How to become a qualified Captain?

[allingeneral]

So, I was at a boat show the other day...looking at some nice 30+ foot boats. Wow they were nice! Anyway, one of the boats had a flying bridge. We (wife, kids and I) went aboard and checked it out. Then the thought occurred to me. If I'm ever going to own a boat like this, it would behoove me to be licensed. Also, if I ever want to move my business toward a more sea-faring state of things, I would need to be licensed as well.

So, I started looking around, just a little bit, at the USCG information and I found the following website: http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/cb-capt.htm

I plan to do plenty more reading on the subject, but wondered if anyone here might be able to give me some pointers or their thoughts concerning becoming an official "Captain" or more specifically, "Operator of an Uninspected Passenger Vessel" (OUPV).

[SeaKitten]

OOOooooh! Capt. & Mrs. - would that be right?

I like it!

[Uncle Chuck]

Rick, Jamie should be able to hook you up with a couple of guys that's went through the process, and became Captains.

[RACN35]

Yes I know several.......I'll be one of them next

[allingeneral]

I don't know how serious I am about it at this point. Part of it depends on how difficult it is to accomplish. I mean, if it's going to take me 6 months, then I probably won't mess with it...

[RACN35]

same here, but whats the rush anyway

[allingeneral]

Yeah, good point. Time is on our side

Here are a couple of interesting links...

http://www.ehow.com/how_6690_become-lic ... ptain.html

http://home.cfl.rr.com/floridafishing/captlicense.htm

http://www.captainsschool.com/coast-guard-forms.shtml

http://www.uscg.mil/stcw/downloads.htm

Some of these forms remind me of being in the Navy or something

[Uncle Chuck]

Man, I'm telling you both. GO FOR IT. I've pissed away most of my life, wishing I'd done stuff, and now it's too late. I always wished I'd got my Pilot's License (Air). I was offered an all expenses paid school for drafting when I worked at PPG, and like a fool, I turned it down! AS much as I love to draw and paint, I just didn't want to spend my working hours drawing straight lines! What a fool I was. I DID study and get my Private Investigator license back in the 70's but just used it mostly for my own benefit, and still do. But as they say.......you only go around once in life, so you should grab for all the gusto you can. Wish I'd done a lot of things years ago, so I'm telling y'all that even if you never have your own fishing business, at least you will have accomplished it and proven to yourself that you could do it, and no one can take it away from you. I could preach for hours on the subject, and I do single out some young people and council them on doing SOMETHING with their lives, from time to time, and most of them have actually listened and continue to test themselves. Very rewarding to me too. I tell them.....don't piss away your life like I did. You'll live to regret it....I know!