Motorboat cruising skills

[SpartacusF]

I've sailed (sail) boats for forty years but plan to charter a stink boat, don't shoot me, one of my parents has mobility issues and it would be good to share the love of life on the water etc. What course or skills would be necessary/advisable to enable me to safely charter around a 45ft/4-6 berth boat capable of planing? (I have the usual RYA yotty qualifications so have safety/navigation/weather etc all done, it's more about handling and parking). Or just go and rent one?

[Badda]

Hav a look on RYA site. A starting point is powerboat 1&2, they do advanced handling etc too. Presume you have DS already?

Not sure you'd be able to hire one without the above.

[arfur]

Just do PBL2 and add it to your ICC

Admittedly that's only up to 10M (33ft) so it depends where you plan to use the boat. In the UK you dont need the licence anyhow, but in the EU you'd need the ICC > 10m for that size boat. If you've already done your RYA day skipper for the sail boat then you dont need to do it again, just do the PBL2 for a couple of days to get you up to speed

hth

[QJumper]

SpartacusF said:

I've sailed (sail) boats for forty years but plan to charter a stink boat, don't shoot me, one of my parents has mobility issues and it would be good to share the love of life on the water etc. What course or skills would be necessary/advisable to enable me to safely charter around a 45ft/4-6 berth boat capable of planing? (I have the usual RYA yotty qualifications so have safety/navigation/weather etc all done, it's more about handling and parking). Or just go and rent one?

If it's more about handling and parking, which are the trickiest parts, then my advice would be to find a private instructor and book him for a day. To be honest it's mostly about familiarity and confidence, A course will spend the time going through a range of things you may already know whereas, with an instructor booked to just help you with specifics, you can spend the time going in and out of a marina and parking a dozen times, if you like.

Initially that kind of handling can seem a littlle intimidating but, with someone qualified beside you, it's much easier. In my experience that was the fastest way to learn, practise, and become confident in those aspects of handling.

[tertius]

Honestly if you have already got DS and/or YM qualifications and 40 years of sailing experience I’d be amazed if you need anything else. Sailing (i.e. sail boat) experience and qualifications includes motoring, mooring under power etc. and I’d be surprised if you’d really learn anything you don’t already know.

I have DS (sail) and my gf recently did PB2 and from her description it was a much reduced subset of DS.

[ecsrobin]

It will all depend on what the charter company want you to have. A quick look at a Solent based bareboat charter and they want RYA day skipper Motor.

[OutInTheShed]

A 45ft planing boat is a pretty serious bit of kit.
It's going to get through a lot of fuel on a day's charter.
The extra cost of a skipper might not be noticed!

Berthing something that size singlehanded may not be easy and could go wrong.

I'd consider a skippered charter with the understanding that you each get some time on the helm (and throttles!).

[SpartacusF]

Thanks all, a PBL2 qualification is handy for other reasons too, like helping out with the club safety boat, and then getting experience in the Solent chartering a 10m boat will be a valuable step. I'll do that first.

[Simpo Two]

SpartacusF said:

I've sailed (sail) boats for forty years but plan to charter a stink boat, don't shoot me, one of my parents has mobility issues and it would be good to share the love of life on the water etc. What course or skills would be necessary/advisable to enable me to safely charter around a 45ft/4-6 berth boat capable of planing?

I'm not sure of the difference between renting and chartering, unless the latter means you get somebody to drive it for you, in which case you don't need any qualifications.

But you don't need to do 35kts on the plane to enjoy life on the water. I can do that at 4kts on my river cruiser, for about 1% of the price

[colin_p]

Always have a close shave before going BRRRR-RURRRR-BRRRR-BRUBBER-A-DUBBA-BRRRR-BRRRR between the hooters to avoid whisker burning them and ruining the chance to do it ever again.

[arfur]

SpartacusF said:

Thanks all, a PBL2 qualification is handy for other reasons too, like helping out with the club safety boat, and then getting experience in the Solent chartering a 10m boat will be a valuable step. I'll do that first.

I did my PBL2 etc in Sotogrande (Near Gib) ... much much warmer than on the Solent ! (Sotogrande Yachting if interested). Makes for a great few days away ! Fly into Gib, walk over the boarder and get a taxi to Soto !

[Boatbuoy]

I've done a number of qualifications covering both powered and sail craft (power for work, and sailing for pleasure). Generally speaking, things happen faster on a powered craft, but all of the theory is common ground.

The 2 biggest differences between the two for me are MOB drills and boat handling. With the latter you'll find two things:

1) Windage is probably a more powerful factor than you've been used to on yachts, particularly if you're looking at flybridge type craft.
2) Any sizable powerboat stands a good chance of having twin engines, with twin throttles. Some people get it, others just can't grasp maneuvering on throttles alone.

PBL2 will teach you the MOB drills, but (assuming it'll be on a single engine RIB) the boat handling won't but drastically different from that of a yacht. Dayskipper (Motor) will provide both. Alternatively, contact someone like Mendez Marine for some 1-to-1 tuition on just the areas you want/need.

The biggest factor is going to be insurance. I don't know of any UK charter offerings of motor yachts (not RIBS or single engine Axopar type) that will provide a boat without DS(M) ticket or above.

I hope that helps, and if I can assist further, just ask.

[vikingsmb]

Hi mate
(first time posting on here)

as a PBI (powerboat instructor) I suggest Get your pb2, also powerboat intermediate as well, and potentially advanced,
Pb2 teaches you the basics like coming alongsides MOB turn in confined space etc, but the intermediate teaches you bit more passage planning and rough water handling, I did my intermediate just before I did my PBI course in 2021, and we went on passage to weston on a 6 mtr rib, great fun going through the overfalls off flat holm

Do you have any navigation quals? i.e day skipper or yachtmaster?

Cheers
Rob