The Reporter newspaper, Camdenton Missouri

The Reporter covers Miller, Morgan and Camden County in Central Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks and is published once per week on Wednesdays.

Published March 6, 2019

‘Spring Aboard’ boating campaign begins March 16

LAKE OF THE OZARKS – Despite the snow and ice and freezing temperatures, many have their mind set on getting back in the boat and enjoying the waters of the lake.

In light of that, the “Spring Aboard” campaign will begin March 17 and the Missouri State Highway Patrol (MSHP) will once again be participating in the event.

Lieutenant Colonel Eric T. Olson, acting superintendent of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, recently announced the MSHP will participate in the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators’ (NASBLA) Spring Aboard campaign.

Developed by NASBLA, and produced under a grant administered by the U.S. Coast Guard, the annual Spring Aboard campaign informs and motivates boaters to prepare for the boating season by providing information on how to enroll in a boater education course.

The campaign emphasizes enrollment in approved courses which meet the national boating educational standard.

“Missouri’s many rivers and lakes offer a variety of boating opportunities,” said Lt. Col. Olson. “Please do your part: Spring Aboard and take a boating safety class. Join us in our mission to promote safety on our waterways.”

The Spring Aboard campaign encourages boaters to register for a certified boating educational course during the week of March 17-23, 2019. Forty-nine states and U.S. territories require some form of boater education.

Missouri law requires everyone born after January 1, 1984, who operates a vessel on Missouri lakes to possess a certified boating safety education card and photo ID. This includes personal watercraft operators.

Boaters have the opportunity to sign up for a certified course in a classroom or take an online course by visiting the Patrol’s website at https://www.mshp.dps.missouri.gov/WP02Web/app/safetyEdClasses

The classroom courses provided by the Missouri State Highway Patrol are free, but registration is required and the boater ID card costs $15.

For lake area boaters (Troop F) the Spring Aboard Boating Safety Courses will be held on March 23 at the following location:

Troop F
March 23, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., – Advantage Marine, Beechwood Drive, Sunrise Beach, MO

Other locations throughout the state will also offer courses.

Troop A
March 16, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., – Harry S Truman Visitor Center, 29027 Visitor Center Road, Warsaw, MO
March 23, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., – Northside Christian Church, 500 N. Ridgeview Drive, Warrensburg, MO

Troop D
March 17, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., – Dewey Short Visitor Center, 4500 Missouri Highway 165, Branson, MO

Troop E
March 23, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., – Troop E Headquarters, 4947 Highway 67 North, Poplar Bluff, MO

Troop I
March 23, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., – Laclede Electric Co-Op, 1400 E. Route 66, Lebanon, MO

U.S. Coast Guard statistics indicate that of the boating crashes where the level of operator education was known, 80.6 percent of boating deaths occurred on boats where the boat operator had never received boating education instruction.

In contrast, only 19.4 percent of deaths occurred on vessels where the operator possessed a nationally-approved boating safety education certificate.