PHOENIX — Spring and summer isn’t far off and Arizona’s waterways will soon be teeming with activity. To make sure you’re ready for another great boating and paddling season, the Arizona Game and Fish Department recommends all water users to take a boating safety course.
The department offers free courses in Phoenix and Lake Havasu City every month to provide water users the information and tips needed to stay safe while on the water. Each year many deaths and injuries on Arizona’s waterways are the result of people who don’t know how to operate a watercraft properly or how to act to avoid placing themselves in danger.
For more information on boating safety or to register for a hands-on or online safety course, visit www.azgfd.gov/boating and click “Boating Safety Education.” Below is a list of hands-on boating safety courses scheduled for March:
Arizona Boater Education Course
- 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. March 19, Apex Arms Facility, Green Building, Lake Havasu City
- 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. March 19, Arizona Game and Fish Headquarters, Phoenix
Arizona Paddlesports Education Course
- 10 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. March 26, Biscuit Tank at Ben Avery Shooting Facility, Phoenix.
Department’s courses include instruction on the basic skills needed to safely operate a boat or personal watercraft, trailering your vessel, navigational rules, buoys, anchoring, legal requirements, boating emergencies, watersports and paddling. In addition, most insurance companies offer a discount on boat or watercraft insurance rates for completing a course.
The department also reminds all watercraft users that boats in Arizona must have a life jacket aboard for every passenger aboard and those 12 years old and younger must wear a life jacket at all times, under state law. Users should also check to make sure a life jacket fits properly by ensuring there is no excess room above the openings of the jacket and that it does not ride up over the chin or face.
For more information on boating in Arizona or to sign up for a safety course, visit www.azgfd.gov/boating.