If you're thinking about getting your captain's license, you've probably looked at the various courses that are available and you've checked your bank balance and your vacation schedule. You've probably even checked with your spouse. You've got just one lingering questions: Should I do it?

If you are thinking of making money with your boat, the answer is almost always going to be "yes." Joey Buettner, a scientist and part-time captain of the sport fishing charter boat Entropy, which operates out of Gloucester, Virginia, got his license for just that reason.

"I operate a small, family-owned charter business here in the Chesapeake Bay," he said. "I started this fishing business to ease into my retirement."

For some people, however, the license isn't about making money. Suzanne Giesemann, an author, sailing instructor and retired U.S. Naval officer said she "could never hope to be on equal footing [at the helm] with my husband, who served 26 years in the Navy as a destroyer captain, but I wanted him to be able to sleep at night when I had the watch." Giesemann does use her license on the water, but "it has also given me more legitimacy as I speak to groups about boating and boating safety."

"OUPV is cheap insurance that you only pay for once in a lifetime," echoed Ronnie Babin, National Sales Executive for OceanGrafix charting systems. Although Babin doesn't use his license professionally, he feels that the education has built upon the U.S. Power Squadron and Red Cross courses that he and his wife, Kathy, have taken.

Each of these captains approached their licensing differently. Geisemann chose the self-study route. "I used Charlie Wing's Get Your Captain's License study guide and the accompanying CD to quiz myself. I found it very helpful, but it was a tremendous amount of work. I definitely feel I took the hard way versus taking one of the weekend courses, but I'm proud I did it myself."

Buettner, on the other hand, sacrificed money for time. "When I decided to pursue my captain's license, I checked into two different institutions that taught the class. The first was Tidewater Community College in Norfolk that held classes in the evenings; the other was the Chesapeake Marine Training Institute (CMTI) that offered a 2 week class during the day. The cost between the two was definitely swung in favor of Tidewater but the evening commute would have killed me. So, I took a two week vacation, signed up for the CMTI class and stayed on my boat," which was berthed a few miles down the road. "It was the best decision for me."

Babin and his wife had recently joined the Seven Seas Cruising Association and they started looking for classes at the Miami Boat show. Mariners School, located in Princeton, New Jersey, was offering classes in the West Palm Beach area, over three weekends in August. Since Babin travels during the week, the schedule suited him, and he appreciated the on-line assistance the school provided.

Babin said he was particularly interested in hands-on paper chart training. He points out that "the U.S. government can turn off GPS anytime they perceive a security risk. In a recent article in one of many boating magazines, it was noted that a solar flare wiped out a satellite signal for 19 hours." Because Babin works for a company that has a contract with NOAA to print on-demand charts, it is easy to see why he says "plotting and rules of the road are tops on my list."

When asked if he had any advice for would-be captains, Buettner singled out a common complaint. "As with any big commitment," Buettner said, "becoming a captain involved more than I had expected. I foolishly thought I could waltz into the class, take my tests and walk out the door with my license. I was surprised at how many more hoops I needed to jump through before I finally obtained my certificate: I had to tabulate all of my in-shore and off-shore hours per month dating back several years (I can't even remember what I had for dinner last night); I hadn't taken a CPR First Aid class in years; I had to ask several people to write letters of recommendation; I had to drive to Baltimore so the Coast Guard could see that I was exactly who I said I was (fingerprints do not lie); and I had to get a physical."

In the end, each captain said it was worth it. "Mostly, I got the license because I believe partners should strive to be equally competent," Geisemann said. Although her husband, Ty, knew her abilities and trusted her judgment, she said, "the best way I could think of to show him that I knew what I was doing was to earn my captain's license."