– Richmond, VA, Feb 16-18, 2018
– National Capital Boat Show, March 9-11, 2018
Friday
1pm Finding Your Perfect Boat
How do I go about buying the right boat for me…for us? Start Living the Dream aboard your own boat and Captain Chris will guide you along the way. Many of you may not have any boating experience but that’s OK! Maybe you have owned smaller, less system-intensive boats and want to move up to something larger and more comfortable. We don’t sell boats but will offer tips to help you Find Your Perfect Boat.
3pm Cruising America’s Great Loop
Learn more about the adventure of a lifetime. The Great Loop is a 7000 mile year long journey cruising around the waterways of eastern North America. The first 20 attendees will receive a complimentary one year membership to the America’s Great Loop Cruisers Association (AGLCA), courtesy of Captain Chris. Discover everything about becoming a looper!
5pm Navigation Made Easy
Review the latest in navigation resources including paper charts, electronic chart plotters, and internet websites that can help you plan your cruise for a day or the whole season. Learn about lights and other navigational assets while you discover how to interpret range makers, tides and currents. You’ll learn that navigation is much more than moving from one waypoint to the next…and there’s no final exam!
7pm All About Anchors
Ever had your anchor drag or listened to anchor horror stories from your boating buddies? Captain Chris will put your mind at ease. Learn about which anchors are right for the sea floor conditions and why. Different types of anchors, how much scope and when you may select chain vs. rope are some topics we’ll explore. Just what IS a snubber and where can you find one? Join Captain Chris for this interactive presentation and we promise you won’t have to clean mud off the deck.
Saturday
11am Finding Your Perfect Boat
How do I go about buying the right boat for me…for us? Start Living the Dream aboard your own boat and Captain Chris will guide you along the way. Many of you may not have any boating experience but that’s OK! Maybe you have owned smaller, less system-intensive boats and want to move up to something larger and more comfortable. We don’t sell boats but will offer tips to help you Find Your Perfect Boat.
1pm Navigation Made Easy
Review the latest in navigation resources including paper charts, electronic chart plotters, and internet websites that can help you plan your cruise for a day or the whole season. Learn about lights and other navigational assets while you discover how to interpret range makers, tides and currents. You’ll learn that navigation is much more than moving from one waypoint to the next…and there’s no final exam!
3pm Cruising the Chesapeake Bay
Come along with Captain Chris as he shares his favorite anchorages, marinas, and popular destinations of the Chesapeake Bay. Starting at the southern end of this historic estuary we will cruise north to Baltimore’s Inner Harbor and continue on to the C&D Canal and the Delaware Bay. This 180-mile cruising ground includes waterfront settings like Deltaville, Virginia, Pocomoke, Maryland, Washington, D.C., Annapolis, Baltimore, the Rappahannock River, and Sassafras River. Serene anchorages, convenient mooring fields, and popular marinas are all part of cruising the Chesapeake—you can cruise all season and never go to the same place twice!
5pm Inflatable PFDs (Life Jackets) & Rescue Line Toss Demonstration
Just because you wear an inflatable Personal Flotation Device (PFD) doesn’t mean it’s ready to inflate. Learn more about different types of inflatable PFDs and their care and maintenance. Step up and volunteer to pull the rip cord and see how it works. Take a few minutes to discover which works best for you. And learn how you can easily retrieve that “Man Overboard” with our LINE TOSS demonstration too. Ask Captain Chris all about boating safety!
7pm Bahamas Bound: Destination Abacos
A cruise to the Bahamas is no longer the great mystery it once was. Captain Chris discusses everything from when to cross the Gulf Stream and supplies to have on hand to available forms of communications and Customs and Immigration issues you’ll experience in getting there and back. Electronics make the crossing easier and in less than one day most boats find a wonderful marina or anchorage awaiting their arrival. On to the islands of Abacos!
Sunday
11 am Cruising the ICW (Intracoastal Waterway)
This is a must-attend seminar for any cruisers who intend to head south on the Intracoastal Waterway. Captain Chris will outline how to prepare yourselves and your boat for the trip and highlight some of the fun and inexpensive stops. Ask Captain Chris so you can have the adventure of a lifetime.
1pm Cruising the Florida Keys
The Keys are the place to go where you can find clear water, tropical climate and an “island” attitude. Captain Chris can help you plot your course for these far away islands that are really just next door. It’s an easy place for friends to visit without a passport.
3pm Vessel Communications
Explore with us the how-to of vessel intentions, whistle signals, internet, AIS, RADAR, SPOT and VHF radio. Sound like alphabet soup? Come learn more about each of these easy to use electronic tools found aboard more pleasure boats today. Ask Captain Chris!
