Speakers

This past June, CAPCA members Captain Lynn McClaskey and Captain Dave Tabor raced from Newport to Bermuda, and Captain Jayne Durden raced from Annapolis to Bermuda. Their combined experiences have much to teach us about planning extended passages, ensuring safety, inventorying spare parts, educating crew, preparing the boat, responding to weather, keeping watch, and anticipating medical needs. These three captains will review good seamanship practices, even for captains who keep to inland waters.

This will be offered as a hybrid program, with in-person attendance at the Elks Lodge in Edgewater MD as well as a Zoom link for virtual attendees. The Zoom link will be posted on the home page one week before the program.

Note: the Elks Lodge is pleased to offer pay-as-you-go bar and dining services to individual attendees, before or during the presentation. Come join us for networking, as early as 5 pm.

Jayne Durden                                  Lynn McClaskey                              Dave Tabor
photo by Kristin Rutkowski                  photo by Kristin Rutkowski

Join us to learn how stakeholders on the Occoquan River were invited to cooperatively solve a big problem: mixing "human-powered craft" (such as paddleboards and kayaks) with power boats that want to go fast, not thinking about their wake. For four years, CAPCA member Captain Bob Schwartz has been leading a cooperative approach on the Occoquan to keep the waters safe for all types of vessels. His story is inspirational and serves as a model for how to bring together various stakeholders, including boaters, USCG, DNR, Fire, Police, county officials, and CG Auxiliary, to collectively discuss and solve safety challenges.

This presentation will be hybrid, with in-person attendance at the Elks Lodge in Edgewater MD as well as a Zoom link for virtual attendees. The Zoom link will be posted on the home page one week before the program.

The Elks Lodge is pleased to offer pay-as-you-go bar and dining services to individual attendees, before or during the presentation. Come join us for networking, as early as 5 pm.

Panel:

Chase Eshelman, Associate Attorney, Lochner Law Firm
Captain Davis Jones, Owner, Shardana Sailing Charters
Tony Pelura, Managing Partner, Nelson & Pelura Accounting - Tax - Advisory
April Balech, Account Executive, Gallagher – Charter Lakes

Are you thinking about using your captain’s license to generate income? Or perhaps you already do but want to confirm you are protecting yourself for services such as running charters, doing deliveries, or providing instruction. Whether running a full-time business or working occasional opportunities, there are important legal, financial, and practical considerations that you should be aware of to operate successfully.

This presentation will be hybrid, with in-person attendance at the Elks Lodge in Edgewater MD as well as a Zoom link for virtual attendees. The Zoom link will be posted on the home page one week before the program.

The Elks Lodge is pleased to offer pay-as-you-go bar and dining services to individual attendees, before or during the presentation. Come join us for networking, as early as 5 PM.

Speakers:

Matt Stegman, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Maryland Staff Attorney

Johnny Shockley, Blue Oyster Environmental, Founder and Lifelong Waterman

Each year, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) supports more than 22,000 actions at the local, state, and federal levels, to help “save the bay.” As captains whose work and livelihoods depend on a healthy Chesapeake Bay, CAPCA members are uniquely positioned to understand and take action to protect the waters that we navigate. 

Join us for a briefing of key priorities that will impact the Chesapeake Bay during the 2025 Maryland General Assembly legislative session. We’ve intentionally timed this CAPCA program to occur midway through the session (January 8 to April 7) so that interested stakeholders can urge policy makers to support a healthy and sustainable ecosystem. To add a practical perspective, a lifelong waterman and aquaculture entrepreneur will describe how he works with industry partners, legislators, and watermen to envision new opportunities that strengthen local economies while benefiting the bay.  

This presentation will be held online. A Zoom link will be posted on the home page one week before the program.

Join us on March 24, during Women’s Awareness Month, as we welcome back Captain Beth Christman, one of a handful of women pilots on the Chesapeake Bay. Captain Christman has risen through the ranks to Senior Pilot and has just completed a term as Vice President of the Association of Maryland Pilots. 

Captain Christman will share her experiences as a pilot, navigating ships between the C&D Canal and Cape Henry in Virginia. She will answer questions that include “who is in charge of the ship” and how handoffs are made with Delaware and Virginia pilots. She will describe her career progression and offer advice to those who may be interested in the field. And she also has some pearls of wisdom for operators of smaller vessels. 

Note:  Because the investigations into MV Dali and MV Ever Forward are still ongoing, she cannot share ‘insider’ information about either of these incidents. However, she is able to speak about leading the association during the Dali incident.