A special thank you They say that just before you die, your whole life passes before you. At the age of eight you haven't had much of a life so when you come close to 'it', you really can recall everything.

My eighth birthday found me and my friends crabbing off the end of the lifeboat slip in Fleetwood one sunny day. This was our favourite place, spending most of our time running from the local hfeboatmen as they chased us constantly from the slip.

It was close to low water with a fast outward tide when a 'friend' put a crab down the back of my shirt and, as I struggled to retrieve it, I fell in. I was trapped under the slip and, believe me, your life does pass before you. I could see the rushing water, taste the salt and I was crying as I swallowed what felt like a bucket load.

A friendly hand grabbed me and pulled me free! The lifeboatman who had been watching from the boathouse had jumped into the river without fear for his own life to save mine.

I'm 50 next birthday and have a lovely wife and two children and on this day I'll say a special thank you to that man who saved my life. I never knew who he was but, like all lifeboatmen, he was someone special, someone extraordinary and someone I will always owe my life to. Thank God for men like these.

Neil Howard Pritchard Poulton Le Fylde "Letter of the quarter wins a bottle of Old Pulteney whisky and Mr Pritchard has asked that his prize be donated to the crew at Welts lifeboat station.Thames mystery With the announcement that lifeboats are to be stationed on the Thames, there is perhaps evidence that this will not be for the first time.

In the RNLI archives is a medallion (right) which is inscribed, 'Presented by the Greenwich and Deptford lifeboat crew to Mr F Hancock as a mark of respect for his valuable services as secretary 17 February 1873.' There is no trace of any such lifeboat in the annual reports of that time. Can any readers throw some light on the medal? Barry Cox RNLI honorary librarian Can you help? May marked the 60th anniversary of the sinking of the Bismarkand our local newspaper recently reported on the damage inflicted on the battleship by the Swordfish torpedo planes on the 26 May 1941.

I was assigned to the Coast Guard cutter Modoc, which was searching for survivors when we sighted the Bismark. I saw a Kingfisher heading for her and witnessed an explosion when the torpedo damaged the rudder. Throughout the war I wondered if this brave, skillful and determined pilot survived. His name is Kenneth Pattisson and he attended the recent gathering at the Imperial War Museum in London. Perhaps a reader out there knows his address. I would be forever grateful tf I could be informed.

Vice Admiral Thomas R Sargent 1311 San Julian Drive Lake San Marcos, CA 92069, USA Congratulations My collection of The Lifeboat dales back to 1960 and records an evolution in styles of presentation and design. May I offer my congratulations to the editorial team on the Spring 2001 issue.

It cannot be easy to strike the right balance of material, given the need to meet the interests of a diverse range of readers, but I believe that this issue in particular succeeded in the achievement of that aim.

A R Pari Huws MerseysideFond farewell I was surprised and very sorry to learn that Ray Kipling has left the RNLI after 27 years to lead another charity.

I feel sure that staff, retired staff and voluntary workers will join me in paying tribute to Ray's wit, enthusiasm, friendliness and approachability. He was a great asset both as public relations officer and. latterly, as deputy director. He will be much missed by us all.

The RNLI's loss is Wessex Medical Trust's gain. Good luck Ray! Lyn Jones RNLI pensionerEducation is the key In response to Mr Lionel C Waring's letter on licensing for sailors in the previous issue, I agree with much he says. We know that regulatory measures are very costly due to the high level of intervention required to enforce the legislation. We should also be thankful that the UK and Republic of Ireland have significantly fewer accidents per boating capita than many other countries.

Education is the key - boat owners and skippers should be encouraged to receive training and be willing to have refresher training. Sailing with other experienced skippers is also a good idea. We all pick up bad habits and it sometimes takes a colleague or friend to point them out. A third party safety audit is also recommended and there is none better than the RNLI's SEA Check service, where the boat's safety equipment can be checked over by an experienced adviser.

What needs to be banged home is that the individual is responsible for his own safety and the safety of those he interacts with. It is no good blaming lack of legislation or funding by agencies and organisations when that individual responsibility has been neglected. We also should not rule out any improvement in safety that is brought about by consultation - good examples of this are the RYA's training scheme for personal water craft, the RNLI's Safety on the Sea series of booklets and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency's voluntary code of practice.

The RNLI is committed to rescuing anyone in distress at sea and the sea safety campaigns that we run are there to ensure that incident levels are kept to an absolute minimum. If the call out rate were spiralling out of control then regulation would need to be considered.

However, in many areas where boating is a major factor in the economy, authorities have already introduced local regulations targeted principally at separating activities on the water and limiting speed, which seems very sensible to me.

Anyone wishing to receive further advice on any aspect of sea safety should email [email protected] or freefone 0800 328 0600.

Peter Bradley RNLI national sea safety manager Win a bottle! Inver House Distillers, the makers of Old Pulteney whisky, have kindly agreed to give away a bottle of the genuine maritime malt to our 'Letter of the quarter'. So if you've got any burning issues to get off your chest about lifeboats or a related subject, put your pen to paper and send your letter to: Your Letters, The Lifeboat, RNLI, West Quay Road, Poole, Dorset BH15 1HZ or email us at t h e l i f e b o a t i " rnli.org.uk All letters intended for consideration should be clearly marked 'For Publication'..