commercial vessel, which then relayed the coordinates to the Coast Guard. He was picked up by a Coast Guard MH-60J shortly thereafter, apparently hypothermic, and was transferred to a local hospital where he was reportedly recovering. Read more
  • Electric flare
    The Future of Flares

    Safety Moment, Cruising Club of America, SF Station, Sept 2018

    Chuck Hawley

    Read more
  • Overboard Recovery: Avoiding Running Over the Victim
    Typical MOB situations (dark, rough seas) may make maneuvering the rescuing vessel tricky. The development of the Lifesling and similar devices assists in recovering a person in the water without having to get dangerously close. Read more
  • Stay on the boat, float if you don't
    Life Jacket Update
    Inspect, test, and practice your life jacket! Read more