as a power boater, (yeah I know...), it was our first time with just the 2 of us and i'm in charge of picking up the mooring ball, so we're in sprat, I miss the ball and drop the boat hook in the bay, i start panicking not knowing we have another and not knowing they float, and mr cool jeans calmly turns the boat around past the boat hook, sits tight for a bit and low and behold, the hook comes to me standing on the swim platform, after that trip, we decided to take power squadron, for hubby it was a refresher and he was surprised how much he'd forgotten, and for me, a whole lot of great learning, including knowing what equipment is onboard, how to use basic equipment, how to use the radio, how to retrieve my husband if he's overboard or overboard and deceased (opinions vary on this one), i feel very comfortable driving our 42ft express cruiser in lake ontario for the last five years. if you haven't shared this stuff with the others on your boat, you're setting yourself up for a bad turn, better to know and not need it than have something happen and not know what to do - just saying....