NA Senior High School

1.            It is a requirement for all motor boats to be registered in PA.

2.            The maximum weight capacity of persons, motor and gear is information that is included on a boats capacity plate.

3.            Improper fueling causes most boating fires.

4.            A personal flotation device (PFD) must be replaced when it has a tear or defect anywhere in the material.

5.            In PA, anyone being towed behind a boat must wear a life jacket, as well as children 12 years of age and younger on any boat 20 feet or less in length, and all canoes and kayaks.

6.            Boats 16 feet or over in length, except canoes and kayaks, are required to carry a throwable PFD.

7.            Operators of a PWC must be at least 12 years of age.

8.            In PA, it is a requirement for all boats to have one wearable life jacket for each person on board.

9.            Traffic density is the best factor to determine safe boating speed.

10.        PA boating regulations require fire extinguishers to be mounted away from the fuel source.

11.        In PA, visual distress signals are required only when boating on Lake Erie.

12.        The boats bilge blower should be run for four minutes before starting your gasoline engine.

13.        Gasoline fumes are most likely to accumulate in the bilge of the boat.

14.        Water hazards to be aware of while boating include: strong currents, strainers and dams.

15.        If you are in a small, unstable boat and the water gets rough, you should put on your life jacket and head to the nearest shore.

16.        When a motor boat is overtaking a personal watercraft, the personal watercraft is the stand-on vessel.

17.        When approaching low-head dams, hazards exist from going over the dam and approaching it from downstream.

18.        Common first signs of an approaching thunderstorm include: the build up of dark clouds, a sudden temperature drop and drop in barometric pressure.

19.        It is illegal for anyone 12 to 15 years of age to operate a PWC with any passengers on board 15 years of age or younger.

20.        A type B fire extinguisher is designed to put out flammable liquid fires; a type C is for electrical fires.

21.        A canoe is more likely to capsize when it is overloaded.

22.        A float plan should be left with a friend or relative before leaving on a boating trip.

23.        The best way to stop the spread of aquatic nuisance species is to wash your boats hull with hot water or a high pressure spray.

24.        The best precaution against carbon monoxide poisoning is to keep air moving through your boat.

25.        The boat’s anchor line should be tied to the bow.

26.        It is a requirement that a PFD’s must fit the person wearing it.

27.        An officer can stop a boat and arrest the operator for being under the influence:  Penalties can include: fines up to $7500, up to two years in jail and the loss of boating privileges for up to one year.

28.        A boating accident report form must be completed and sent to the PA Fish and Boat Commission if your boat has $2000 or more worth of damage from a boating accident.

29.        When two boats are meeting in a head on situation, both boats must turn to the starboard.

30.        The give-way vessel’s responsibility is to stop or slow down and pass astern of the stand-on vessel.

31.        A buoy that has a diamond with a cross in it indicates boats keep out.  A buoy with a circle indicates a controlled area.

32.        Boats must operate at slow no-wake speed when they are within 100 feet of the shoreline, dock, swimmer, etc.

33.        Everyone on board should know where to find all safety equipment.

34.        Standing up is unsafe when in a small, open boat.

35.        Capsizing and falling overboard causes most boating deaths.

36.        Hypothermia is the lowering of the body’s core temperature.

37.        H.E.L.P. stands for: Heat, Escape, Lessening, Posture.

38.        The first thing you should do if someone falls overboard is reach to the person with something.

39.        If you fall overboard, you should stay with the boat and climb into or on top of it.

40.        You should aim at the base of a fire when using a fire extinguisher.

41.        A boat’s danger zone is straight ahead to the starboard side.

42.        If you see one of your passengers drop a container (trash) into the water, you should go back and retrieve it.

43.        You must give help to another boat or boater involved in an accident when doing so would not endanger your own boat or passengers.

44.        Hypothermia should be treated with medical attention.

45.        When operating a personal water craft (PWC), it is illegal to operate after sunset and before sunrise.

46.        A red flag with a diagonal white stripe indicates there diving activity in the area.

47.        A blue and white pennant is a code flag alpha and boats must display this flag during diving operations if they are restricted in their ability to maneuver.

48.        Navigation lights must be displayed from sunset to sunrise and periods of restricted visibility.  After sunset, one all-round white light must be displayed when at anchor. 

49.        Letting off or releasing the throttle control may cause the loss of steering ability in a PWC.

50.        When water skiing or towing somebody behind your boat, a competent observer must be onboard and observing the person being towed.