Boat Sober New York

Addressing the Critical Issue of Boating Under the Influence

Going Coastal is pleased to announce the winning design of its Boat Sober NY poster competition “Think Before You Drink – The Ultimate Message in a Bottle” created by artist Evelyn Davis.  

Going Coastal’s Boat Sober NY campaign aims to raise awareness and promote a more secure boating experience for the tens of thousands of recreational boaters plying local waters during warm weather months. New York Harbor is one of the busiest waterways on the Eastern Seaboard. The world’s largest cruise liners, monster containerships, tugs, barges, sightseeing boats, dinner cruises, commuter ferries, water taxis and control vessels navigate federal channels and share city waters with thousands of pleasure boats. Tides and tidal currents unlike any other harbor increase the complexity of recreational boating here. As New York State celebrates the Hudson-Fulton-Champlain Quadricentennial, all eyes are focused on our waterways, making it the perfect moment to speak about the dangers of mixing alcohol and boating.

About 50 percent of fatalities in the state’s waterways are linked to alcohol. According to the Coast Guard, a boat operator with a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) above 0.08 is more than 10 times as likely to be killed in a boating accident as an operator who has consumed no alcohol. Many boaters may not realize that drinking while operating a boat is even more dangerous than drinking and driving. Research shows that a few hours of exposure to sun, glare, wind, noise, vibration, and other motion on the water produces a kind of fatigue known as “boater’s hypnosis”, which slows reaction time almost as much as if you were legally drunk. Adding alcohol to boating intensifies these effects. 

Going Coastal invited artists to submit designs for use in the awareness raising campaign that will include posters, promotional materials, and advertising to address the critical issue of boating under the influence. The winning entry was submitted by Evelyn Davis, partner in the design studio ‘Davis Walker Creative’ www.daviswalkercreative.com. Ms. Davis has spent the better part of her design career helping non-profit organizations such as Big Brothers Big Sisters, The American Red Cross and The Civil Rights Memorial Foundation reach their full potential through the creation of marketing materials and promotional items. Evelyn received her B.A. from Otterbein College in Visual Communication and Computer Art and M.F.A in Advertising Design from Marywood University in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

The initiative is the product of a 2009 BoatU.S. Foundation Boating Safety Grant, which Going Coastal received to develop outreach materials that will be displayed at marinas, boat ramps, boating clubs, tackle shops, retailers and citywide to reach boaters.

Going Coastal, Inc. is a nonprofit formed to connect people and urban coastal resources, encourage a sense of community and common history, and promote active conservation. Going Coastal produces the urban waterfront guidebook, “Going Coastal NYC” – which John Waldman called “the primer on the aquatic Big Apple,” 2^nd edition soon to be released by Fordham University Press. The all-volunteer organization operates a Waterfront Information Center at Pier 66 in Hudson River Park. Other efforts include publication of the 2009 NYC Water Trail Map for kayakers, an interactive online Maritime Cultural Heritage Map, and clean boating maps of pumpout facilities on New York waterways. More info: www.goingcoastal.org

 

BoatU.S. Foundation for Boating Safety and Clean Water is a national 501 ©(3) nonprofit that has promoted safe and clean boating outreach for over 25 years. The Foundation awards local volunteer organizations grants for the promotion of boating safety education. Over the past 20 years the Foundation has awarded over $800,000 to local community organizations, yacht clubs, flotillas and squadrons. For more information, please visit www.boatus.com/foundation.

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