Editor's note: To page through the summer issue of Sound & Country online, visit The Day's new iMag, here. Our 12-page boating guide starts on page 12.

Painting the name on the stern of your boat may be the proudest moment for a purchaser, but it is far from the first consideration. Like a car, or house, there are many other practical matters that must come first.

The first guiding principle is the type of boat that you should buy based on your budget and interest in boating — do you want something you can easily keep in your yard, or do you need something larger that will require docking?

These are all questions to ask yourself, said Captain Tom Kehlenbach, of Old Saybrook. A longtime boater, Kehlenbach works for Sea Tow, a franchise based marine assistance organization.

But even after identifying the perfect boat, the captain of the vessel will first have to comply with the state of Connecticut’s requirements for obtaining a safe boating certificate.

It may seem like a roadblock to some — after all, finally being able to acquire a boat is all about relaxing and forgetting about the cares of the world. Yet most accidents occur on boats less than 21 feet long, according to statistics gathered by the U.S. Coast Guard and posted on the American Boating Association website.

“We want people to have fun, but we want people to be safe,” said Gwendolynn Flynn, boating education/outreach supervisor with the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

To legally operate any boat with a motor, or an un-motorized sailboat 19 ½ feet in length or longer, the operator must have either a Safe Boating Certificate or a Certificate of Personal Watercraft. A Safe Boating Certificate allows people to legally operate a boat other than a personal watercraft. A Certificate of Personal Watercraft allows the legal operation of boats and personal watercraft such as a jet skis, reported the DEEP.

The safe boating course is an 8-hour series of classes that is an in-classroom experience. The DEEP breaks the course up into four classroom sessions that are two hours each, but some private providers might choose to hold theirs in one day, said Flynn.

Before signing up for a course for safe boating or personal watercraft, it is important to first go online and obtain a Connecticut Conservation Identification Number with the Sportsman Licensing System with the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, www.Ct.wildifelicence.com.

The instructor will need your identification number and your name as it was entered online. Within a week of completing the course, and passing the exam, you can purchase the certificate online from the Sportsman licensing system. The fee for the Personal Watercraft System is $50. The printed document must be signed and kept on board at all times.

Once on the water, there are certain safety tenets that will keep boating safe and therefore stress-free and relaxing for both captain and passengers.

Kehlenbach recommends that captains augment their boating safety courses with a private navigation and piloting course that is offered by the US Power Squadron as well as Sea Tow in order to deal with conditions such a fog and other unexpected weather.

Other basic safety precautions include keeping to the 1/3 fuel rule: enough fuel for 1/3 fuel to get to the destination, another 1/3 to return, and 1/3 reserve, and boaters will never run out of fuel, said Kehlenbach. With salt conditions, fuel gauges can become faulty, so it is better to rely on a log that calculates fuel burn, he advised. Other precautions to keep in mind are batteries, which due to saltwater corrosion need to be replaced every two to three years. And if you need help? It’s good to shoot off flares in succession so that after seeing one, people will be on the alert for the next one.

Ninety percent of boating fatalities can be avoided by wearing life jackets — and with the weather slowly warming this year, it is important to keep in mind that hypothermia is a severe risk for boaters.

“Life jackets are so easy to wear now,” Kehlenbach said. “There are the automatic inflate, not the big, bulky life jackets; they are nice, comfortable life vests now, and I think it’s critical.”

Safe boating and personal watercraft courses can be found at the DEEP website, www.ct.gov/deep/boating.

Upcoming Combination Safe Boating and Personal Watercraft Classes:

Groton Parks and Recreation, beginning on 6/17/14, Tue., Wed., Thurs., 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. call (860) 536-5691. $20.

Gateway Community College, New Haven, beginning 8/4/14, Mon., Wed., for two weeks, 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., $25, (203) 285-2080.

Gateway Community College, New Haven, beginning 9/8/14, Mon., Wed., for two weeks, 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., $25, (203) 285-2080.