With the swim only days away, here are some important guidelines for safe boating from the Frankston Volunteer Coast Guard, who generously support our swim each year....

GUIDELINES FOR SUPPORT VESSELS FOR THE BLOODY BIG SWIM

As operators of support craft, the following points are highly recommended for the sake of safety for you and others....

• All vessels ideally should have marine communications of some form.   

• The event will be conducted using VHF channel 77 and/or 27 MHz. channel 27.96. Coast Guard vessel CG01 (callsign CG1) will be co-ordinating safety craft on the water and should be called if you have any queries or problems.

• Mobile phones can be used, however you will not get any “general broadcasts” concerning the event that may be issued.  You may not hear what is going on around you.If mobile phone happens to be your only means of communication, CG1’s number is 0427-963511

• Event numbers must be visible on BOTH sides of your vessel.

• Coast Guard recommends that all crew wear PFDs.

• Alcohol should not be consumed by the skipper of the vessel.

• When depositing or taking aboard swimmers from your vessel, the motor should be switched off. It is very easy for tired swimmers to miss their footing on a ladder and hit the propeller. 

• If you do have a problem, please try to convey your position as accurately and obviously as possible.  

           This can be quite difficult amongst a large group of vessels so give your: 

                          1. Race number. 

                          2. Nature of problem. 

                          3. Position relative to geographical location and within the fleet.  

           Have on hand something bright that can be raised to pinpoint your exact location to rescuers. 

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All entries require support boat information and will not be accepted without these details being complete. 

Here are some tips for locating possible boat owners....

1. Ask around your friends and family; many people have boats and are looking for a good reason to take them out for a great day on the bay ...supporting your swim!

2. Post notices at either local marinas, boat clubs or around boat ramps; many people in past year's have successfully teamed up with boat owners they did not know before the event, and had a great day with them for the swim.

3. The internet is always a good source of contacts for locating people who might want to support your swim....some people have used local community sites to post notices.

4. The following sites can be used to assist in finding a support boat.

• http://www.yellowpages.com.au/ then search Vic-Boat - Boat Hire - Drive yourself
• http://www.prmbclub.com.au/default.htm The Patterson River Motor Boat Club assisted us in prevous years in providing boats and Captains for the some interstate swimmers.

It is normal practice to offer to at least pay fuel costs for your support boat.

Other successes include advertising through community noticeboards, school newsletters, local newspapers.

We'll be posting detailed guidelines for Boat Captains to assist them on the day in a few weeks.

Good luck..and if you have any other creative ways of getting boats to be part of your swim team, let us know on info@thebloodybigswim.com