On May 19 Division 9 and Flotilla 98 hosted the 2007 7th District International Search and Rescue competition at the Best Western in Punta Gorda.  Four person teams from throughout the District competed for the right to represent the U.S. in competition with the best of the Canadian Coast Guard for the trophy in Toronto this coming September.

It was the second time in five years that Division 9 and Flotilla 98 were tasked with not only hosting this competition but executing the planning and coordination essential for the success of the event. Members of the District 7 Response Team Ed Rhea, ADSO-OP, George Kacmarik, DSO-OP and Casey Jankowski, D-CR under the direction of CWO2 Steven Hanson, Acting DIRAUX worked tirelessly to set up the accommodations, materials and equipment needed for the water and land tasks and directing a cadre of Auxiliary members who assisted with all assigned tasks to keep the events of the day on schedule.

The competition tested not only the seamanship and SAR skills of the auxiliary volunteers, but also their teamwork, organization, and leadership skills. Each team demonstrated their ability to plan, communicate and prosecute a maritime search and rescue (SAR) mission. They participated in a written exam. They were given a last known position and then did the chart work, search and rescue planning and time and distance calculation prior to conducting the actual mission. They were required also to engage in a search and rescue pump operation and an on-the-water towing exercise. Marlinspike skills were performed as well as a heaving line and ring buoy tosses for accuracy. Each competition has a mystery event and the one here in Charlotte Harbor this year took the form of launching a dingy and then making way to a datum with separate Auxiliarist on each oar trying to keep dead-reckoning coordination.
  
When all the points earned in each event were totaled the winners were Max Garrsion, Don Hoge, Kevin McConn and Jimmy Ryder from Division 11 in central Western Florida which stretches from Hudson to Clearwater. The two teams from Division 9 were runners-up as were the Division 10 team from Savannah Georgia.

Judges for the event were CWO2 Steven Hanson, Acting DIRAUX, CWO3 Pete Louzao, Commanding Officer Ft. Myers Beach and CWO2 Randal Ryan from Sand Key, with D7 Captain Suzanne Englebert also attending.

The silver side of the guard was represented by COMO Peter Fernandez, Area Rear Commodore Atlantic-East, District 7 Commodore Allen Brown, Rear Commodore West Walter Jaskiewicz, Past Rear Commodore West Philip Merrill, Division 9 Captain George Withrow and FC-98 John Ehmann

Operational facilities were provided by John Ehmann, Ed Rhea, Frank Wondolkowski, Mike Kinsman, Ken Johnson, Daniel Godfrey and Peter Bardis for on-the-water work. Watchstanders Jim Beliveau and Bill Strobel maintained communications over a 12 hour day.

Albert Rhea
Past Division Captain 9