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RIBS<br />
MONTHLY<br />
Guide<br />
to RIB<br />
Safety<br />
By Colin Etherington<br />
Christmas is all but <strong>for</strong>gotten and we fi nd<br />
ourselves in the deepest of winter months<br />
January.<br />
The nights are incredibly long and the<br />
days are particularly short which generally<br />
means we don’t have that much time to get<br />
afl oat especially when it is bitterly cold.<br />
We all know how fast and responsive the<br />
RIBs of today’s generation are and with that<br />
you should consider safety.<br />
More and more accidents every year take<br />
place and a lot of that is down to the<br />
owners not being adequately trained in<br />
handling these super fast vessels.<br />
Yes, they are incredible fun and in a lot of<br />
circumstances they are boys toys plus you<br />
can own one <strong>for</strong> not too much money, but<br />
please be responsible. I would certainly<br />
during the winter months get some RYA<br />
qualifi cations if you don’t already have<br />
them.<br />
A lot of brokers can offer this service as<br />
part of the package in buying the RIB or<br />
alternatively go online and fi nd out where<br />
the nearest RYA school is and book yourself<br />
in.<br />
I would suggest taking at least up to<br />
Intermediate level and without question<br />
take the Powerboat Level 2. This will<br />
give you confi dence and encourage safe<br />
handling of your RIB.<br />
By taking the courses in the winter,<br />
although it is far less com<strong>for</strong>table than the<br />
summer, you will gain far better knowledge<br />
of winter weather conditions.<br />
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