Get Started>Boating Basics>Glossary of Terms

Boating Glossary of Terms

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

racer: A sailboat designed primarily for speed and competition with a minimum of built-in creature comforts.
racer/cruiser: A fast sailboat designed with comfortable accommodations.
radar: Electronic device using high frequency radio waves to detect objects and display their positions on a monitor.
range: Distance a boat can travel at cruising speed on a tank of fuel. Also, the distance to an object. Lastly, in intracoastal navigation, a set of two markers that, when lined up one behind the other, indicate the deepest part of the channel.
reach: To sail across the wind.
ready about: Last warning given by a helmsman before tacking and turning the bow into the wind, notifying the crew that the boom and sail will cross the boat.
receiver box: Part of a hitch that receives and holds the hitch bar or shank.
receiver hitch: A hitch with a receiver from which a hitch bar or shank can be removed.
resin: Liquid substance used in fiberglass composite construction that, when combined with a catalyst, bonds laminate materials together.
reverse chine: A chine that angles downward from the hull designed to direct spray out and awayfrom the boat.
RIB (rigid inflatable boat): An inflatable boat fitted with a rigid bottom.
rigging: Wire cables, rods, lines, hardware and other equipment that support and control the mast and spars.
rocket launcher: A device designed for a fishing boat that bolts to the cockpit floor or is incorporated into a bench seat, to hold mulitple fishing rods.
rod holder: Device designed to safely and securely hold fishing rods either vertically or horizontally.
rode: Line, chain, cable or any combination of these used to connect the anchor to the boat.
rolled-edge skiff: A fishing boat designed to run in coastal waters constructed of a simple, one-piece fiberglass hull without a top deck and characterized by rounded top edges without true gunwales.
roller trailer: A trailer outfitted with rollers instead of bunks.
rubrail: Protective outer bumper that runs around the boat at the point where the top deck meets the hull.
rudder: Underwater fin mounted below the hull near the stern that controls boat steering.
runabout: A kind of small, lightweight, freshwater pleasurecraft intended for day use.
running lights: Required navigation lights that a vessel uses at night to indicate position and status.
running rigging: Lines used in the setting and trimming of sails.

GET STARTED