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Chapter 3
6. When overtaking or passing, the boat being passed
has the right of way.
In general, boats with less maneuverability have right-
of-way over more agile cra . e skipper must keep his
cra clear of the following vessels:
• A vessel not under command or aground; due to their
circumstances, these vessels have no maneuverability.
• A vessel restricted in its maneuverability; these
vessels usually are performing work which limits
their maneuverability. Examples are boats surveying,
dredging, laying pipe or cable, or servicing navigational
markers.
• A vessel engaged in shing; these include boats shing
with lines, trawls or nets, but not trolling lines.
• Sailboats; they have the right-of-way over powerboats.
However, if a sailboat is using a prop to move forward, it
is considered a powerboat even if the sails are up.
• Remember the unwritten “rule of tonnage”. Basically a
smaller tonnage vessel should take every e ort to avoid
close quarters with a larger tonnage vessel. One way to
accomplish this is to have a designated human lookout to
“eyeball” the horizon for any developing collision course.
• Use defensive driving skills on the waterway just as you
do on the roadway. e other vessel may not know the
rules of the road. Be alert and ready to take immediate
action.
• If a collision course is unavoidable neither boat has the
right of way. Both boats must react to avoid an accident
according to the rules of the road.
LOOKOUTS
International and Inland navigation rules spell out
the specifics of establishing a lookout. A lookout is
legally de ned by the court system as a person who has
speci cally charged duties on board such as observing
sounds, echoes, lights and any inhibitors to navigation
with complete thoroughness as permitted by the
circumstances.
e term “speci cally charged” means that the lookout
has no other duties at that time that could prevent him
from keeping a proper watch.
Of course the skipper must delegate the lookout duties
to a seasoned crew member who can react to events
quickly and communicate e ectively with the captain
with little notice.
As captain of your yacht you are responsible for the
vessel and the crew. Choose an experienced individual as
lookout and review the navigation rules with this person
so he can make the right call quickly as situations develop.
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