A few months ago I joined the Power Squadron by taking one of their courses. The course itself was about the same as any of the other boating safety courses, although their materials are far superior. They have a great books and CD for their basic course and it's nice to have on hand to look up and refresh memories. It turns out one of the biggest benefits to the Power Squadron course is their continuous email information. They send emails packed with links to articles that are great sources of additional information, refresher topics, and interesting developments in boating.