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September 2014 Join The Triton for networking on Sept. 3 and 17. See page A8-9.
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Check your hours of rest Port State Control scrutinizes and verifies crew reports. A4
Lives depend on it Experience worth more than the paper it’s printed on. A18
Cut a hole in the hull? What it takes to repower your yacht engines onboard. B1
Take time for a selfie Tools available to help crew benefit from introspection. C1
Yacht captains landed first job with hard work and a little luck Career-minded people entering the yachting industry today are given a lot of guidance on how to go about landing their dream job. Licensing and sea time requirements drive courses and provide a clear career path for those wanting to pursue a career in command. But that From the Bridge organized method of Lucy Chabot Reed becoming a captain is relatively new, so we thought we’d ask established yacht captains just how they landed their first job at the helm. On the surface, the stories of the eight captains gathered for the September From the Bridge luncheon sounded different, but most were the same in that the captains all sort of backed into their first job in command. Only one was actively working toward it (the newest yachtie in the room), but they all agreed that they were in the right place at the right time. One captain was a mate who worked harder than the captain and was promoted when the owner took notice. Three others were asked to help move a vessel (or offered to do it) and one thing led to another until they ended up as captains. Another was recommended for an open captain’s job after owning and living aboard a personal vessel. While only one “worked their way up” in the contemporary sense, most say they paid their dues and worked on yachts before they knew they wanted to be a captain. In all cases, landing that first captain’s job just sort of happened. “Resumes, interviews, that’s how it is today, but that’s not how it was,” one captain said. So you didn’t “work your way up”? “Oh yes,” said another captain,
See BRIDGE, page A14
NEVER TOO HOT TO NETWORK: Captains, engineers, chefs, stews, deckhands and industry professionals gathered on Ft. Lauderdale beach for Triton networking in August.The rains stayed away and the paddle boards came out for a fun event. The Triton networks on the first and third Wednesdays of each month from 6-8 p.m. See more photos on page C2, and get details for our upcoming events on pages A8-9. PHOTO/DORIE COX
‘Below Deck’: the real and the not so real by Lucy Chabot Reed and Dorie Cox Despite all the concern this past year, it doesn’t appear as though yachting’s reality television show “Below Deck” has attracted too many crazy people to the yachting industry. The Triton and Crew Unlimited hosted a panel discussion prior to this season’s premiere in mid-August and invited two stars from the show, two industry coaches and two placement agents to discuss the show and and its impact on the industry. And it’s not as bad as some might think. “I have talked with parents who are like ‘really?’ but no, we have not had a big influx,” said Sue Price, office manager and senior placement agent at Crew Unlimited. Price was part of a panel discussion along with Crew Unlimited owner Ami Ira, interior coach and Triton columnist Alene Keenan, career coach and Triton columnist Rob Gannon, and “Below Deck” stars Capt. Lee Rosbach and Chef Ben Robinson. “For someone who has never seen yachting, they will either go ‘yeah!’ or
‘no freakin’ way’,” said Gannon, who spent 20 years as a captain and who now offers yacht crew career and life coaching. “Everyone won’t flock to it; people have fallen to both sides.” The reality show has a large following, including more than 1.8 million viewers who watched the season one finale after just six episodes. Season two kicked off with four of the same crew from last season, and five new ones, giving viewers a little of the old, a little of the unexpected. But the actual show is less of an issue for the industry as a whole as is the idea of the show. Many yachties continue to voice their objections through social media, accusing the show of representing yachting in a negative light. Instead, several veterans say, the show has reached young people that might not otherwise know about yachting, and they love it. “At MPT, some people have contacted us from places like North Dakota,” said Keenan, a chief stew in yachting more than 20 years who also coaches interior teams and teaches young crew at MPT. “The showing is
huge. But people think we live in the big part of the boat.” As for negative comments, the cast members say they got a bit before the show aired last year, but not many this year. “I’ve never had any thrown my way,” Robinson said. “And if they come, I’m prepared for it. I hope I don’t disappoint anyone in the show.” While average viewers might wonder how much is real, yachties
See REALITY, page A11
TRITON SURVEY
A Coke-or-Pepsi kind of survey, yachting style. – Story, C1