Subscribe to RSS FeedOne of my most important duties during the winter here at Safe/Sea is attending the annual C-Port Conference. C-Port is the national trade association for the marine assistance industry, an organization created over 20 years ago to promote professionalism in our industry and to give a voice to our industry with the rulemakers in Washington that write the regulations affecting towing companies that provide assistance to recreational boaters in the entire U.S. About 200 marine assistance companies belong to the organization, and there were around 150 attendees at this year's conference, which was held in Destin, FL.
The conference included a presentation by Captain Richard Moore, President of the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA); a keynote address from Captain David McBride, Chief of the Office of Search and Rescue, US Coast Guard Headquarters (pictured at right), and an address by Captain Dean Lee, Chief of Staff, Seventh Coast Guard District. My readers might remember seeing Capt. Lee interviewed by major tv news networks regarding the man-overboard case involving the loss of a woman from a cruise ship earlier this winter.
While the official meetings themselves are very valuable, the high points of this conference are always the more informal events, like the banquet and this year's attendee organized (thanks, Keith!) Super Bowl Party, that give all of us boat drivers a chance to get to know each other better by swapping stories and exchanging ideas on how to better run our businesses. I want to personally thank both Capt. McBride and Capt. Lee not only for their time and effort expended attending the conference, but also for taking the extra time to socialize with us and getting to know the people in our industry on a personal basis (that's me with Capt. Lee in the picture above).The people that make up the marine assistance industry are a diverse lot, and I'll be profiling one of the most interesting personalities of the bunch next week, so be sure to check back here after the weekend!
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