Boat U.S. - May 2008 - (Page 39) craft and distribute boating safety messages. Eventually, the U.S. Coast Guard — as the federal agency designated to enforce boating safety laws and standards — began supporting the campaign and paid for printing and postage for posters and handouts. “The campaign was to get national publicity you would not otherwise get to reach the general population,” Schwartz said. The biggest impact of the week, according to Schwartz, was a proclamation by the president, which gave boating safety the splash of publicity it needed. The aim was also to reach the hardest-to-reach boater: the one who doesn’t join any groups. Instead of 10 different boating safety messages being promoted, the council brought consistency with everyone agreeing to use the same slogan and same focus each year to gain impact. The other tricky part was promoting safety without taking the fun out of boating with scare tactics and negative messages. Eventually, as everyone got more media savvy, celebrity spokespersons were recruited to pose for pictures, appear in radio and television public service announcements and print ads. The celebrities ranged from Flipper and Popeye to Raymond Burr, George C. Scott, Lloyd Bridges, David Hasselhoff, Alan Jackson and most recently, Jeff Gordon and former President George H.W. Bush. “The Coast Guard used to put on the campaign and do most of the things NSBC does now,” recalled Capt. William Griswold, who not only served for years in the Coast Guard’s Office of Boating Safety but in retire- ment chaired the council from 2003-4 and is an active Auxiliarist. “As the Coast Guard’s budget and attention to recreational boating slacked off, the council stepped up to the plate and assumed those tasks.” But not until 1984 when Congress created the Wallop-Breaux boating trust fund did boating safety funding jump to a new level. Instead of scraping by with borrowed support and members’ dues, the council evolved into a professional operation and began to take on a number of boating safety functions previously performed by the Coast Guard. The council also was able to add paid staff in the 1990s, hiring Executive Director Virgil Chambers in 1996. surprisingly, the general public is still largely unaware. “Adapting to a web-based population will be an ongoing challenge as demographics change and younger, more computer-literate people get into boating,” says Griswold. “The council needs to keep up with technology.” In 2007, the annual safe boating campaign changed dramatically to a nearly allelectronic distribution. Gone were the thousands of printed booklets and kits mailed nationwide to boating groups. All materials are now downloadable at the council’s web site, Safeboatingcouncil.org. While some volunteers miss receiving their own media kit or walking a videotape into a local TV station, the change eliminated massive paper, printThe Next 50 Years ing and mailing costs and freed up funds for With fatalities greatly reduced and man- other council projects. The campaign also datory education growing steadily among the expanded some years ago from a single week in May to a months-long series of events, states, what’s left to accomplish? Chambers messages and media blitzes. thinks the improvements in life jackets are “We can’t let our guard down,” said not apparent to the average boater and still present an educational challenge. “The gear Wood of the future. “There are new people coming into the sport and we can’t say, ‘OK, just kind of escapes them,” he said. “When you say ‘personal flotation device’ people are we’re done.’ Education has to be ongoing. The issues we see now really haven’t changed still visualizing the bulky Type II.” that much since the beginning — life jackets, In a pilot test of “experiential marketalcohol and lack of training.” ing” done last summer in the California Since boating fatalities have decreased Delta region, Chambers said over 90% of significantly from the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s, boaters approached in person and offered the boating public “has been the biggest a free inflatbeneficiary” of the boating safety movement, able life jacket says Wood. “For the boating public, educadid not know tion has come so far compared to what was what it was. available decades ago.” Technology has If the Coast Guard moves ahead with advanced but, a federal requirement for boating education, Wood also foresees a key role for the National Safe Boating Council — being even more of a national point of contact for boating education information and materials. — By Elaine Dickinson Elaine Dickinson served as NSBC Chair from 1995-96. National Safe Boating Week is May 17-23 A record inflation at the Boating Safety Summit in Newport Beach, CA. National Safe Boating Council incorporates as a nonprofit. Photo courtesy of NSBC Visit SafeBoatingCampaign.org The “Wallop-Breaux” boating trust fund is enacted by Congress to return boating fuel tax money to boating safety groups and projects. Council receives stable funding through grants. National Safe Boating Week goes largely on line. 1972 Late 1970s 1984 2004 Boating fatalities drop to a record low of 676. 2007 2008 NSBC 50th Anniversary BoatU.S. Magazine May 2008 The first annual boating safety seminar is held by the council. Grows into the Boating Safety Summit in 1996. 39 http://Safeboatingcouncil.org http://SafeBoatingCampaign.org
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