Reckless great lakes freighter nearly causes a do it yourself shipwreck 

Great stories! Thank you for posting this!

sweet

That camcorder was state of the art for non-professionals in its day too.

He was thinking only of beating us to the fuel dock.

out of my 10 years on the lakes working for csl I have never seen anybody or anything reckless happening except for the American Spirit grounding in Duluth

@@authorwes This must have been a scary thrill for you. Was there any communication between the two ships? I'm glad this popped up, I'm subscribed and like your story. Thanks

would have been serious repercussions if they had collided--VET USN/USCG

Hey, I have a degree in Aeronautical Science... I should have a Venturi tattoo.

I've felt the Venturi effect when truckers would pass me. I was limited to 60mph, so everybody wanted to pass. Some of them passed so close that I could feel the trailers being sucked together. After feeling that a couple of times, I would just tap on the brakes when somebody wanted to pass, just to get them off of my side faster.

@@authorwes , In NASCAR Racing we call the "Venturi Effect" the "Side Draft", We also call the Maneuver the Cap'n on the Cason pulled a "CRAZY IVAN".

@@eltoro6688 Thanks ElToro66. I've heard side draft a thousand times or more. Didn't know it was Venturi. There are a few crazy Ivans out there alright.

Close enough to throw some tomatoes at him for acting stupid!!

Glad you're enjoying it!

But at least I'd have had it all on tape... if I'd have survived.

Indeed

They keep me sane.

very nice models they from kit or built from scratch?

@authorwes I've been trying to play Warhammer...key word trying. Too much fun assembling and actually painting. I've gone back and stripped a few of my old models from my childhood and redid them knowing now about shades and contrast paints they look presentable 😂

I know, right?

I had to make a minor edit and the only way to do that is to delete the original. You won't even notice the change but it was truly needed.

@@authorwes I KNEW I had seen a video about this before! Thanks for that clarification so I don't doubt my memory any more than I already do! The urge to fire torpedos at that knucklehead must have been powerful.

No problems- they're really easy going folks. This was treated like someone cutting you off on the freeway.

@@authorwes did you flip him the “bird?”🤣🤣🤣🤣

Sometimes theres a "WTF were you doing back there"

Dunno about the states but being on the same bodies of water there most likely cut from the same cloth, so I’d say it would be a 50/50 for a good old fashioned bench brawl 🤣

@@authorwes these days you cut certain people off on freeway and they start shooting at you!. Other captain should have been reported to whatever governing board controls these ships (if there even is a control board)

Glad you enjoyed it!

You're welcome

Just to save 4 hours... that's pretty much it.

@@authorwes Probably the reason. Money makes everyone out there do strange, unusual and weird things. Yes, he obviously has a load to deliver, however at what price? His ship, his crew his job being the ships master? As stated, best always to avoid other seafaring vessels at any cost, never to go bear them or approach them and in this case wouldn't it be best to shut the engines to quarter speed until both vessels have safely passed far from each other? Would have been much better to take her further out at sea once the other vessel passed by approprately, once both are safely far away from each other, then resume course and order the engine room to then go full speed ahead.

Especially when you see it in person.

You know how I could tell this was near Detroit? No turn signal.

Glad you enjoyed it!

And not adjusting accordingly to the stupidity 🙄

Check out "November Bells" by Kurt Puffpaff the song contains actual audio transmissions from the Coast Guard at St.Ignace the night "The Fitz" went down. Probably the first official acknowledgement the ship was in peril.

No action was taken. However a copy of the tape was sent to the Mauthe's owners who said they were going to hang onto it until the next time the Callaway's owners complained about one of their boats.

@@authorwes Unbelievable! Totally UNBELIEVEABLE!

If you watch my "Trip 29" video it has the actual radio communication between the two captains in real time... it's not what most folks would expect.

LOL

As a former airline captain I can personally say... YOU GOT THAT RIGHT!

@@authorwes I think that is a feature of many lines of business. A lot of people will turn a blind eye as long as "the ball keeps rolling and the gears keep turning". I don't like that, but that is still more understandable than those who turn a blind eye to violations just so they will have less work to do. I guess that was a long-winded way of saying: "I find greed to be more understandable reason to take risks than laziness"

Here's hoping someone from the Marine Safety Office or MIO reads this for future reference. Wanna pee off the "company"? Have the MIO go onboard during fueling, shut it down and do a white glove inspection before fueling is allowed to continue, delaying their departure by hours, maybe a day. Wanna see the phone l ight up in the Operation Center? Just make sure you turn your phone off while doing said boarding. ;-)

My thoughts too.

In the early days it was insane. In the 1800s collisions of one sort or another were a daily thing.

@@authorwes With the technology now at hand which is much more sophisticated than ever before, no excuse for any of this behavior from any seafaring vessels ships master. Common courtesy rules both life on dry land along with the seas, no matter whare you are, what your doing upon this earth.

Good point

See my video "Trip 29" and the unedited radio exchange between the two captains is on there... it didn't go like you'd expect.

Thanks for watching

Toledo has done SO much with their waterfront area, you should be quite proud.

Nope- it was treated like someone cutting you off on the interstate.

I couldn't believe how matter-of-fact and cool our crew remained.

The "Light 10" error is mine- I had scribbled it wrong in my notes that morning. When the mate ran his pen across the chart, he put it across those shallows and said casually "...he's cuttin' here, the shallows..." so that's the way I noted it. Thanks for your input.

The Mauthe could not have altered course, she was established in the channel.

@@authorwes and speed?

0

The Mauthe was in the channel. Where did you want it to go?

@@racrx7 possibly altered speed to increase CPA

Welcome aboard! Thank you!!

@@authorwes No problem i have been on the lakes boat loads of times

Yep- who can make the fuel dock first.

You should!

Get your fixes here... it doesn't cost anything.

Once you are in the Detroit River and St. Clair River system, Sarnia Traffic control acts like ATC. Same goes for the St. Marys River and Soo locks- there Soo Control works much like ATC and the lock master works like approach control by doing sequencing. On the open lake, however, the Captains rule all. The Coast Guard is much like FAA... if no metal was bent and no blood was spilled, they really could care less.

Thanks for the sub!

Thanks for subscribing! It was a pretty strange setting for my first day out there, but the crew pretty much shrugged it off. Like being cut off on the highway.

You are correct, I copied it wrong in my notes when I was aboard and then all these years later used those same notes to make the video. I correct it in my "Trip 29" video, where I also have the actual marine radio exchange between the two captains... which doesn't go the way most folks expect.

For the conversation between captains see my video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ennHEa1mVmM.html

Good question. He did pass 2 other vessels on Lake St. Clair.

Indeed

The president of Interlake took his copy of the video and kept it for the next time management of the tin-stackers complained about one of the Interlake boats- then he sent that video to them with a note that read something like, "Oh yeah? Look what one of your boats did to us!"

Thanks for watching!

@@authorwes no problem keep the good work up

Not really- I build my own.

Oh yes- the captain of the Mauthe was pretty much ignoring me and my camera at the time. Afterward he asked for a copy of that tape... which he got and then FedEx'ed it to his company HQ.

Yep

No action at all

Nope- it was considered no worse than getting cut off on the highway.

You were told completely wrong. Booze is very expressly forbidden aboard ship and a crewman under the influence will lose his or her job. It's been that way since the 1950s.

This was considered no worse than someone cutting you off on the freeway.

Nope.

Thanks

Nope- the crew just treated it like someone cutting them off on the freeway.

Welcome aboard!

A signal on the telegraph to the engine room to reduce the speed.

No idea.

Me either.

No editing- it was quiet, like a poker game. Those guys are true professionals. If you watch the whole video (my "Trip 29" video) you'll hear the un-edited radio exchange between the captains... it's not what you'd expect.

@@authorwes Hi there again! Thank you for answering my question, what I meant was that in the video I didn't hear loud engine or ship sounds. We have to agree that this particular crew and their captain are professionals or even veterans in the business.

Signal the engine room to reduce speed.

At the time that's what I thought- the crew of the MAUTHE, however, just brushed it off like it was no big deal at all

Nope. It was considered no worse than being cut off on the freeway

In my video "Trip 29" you'll hear the only words exchanged between the two captains... and it's not what you'd expect.

Ohhhh sure.... in fact, he did.

None- it was considered the same as someone cutting in front of you on the freeway.

Calloway was larger, Mauthe was smaller and they were both constructed just a few years before the Fitz.

So I believe the Mauthe and Callaway started off as near identical sisters (AAA Class) with the Fitzgerald as a larger and wider ship. At some point the Callaway was lengthened to be longer than the Fitzgerald was, and had a boom put on while the Mauthe kept the original design until the 2010s. Callaway is currently in lay up, the Mauthe still sails... kind of, as a zombie ship, the Pathfinder.

I was tape recording the marine radio channels and there was no prior communications at all.

My thoughts exactly. Both vessels share responsibility.

The Mauthe's crew were watching on radar and asked the same question.

The full ship-to-ship radio can be heard in this video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-lRKuKh-XeZc.html

None- it was considered no worse than being cut off on the expressway.

@@authorwes wow that doesn't add up at all even when you think he sailed over the rocky area. Thanks for letting me know

Or how do you make them?

Making them is in a series of videos on this site

Signal sent by way of the engine room telegraph to allow the captain to order slower speed.

Pretty crazy.

I’m surprised nobody has answered you yet. So heres a long overly detailed answer. Surprisingly seven out of the eight AAA’s are still around in one way or another. The three US Steel triplets are all still running. But as of 2022 only the Arthur M. Anderson is actually being used, with the other two in layup due to the pandemic and/or disrepair. Kaye E. Barker (Edward B. Greene) is still in active service for Interlake. And then the American Valor (Armco) has been in layup for over a decade, but she was purchased by lower lakes towing and may enter service for Canada. Now as for the rest. The William Clay Ford was scrapped but her pilothouse is now part of a museum. JL Mauthe is now a barge named Pathfinder. And finally the Reserve is now the barge Maumee. It’s interesting that out of all laker designs, most of the AAA’s have survived. I wonder what about them still makes them useful today.

@@aeggbrune thank you, I thought the anserson and her other 2 sisters were the only ones that were built

@@localbreadyboy401 Well the Anderson Clarke and Callaway are the only ones that follow the original plans I believe. As far as I know the other 5 were slightly modified plans. Kaye E. Barker has a taller pilothouse. JL Mauthe had a much smaller aft deckhouse. The others changed around the placement of certain rooms. Generally though they all had the same Hull design and were built at around the same time. All making them Fall under the AAA class. Although I could be wrong about that. Glad I could answer your questions though 😁

It's a signal sent on the engine room telegraph to order the engineer to reduce speed

Sort of- they were all constructed un the 1850s as what was know as the "Triple A's" but the Mauthe's cabin configuration was unique.

You got that right

Well said.

I should say so. Best to avoid other sea faring vessels when on the Great Lakes like this especally when everybody KNOWS that those lakes can at any time release their fury at anytime at any second.

No action was considered. He's probably retired by now... this was 1992.

LOL

Not usually. I had to do an edit to this long-ago posted video, and the only way to do that was to completely delete it, then edit the original and re-post. That's just the way RU-vid is set up.

Isn't there a rule about "careless and reckless operation"?

Not in modern times that I know of.

We were right in the shipping lane about 2 or 3 vessel widths from the bank (just a guess on my part)