Early this morning at formation cadet leaders were pinned with an outline of the Golden Bear. These cadet leaders were selected in 2020 and held the position through the Covid-19 pandemic. This was the first pinning ceremony for shipboard cadet leaders. Congratulations Cadets!

We restarted underway training (UWT) today. With UWT in progress the pace of the days is picking up. Deck cadets are either in the fast rescue boat or on the bridge. The fast cadets on the fast rescue boat will go out at a high speed to a buoy and simulate a rescue of a man overboard several times and then return to the ship. At the same time the cadets on the bridge will be turning the ship, speeding it up or slowing it down. The ship will then come to a dead stop and then the process will start over again. Seeing the process of how commands are given on the bridge is interesting; the bridge is relatively quiet, with only the commands given. Out of the bridge wings the cadets are posted looking out for the buoy and for other possible ships or small boats. The training evolution continued through lunch and was well received by all who participated.

Down in the engine room cadets were responding to the bells that correlated with the changes in the speed. Stay tuned tomorrow for a feature that covers this part of the curriculum. With the engineers busy at work helping adjust the speed of the ship, the entire day’s evolution went well.

With our first day of training complete we are one day closer to liberty. Everyone is looking forward to it and we know that there will be a lot of fun for many on board. We continue to sail around with smooth seas and enjoying the views of the islands as well. The sunsets have been more than amazing and everyone is soaking it in while they can.