Tim wrote:
On Feb 17, 3:35�pm, Short Wave Sportfishing
wrote:
Tim wrote:
http://www.marinersschool.com/
Get a Capt. license with no USCG exam.
is this like getting a medical diploma from the University of
Bohmvobia? � �send us the money, we send you the diploma!
???
It's like anything you do - you get out of it what you put into it.

A lot of the USCG testing is done by organizations like this. �Some
teach their test, some teach the material and test against it.

You can learn a lot in these classes, but they are so condensed that you
� end up reviewing every once in a while just to keep the knowledge ready.

I took the USCG exam years ago before the sea schools and from what I
understand, it's a lot harder than these tests. �It's a matter of degree
� - how much is considered acceptable in terms of error and what not.

It's one thing to be able to pass the test - it's another to have the
sea time to qualify for a particular level license. �I know guys who
have 100 ton licenses and own a 20 foot bass boat. �As long as you can
document a friend's boat as "experience", you can qualify.

It's an odd situation. I used to have a 100 ton license, but I
downgraded the license to 25 tons because I never used the 100 ton
license. �The nice thing is that I have good endorsements which is all I
ever wanted to achieve when I first started on this path years ago.

now that you mentioned it, why the downgrade from 100 to 20 t.?

I can understand the usage, but is there an extreme cost difference
with maintaining the status?

Not really. I could get the recency time because one of my family
members owns a tug/barge combination and I could always get time on that
everytime it went out. It wasn't hard to keep current with the requirements.

The 25 ton Near Coastal Masters is fine. I have the sail endorsement,
radar and towing - all I need.