Safety Protocol Handbook


Our Values:

Team Paradise Sailing is built on three values: safety, fun, and learning. Every team member helps deliver these by showing up with a positive attitude, using hands-on, contextual teaching methods, and being prepared to have a great day out on Biscayne Bay. Our goal is that every participant develops the skills and foundation for a lifelong love of sailing.

Safety:

All team members must be aware of the location of our Emergency Action Plan (EAP) and review it upon arriving at Team Paradise. It is posted inside the office next to the door, and in the dryboxes of the Castoldi and Boston Whaler coach boats. If an accident occurs, the EAP is the informational guide to follow. Our other daily points of safety include:

  • Proper Safety Attire: A zipped and clipped life jacket must be worn outside the green wrought iron fence, and at all times while on the water. Closed-toe shoes (no Crocs) must also be worn at all times.

  • Stay together: No student should ever be left unattended on land or on the water. 

    • No running on land or on the docks

    • Students must stay with their group and near the coach boat; avoid channels and traffic. 

    • Coach boats should be positioned between any oncoming vessels and sailboats to ensure student safety.

  • Water Comfort Test: First-time students must complete a water comfort test from our propeller-less coach boat. 

  • Capsize Recovery Practice: Performed in open water or near a sandbar and teaches the steps to safely upright a capsized boat, if and when it were to happen by accident. 

    • “Are you OK?” Coach boat monitors and assists if needed.

    • Uncleat sheets to avoid a recapsize.

    • Righting the boat: Sailor(s) swim to the daggerboard/centerboard and push down.

    • Scoop method: Other sailor(s) hold the hiking strap until upright, then help others reboard by their lifejacket straps.

  • Towing/Steering Practice: First-time students will learn the basics of steering through being on a towline by a powerboat

Fun:

By upholding our EAP and safety checklist, we can achieve fun and active learning. We include various activities alongside sailing to ensure that all Team Paradise participants are having fun. These activities include:

  • STEM projects, arts and crafts, and building challenges

  • Land-based teambuilding games

  • Swim breaks and sandbar explorations

Learning:

We prioritize hands-on experience, personal discovery, and contextual learning over extensive classroom theory, especially for beginners. Our core principle is to get people to experience the joy of sailing as soon as possible. We focus on building confidence and teaching the tools to succeed once you get on the water. 

Team Culture:

It is our job to reinforce key safety concepts while keeping students engaged. We aim to uphold and follow the Five Winning Functions of a Team:

  1. Trust one another 

  2. Engage in unfiltered conflict around ideas 

  3. Commit to decisions and plans of action 

  4. Hold one another accountable for delivering against those plans

  5. Focus on the achievement of the collective results

Team members must carry these functions into their teaching. Students and team members must treat each other with respect. 

Team Communication:

Team members will communicate through VHF radios while on the water. Radios are for team communication and emergencies only. Each coach boat, RS Venture, and Sonar should have at least one radio on board. VHF Radio Etiquette includes the following:

  • General Rules

    • Be professional: No profanity or casual chatter. Assume anyone could be listening. No students may use radios.

    • Channels: Lock your channel settings to ensure it doesn’t change to another by accident.

      • Ch. 72 – Team Paradise

      • Ch. 16 – U.S. Coast Guard (emergencies only)

    • Volume & Squelch: Adjust for clear reception and to block static.

  • How to Call

    • Always identify who you are calling first, then yourself. Speak clearly and slowly, and shield the microphone of the radio with one hand to block wind noise.

      • Direct Call (to a specific person):

        • “Alpha, Alpha, Alpha — this is Bravo, come back.”

        • Response: “This is Alpha.”

      • All-Call (to the group):

        • Start with “Bravo to all sailors, Bravo to all sailors, Bravo to all sailors.” End with “Do all sailors copy?”

        • Response: “Alpha copies.”

Please speak to the Head Coach for further questions and assistance in the setup and operation of a VHF radio.


Sailor Seamanship:

US Sailing Center Equipment: Follow proper operational guidelines for the boat

crane, floating docks, and other equipment

Sailing To/From the Dock: All sailors must make an effort to sail out and return

to the docks together. Sailboats should be staggered when returning to the dock

to avoid traffic jams.

Flogging/Luffing Sails: Refers to any sail flapping uncontrollably in the wind.

The remedy is to trim in the sheet of the sail or lower it. On the RS Venture, jib

sails should be rolled up before approaching a coach boat or dock.

Running Aground/Catching Anchor Lines: Can cause any of the following

issues and must be avoided:

  • Loss of Boat Control

  • Hull, Propeller, and Rudder Damage

  • Damage to moored boats

  • Crew/Sailor Safety

Bearings/Laylines: To operate safely and efficiently, have an understanding of how other vessels are moving in comparison to you. Identify a bearing by lining up any moving object and a fixed point behind it.

Equipment Storage: Boat must be properly returned and put away after use.

Powerboat Seamanship:

Strong powerboat seamanship is essential for keeping our sailors safe and our programs running smoothly. Team members operating or assisting with powerboats must uphold safe operation at all times by being prepared to handle routine procedures and unexpected situations on the water. Team members should be aware of the following scenarios/skills:

  • Safety

    • Pre/Post Trip Checklist for Powerboats: Team Paradise follows The Burgee Program by Gowrie Group’s Junior Sailing Safety Manual for powerboat operation. Click here to review the Checklist.

    • Engine Cut-Off Switch: Any team member who operates a powerboat must wear the engine cut-off switch link when in operation.

    • Make sure to have a second person who can tie knots on board the Boston Whaler and Castoldi coach boats.

    • A coach boat should always lead the group from and to the dock to ensure everyone is accounted for.

  • Towing

    • Check the bow line condition before leaving the dock.

    • Sailor passes the bow line safely to the coachboat.

    • Sailor steers toward the engine and keeps the towline taut as needed.

    • Sailor stows the bow line after release.

  • Overboard Rescue

    • Alert others by shouting "Man Overboard!" (MOB)

    • Keep constant visual contact and point at the MOB

    • Tack the sailboat or turn the powerboat while keeping the engine away from the MOB to return to the person/object in the water.

    • Stop in a safe position and retrieve the MOB on the windward side.

  • Boarding/Embarking a Boat

    • Ask the coach for permission.

    • “One hand for you, one for the boat.” Watch fingers and feet between boats, docks, and moving parts

    • Move slowly and keep your weight centered.

    • Use secure handholds like shrouds, railings, and a teammate’s hand.

  • Powerboat Etiquette

    • No flips off the powerboat.

    • Use the stern ladder to reboard.

    • No littering on boats or in the water

Understanding Biscayne Bay:

Float plans adapt to Biscayne Bay’s conditions: weather, tide, and air/water temperature. Common swim-break spots include Sister Banks and Paradise Island 305.

  • Tides

    • Range: 1.5–2.5 ft.

    • Flood: Brickell → Dinner Key.

    • Ebb: Dinner Key → Brickell.

    • East/southeast winds can make tides seem higher/later.

  • Environmental Hazards: Do not touch any of the following:

    • Portuguese Man o’ War

    • Fire coral

    • Sargassum seaweed

    • Trash/debris (glass, buckets, bags, etc.)