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Emergency Towing: What Do You Do? – Part I
Okay, so you’re underway at sea in crappy weather on you’re fancy new ATB (or not-so-new ATB) and the worst has happened: the pins have...
May 23, 20115 min read
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The Mighty Sand Master
A semi-regular presence dredging in Ambrose Channel, the main gateway to New York Harbor and the combined Port of New York & New Jersey,...
Apr 29, 20111 min read
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ATB vs. ITB, v2.0
The original ATB vs. ITB post, from November 2008, was due for a major updating, including lots of photos, so here it is. Warning: before...
Apr 16, 20116 min read
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Dancing With Miss Lucy: This Is Not A Simulation!
At slack water two tugs, one a new-ish ASD tractor and the other a rather elderly conventional twin-screw boat of classic lines, work...
Feb 13, 20114 min read
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Parallel Parking: Doing the Texas Two-Step on Crew-Change Day.
With a tropical depression threatening the Eastern Gulf, we all had to head quickly west for Texas….. It was to be a Galveston...
Dec 4, 20102 min read
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The U.K. Says “No More!” To Undermanning & Fatigued Mariners. What Will The U.S. Coa
Paul Coley, MCA Assistant Director of Seafarers & Ships said: “Its been known for many years that tiredness caused by long working ...
Mar 21, 20107 min read
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Lots Of Eggs, One Basket: Loran-C Signal Shut Down
U.S. Coast Guard Loran Station Attu, AK by JanKocian Loran-C is officially history: at 1500 EST this past Monday the U.S. Coast Guard...
Feb 11, 20105 min read
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Real Towing Vessel Inspectors Wanted! (Maybe)
Many of you are aware that towing vessels will be brought under Coast Guard inspection at some point in, maybe, the not-too-distant...
Jan 22, 20107 min read
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Communication Breakdown: Standardized Commands Will Improve Tractor Tug Performance & Minimize E
For all you tractor tug jockeys out there, here’s a damned good article from the Oct/Nov 2009 issue of Professional Mariner Magazine. As...
Oct 6, 20092 min read
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The 26-Foot Long Towing Vessel, Assistance Towing & Recreational Boaters From Hell: What License
A recent e-mail asked this question: “Is the operator (captain) of a vessel 26 feet in length or less engaged in towing, whether it be...
Sep 3, 20094 min read
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When The Wire Breaks!
We’ve had an increasing number of hits lately coming from web searches for “emergency towing for barges”, or something like it, so it’s...
Aug 1, 20093 min read
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Newsletter Roundup, The Latest Towing License Public Squabble & The 30-Day Wonder
The National Mariners Association’s June-July 2009 newsletter, #63, has just been published by NMA Secretary Richard Block. You might...
Jul 31, 20096 min read
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Fire Proofing Is Better Than Fire Fighting
Fire on the high seas, off the coast, on a Great Lake, or a powerful river (or wherever), is generally the most significant threat...
Jul 28, 20092 min read
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Congress Turns Up The Heat: Mariner Licensing Delays Are In The Spotlight
Last Thursday, July 9th, the House Subcommittee on Coast Guard & Maritime Transportation held a hearing on the National Maritime Center...
Jul 15, 20093 min read
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WIRED: How & When To Inspect & Replace Your Wire Rope Hawser
Almost all of the conventional tugs use it, but how do you know when to replace it? Where do you go for information if your company has...
Jun 21, 20096 min read
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Tugnology ’09: The Papers
There’s no easy way to categorize them, so I’m not going to try. These are the technical papers that were presented at the conference in...
Jun 8, 20092 min read
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Towing: He Gets It
Some people get it and some people don’t. Most don’t. And that’s one of the perennial problems for tug drivers: we are governed largely...
Apr 14, 20093 min read
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Tugboat Licensing Tonnage: Tons Of Misunderstanding
Due to the large number and specific nature of internet searches that have lead net-surfing mariners to our website, it’s time to...
Mar 9, 20093 min read
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Damaged Stability For Barges
While doing the research and fact-checking for the Practical Stability For Tugs post, I realized that I normally don’t think too much...
Jan 27, 20095 min read
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Practical Stability For Tugs
Overall, adhering to most of the operating restrictions contained in your vessel’s stability letter is pretty simple and straightforward....
Jan 18, 20093 min read
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