At each OCSG meet we could have a contact no. for reporting problems etc. and also register our own no. when we sign out on the water (that's if we decide to adopt this as a rule). If you learn to voice dial you don't even need to dial the no. For our independent outings, simply have the contact number of a friend, slipway, marina etc. to alert in case of trouble. This of course depends on a reliable signal being available.
It's not bad emergency cover for the money and doesn't cost a bean if you already have a phone, as most members do. It also puts the onus of safety more on the individual and less on the group or event organiser, which I feel is right when embarking on potentially hazardous pursuits. If not officially adopted this could be done on a voluntary basis.
Does anyone have any constructive suggestions or thoughts on this idea?
Safety (DaveT)
I should like to align myself with your comments (Editor's view of AGM, Feb 05 GOSSIP) on the issue of safety. A member had submitted a very detailed letter on the question of canoe capsizes and duty of care that sailors of all classes have for one another. Whilst one appreciates the chairman's attempt to keep the perhaps more mundane features of an AGM to a level that does not stunt an otherwise social event, I am, like yourself, concerned at the lack of urgency on resolving the questions of recovery from a capsize and also what is our duty of care to each other.
These issues must be taken seriously and with some urgency. It is vital for canoe sailing to flourish that we establish as a group capsize recovery methods that work quickly and efficiently for the less able, as that is the direction we are all taking as we get older. And it is also vital that we adopt a greater responsibility for newer, less able members whilst sailing. The appointed safety group reporting at the end of the year is not good enough; it is a responsibility we must all address immediately and engage each other in now.
|