Danger at sea is real, if rare

Just about every sailor would say that having a full sail and the open water in front of them could be the best feeling they experience.

But what happens when something goes wrong? The world watched from afar recently as Newport Beach sailor Ken Barnes was rescued about 500 miles off the coast of Chile, his two masts broken and his boat taking on water.

“Everybody tends to focus on bad weather and the worst-case scenarios,” Orange Coast College School of Sailing and Seamanship executive director Brad Avery said. “But sailing out in the ocean and being out on a boat is an absolutely terrific experience the vast majority of the time, and so emergencies and the storms are very rare occurrences — you just need to be prepared to handle them.”

Safety was certainly on the minds of many Saturday at the safety at sea seminar hosted by Orange Coast College School of Sailing and Seamanship and the Newport Harbor Yacht Club. Held at the yacht club, the seminar was mainly attended by racers who are required to attend a safety at sea seminar every so often.

But the comprehensive eight-hour seminar was not only geared toward the very experienced racers. The public is also encouraged to attend these seminars, which are put on once a year by the college’s sailing school.

The day included a life raft demonstration, what to do when a man goes overboard and a mock Coast Guard helicopter rescue. The rescue had those in attendance, as well as some onlookers, watching as the helicopter threw a dummy into the harbor to be saved and let down a rescue swimmer to do his work.

And while a Coast Guard helicopter rescue may not be required for the everyday sailor who may run into problems while on the Catalina Channel, it’s imperative they be prepared to avoid disaster.

Dustin Wilkinson, Mark Quinn and Devon West traveled to the Newport Harbor Yacht Club from Nevada to learn more about sailing safety. The trio is most accustomed to sailing on lakes but soon will be taking a boat off the coast of Seattle, making their way to Hawaii — a possibly treacherous sail.

Despite the trio being self-proclaimed adrenaline junkies, they are committed to making sure their trip is a safe one.

“We’re just taking the safety course because it’s so important…. I’ve seen people who buy a boat and have no idea about safety, but it definitely should come first,” said Wilkinson, 22, who is also a U.S. Sailing-certified sailing instructor.

To help sailors with safety, the Coast Guard has a list of safety equipment, which can vary depending on the size and type of boat, required by law.

Boaters “need to be familiar with the required safety equipment, which differs from size to size, but one common thing all boats need are lifejackets,” Avery said. “The larger the vessel, the more safety equipment is required.”

And although Avery considers lifejackets and vests to be the most important safety precaution boaters can take, the majority of incidents that happen to everyday boaters are slips and falls. But that doesn’t mean other bad things can’t happen while offshore.

“Ninety-nine percent of all boaters around here are just going to Catalina, but every year there are fires on boats, and every year people fall overboard,” Avery said. “As I said, it’s not dangerous. You just have to manage the risk, and that’s what we try to help people do.”

Aside from the safety at sea seminars, the sailing school offers safety courses throughout the year. In addition, the school integrates a safety component into all of its courses.

“From my vantage point, the biggest thing is experience and education,” Avery said. “You have to be able to respond effectively in an emergency, and there’s a lot of different ways to get it, but you have to put the time in.”

For more information about boating safety, go to the California Department of Boating and Waterways education unit, www.boatsmarter.com.

To check out OCC sailing classes, go to www.occsailing.com.