It is good to keep the debate about safety going. Two items in this Bulletin reflect our ideas about it, and so I reprint the Boat Safety Recommendations, now rather old-fashioned after some quarter of a century, but still useful.

The question which Len Wingfield raises interests me - if a good boat should look after itself and crew in the chosen waters and conditions, is it not still true that a boat is no more seaworthy than her crew? Some expert crews will be safe in boats which others would find terrifying. My feeling about this is that one cannot stress too often, in an association which caters for the inexperienced as well as the more expert, that really such boats are a challenge beyond true safety. And remember that conditions can change quickly, and that any crew can tire.

On the subject of beam and capsizability I remain a conservative. I do not consider that the "Wanderer" is a cruising dinghy, and I think that the narrow beam of the "Shetland Skiff" and its kind is a factor to be taken into account against their other, good qualities. It is important to be aware of one's boat's limitations.

On the subject of flares, as recounted by Philip Priestley, to me flares are not to be regarded as a factor in boat safety. We should equip ourselves and plan our sailing to keep out of trouble, or at worst to get ourselves out of trouble. If one has to yell for help, one has failed in boat safety. A further point to remember is that after that stage is reached, your yells (and flares) are not very likely to be noticed in any event. J.A.