OUPV/Six-pack Captain’s License Online

What is your reason for doing online rather than classroom?

I'm a supporter of online learning but when it is interactive, includes teachers, and isn't 100% self-guided. I've seen some excellent online college courses in which all the attributes of classroom instruction were included. Unfortunately, the online captains training is just digital. We had captains training us and we had lake experience, but I still found benefit to the classroom environment.

Among the online schools, Mariners Learning System has been around a good while and I've known those who completed it and praised it. Many others are still textbook based and not even digital.

How much sea time do you have? Have you documented it? We had enough inland boating to go for Masters rather than Six Pack even though initial licenses were very low tonnage.

There are many ways to document Sea Time. Look at boats you've owned, times you've gone out. Document ownership. Try to figure out usage to the best of your ability. That should be the next thing you do in your quest as it will tell you where you stand. You may well find you have enough time to skip the six pack. However, you may still decide not to, but to do it in two stretches, six pack and later, Masters. Regardless, you need your Sea Service documented up front before going for either.

Here's a link on documenting sea service.

https://www.dco.uscg.mil/Portals/9/NMC/pdfs/professional_qualifications/crediting_sea_service.pdf

And, the form:

https://www.dco.uscg.mil/Portals/9/NMC/pdfs/forms/CG_719S.pdf

If you could get time to fly to Fort Lauderdale, I believe it would be worth it. Unfortunately for you, I believe Fort Lauderdale is no less convenient than the Texas schools.

I am concerned you think a captains license course will train you.
This will be a mis-conception.
Captains license course are quick refreshers, riddles to help you remember some important rules, some reminders to help figure the weather with more memory helpers on compass, navigation, radar and vectors..
Mostly to prep you for a test with government (foreign language) text. All assumes you have been there and lost some T shirts already.
If you want to learn on-line, join BoatUS and enroll in their on-line classes.
In port, seek out the USCG auxiliary or Power Squadron classes.
IMO, these will be more a help on boat handling to help you and family.

OUPV or inspected captains license just mean you are responsible to take the lives of other (sometimes strangers) into your hands for hire.
It may (MAY) help on your boats insurance.

You may be ahead of the game if you have gone thru the flying test. Government questions are different from everyday language.
And with your flying ticket, you have been trained and up there a few hours.

Many YF kids fly and float. Some aspects of vectors (set & drift). Pre-flight is always a great part of a float plan.
Brief, fly (boat) the brief and de-brief are still the same, just more relaxed with lots more pictures of smiles in the never ending de-brief.

Now, heavy duty USCG license need some help from the real maritime schools and lots of time moving up the ranks.
These schools produce masters degrees and real merchant marine ranks way above the recreational boater. Heavy career, all ocean jobs.

Not like the test prep schools I think you were looking at for OUPV and up to 200 ton coastal master.
For the small tickets, you keep your hours recorded, learn lots as you go. If you want to take on paying passengers you need a ticket.

Different boat insurance companies may require some training. The state test (on-line) helps.
Checked out by a licensed captain and a letter to your insurance company may help.
But a captains license (unlike your air ticket) is not required on your boat,, as long as no paying, barter or chipping in passengers are on board.

Lots of YF kids are in south FL. Open a new thread and ask about where to dock. I'm feared it's getting tight down there.

Probably your most important request here on YF, Keep us up on your travels (remember those smiles and pictures) updates on all projects and come home safe.

I took Mariners Learning Sysrem to get my 6pack. I had enough documented inland hours over 20 years of runabout lake( literally on paper notebooks- my own logs). Coast guard doesn’t check them BTW…

It was good for rules of road and practical navigation… BUT IT IS NOT A DRIVING TEST; it’s a piece of paper that helped me begin to understand what I didn’t understand. I think Insurance companies look at it as much a test of are you diligent enough to finish?—if so you are probably a serious and therefore insursble person.

I didn’t “solo” on my boat (54’ Flybridge) until I had 86 hours over 15 days with my Cap’n aboard… and each of those trips were all about checklists, engine rooms, Genset, fuel management, previewing our trip (on Garmin… not the paper), provisioning and discussion of what we were doing- and why we were doing something —- sometimes that mirrored the Cap’n test. I’m glad I have both; but the class would be meaningless without experiencing with a pro.
I’m now up to 482.2 hrs over 141 days/nights over last 4 hrs (lost 1 whole year to Covid) and I feel confident that I now understand how much I still
Don’t know…. You are in the fun stage of opening up a big box of learning.

Having used Mariners Learning, do you now feel you would have benefitted more from an interactive classroom course or not?

If you can show ownership and length of time, CG isn't likely to dispute. Just dispute the extreme or obviously questionable or those with no documentation.

Did you, or do you now, have the time for a Masters, and, if so, do you plan on pursuing it?

I did my 6 pack 15 years ago and the 100 master away since I had the time. Frankly I can’t say that I learn anything in the classes especially the 6 pack. Online which was not available then would have been just fine.

Maybe a bit different since I did it after 15/20 years of running my own boats, 53’ being the biggest.

for all of them, OUPV, 100 and then 200 all the instructors cared about is that everybody passed. They clearly emphasized the topic that would be in the test. Worst for the 200 the practice test we did on the last day turned out to be the exact same test that was given on test day. I must have been the only one who didn’t get the hint and memorized or wrote the answers as i was the last one finishing since I had to do all the plotting questions. What a joke.

unfortunately there is very tittle in all these classes (up to 200) that you will use in the real world.

biggest downside to in person classes is that you have to be dragged down by the slowest students...

Waste of time.

trying to decide if it s worth my time to go for 500.

I thought the online instruction was good/ better than I expected. Lots of video animations that you could watch as many times as you needed. I could go on my own pace, the quizzes were good and when you got something wrong it referred back to where to read/watch animation again.

I didn’t want to try to cram it in with a room full
If strangers in a short time. And I had a few question that the owner Bob Figular answered.

not sure I’ll ever run across a “Red over Red Captain’s Dead” , but it’s good to know.

Yep, NUC not cool.

If you ever head to The Bahamas, you'll see this lots in the Northwest Providence Channel off Freeport. It's relatively calm, but deep there, so ships will just drift while awaiting berths nearby.

Interesting, not disabled, just drifting.
NUC would work well.

Under way, not making way.

Yep. Not very exceptional circumstances, but I've seen it many times in that area.