Sea Term 2009: Captain's Blog

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February 2009 S M T W Th F S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Jan 2009

Thursday 05 February

"Tell me, I forget, show me, I remember, Involve me, I understand.
-Carl Orff, German Composer

"Tell me, I forget; show me, I may remember; involve me, I understand."
-Chinese Proverb

"Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn."
-Benjamin Franklin

"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."
-Maya Angelou

Tell Me

Show Me

Involve Me

0800 ET/1300 GMT Position
Latitude 19-54.0 N Longitude 073-36.0W
USTS Kennedy's updated track: Sailwx Track

Air Temperature 21.5 C
Sea Temperature 25.0 C
Sea State 3
Barometric Pressure 1023.9 mb and steady
Wind N @ 24 kts
Visibility 10 miles.

Division I Training
Division II Watch
Division III Alternate
Division IV Maintenance

Underway from San Juan
by Cadet 1/C Peter Beuth

This afternoon (Feb 3) we got underway from Pier No. 1 in San Juan Bay, bound for Charlotte Amelie, Saint Thomas, USVI. Although St. Thomas is in actuality very nearby (only a matter of hours), this is a training cruise and we will spend the next few days doing a slow loop around the Dominican Republic, eventually returning to the waters off of Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, on February 8th for two days of anchoring drills before resuming our voyage to Charlotte Amelie. At some point the senior deck cadets will also be practicing man overboard drills where a dummy is thrown overboard. Some time later, 'man overboard' will be announced and the cadets will have to execute a man overboard maneuver and search and recover the dummy. Upon leaving the waters off Mayaguez on the 9th of February we will slowly make our way towards St. Thomas where we expect to arrive sometime around 0800 on February 12th.

We have all had a great stay in Puerto Rico but, in talking with other cadets, the general consensus is that they are glad to be back underway, getting more at-sea experience. Progress seems to be the name of the game. Each successive day at sea has shown significant progress in all cadets' knowledge, seamanship, and leadership capabilities. From the seniors right on down to the fourth class cadets, the progress made since day one of sea term 2009 has been astounding and we are all looking forward to more of the same as we run through the final stretch before our stay in St. Thomas and our quick trek back to Buzzards Bay immediately thereafter. Fourth class cadets who, seemingly, could barely tie their shoelaces are now finding themselves tying such knots as a 'bowline on a bight,' 'fisherman's knot,' 'farmers loop,' and a 'double becket bend', among others. They also have found themselves learning some of the main systems in the engine room and have traced them out, including the main steam system, the lube oil system, the fire main system, and the fuel oil system. Third class deck cadets have been able to refine their plotting and navigational skills as they work on completing their voyage plans and third class engineers have been working on learning to troubleshoot problems in the main engine systems.

First class deck cadets have by now stood several watches and have gotten experience as if they themselves were the mate on watch...navigating the ship, using collision avoidance knowledge, maintaining order amongst the watch section, and notifying the master as necessary in the event a close quarters situation with another vessel is developing. First class engine cadets have been steadily increasing their knowledge base as they maintain the vessel's machinery in good working order, including monitoring the machinery's vital temperatures and pressures and responding as necessary to any alarms which could possibly indicate a problem with any given piece of machinery. In training, time has been spent working on pump alignment, and connecting electric circuits to a motor and wiring it properly so that it runs at slow, fast, forward, and reverse. As we were taking on bunker fuel yesterday, many engine cadets also got practice with fueling up by sounding tanks and making sure all of the valves and pipes were appropriately lined up so as to maximize the time efficiency of the bunkering process and to make sure that there were no fuel spills as a result of an improperly opened or closed-off fuel line. Undeniably progress has been made, and it appears that continued progress is in the forecast.

Today (Feb 4), the Captain ordered the smoking lamp to be extinguished throughout the ship as cadets have been either throwing their cigarette butts overboard or have been leaving them on the deck instead of disposing of them properly. This really is of no fault but their own, as they have been warned repeatedly and now must suffer the consequences of their actions, or in some cases, inaction. I expect to hear even more grumbling going on in the next day or so as they crave their cigarettes, but the punishment fits. Hopefully, once they are allowed to smoke again, they will have learned their lesson. This seems to happen once per sea term and this year has been no exception.

Follow the Voyage
Here are today's questions:

History: Whatever happened to the SS Central America?
Math: If you connect the center of a circle to the point at which a line is tangent to the circle, what angle is formed between the two lines?
Science: As you ascend in a hot air balloon, will the air temperature normally rise or fall? Will this cause the balloon to rise faster, slower, or maintain its speed of ascent?
Geography: Which is closer to the equator: San Juan, Puerto Rico; or Rio de Janeiro, Brazil?

LINKS:
Official MMA Photography

Christiaan Conover Blog Page
Buzzards Bay Weather
MMA Parents Association

Departure Photos
Cape Cod Times Online Departure Photos
217 Photos of TS Kennedy's Arrival in Tampa

Should you have an emergency and need to contact someone at MMA regarding your cadet or a crew member, please contact Commander Stephen Kelleher:
Commander Stephen Kelleher
508-830-6485 (daytime)
508-364-6217 (Evenings/Weekends)
seaterm@maritime.edu

If Commander Kelleher is not available, you may contact me at any time:
Captain Allen Hansen
508-269-0925
ahansen@maritime.edu

Parting Shots...

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