Designed to serve as the primary resource material for instructors and students participating in the Boater Performance Program, this manual is one of three documents prepared for the course, which teaches the skills essential for safe boating behavior in all recreational boating activities. Information deals with all phases of boat operation and is geared to the 15- to 16-foot power boat, the most popular size and type of boat used for recreation in the United States. An introductory chapter discusses individual responsibility with regard to boating safety and protection of the aquatic environment and summarizes legislation regulating recreational boating. Subsequent chapters cover natural laws affecting boating (specifically, Newton's laws of motion), rules and regulations of the aquatic roadway, aids to navigation, a boat operator's safety checklist, docking and anchoring, weather and water conditions, emergency procedures, prevention and correction of boating problems, and handling the boat on land. Discussion of navigational aids includes buoys, daymarks, lighthouses, electronic equipment for small boats, charts, and compasses; emergency procedures are described for situations such as person overboard, capsizing, fire afloat, lost, and aground. The text is illustrated and a glossary of 100 boating terms is appended. (NQA)