Just left a boat I was working on for two months a few weeks ago because of the same kind of things. I was sharing my room with the mate who was super hostile and using drugs, and told the captain four or five times…. He did nothing lol. Captain was also a huge drunk, I ignored all the signs the whole time and wish I would have left sooner
It's too bad but there are a few programs like that out there. Hoping to start a conversation about it on social media to show new crew what to watch out for🤍⚓️ so glad you left!
Very proud of you for leaving. Screw anyone who tells you that you should stay in a situation where you feel unsafe for any reason. I and my friends (stews) have had similar experiences where drunk captains/first mates put them in mortal danger. As glamorous and rewarding as this industry can be at times, it can be equally toxic, unstable and dangerous. I hope everyone gains some insight into the potential risks and feels empowered to leave when they see the red flags.
I was a deckhand in the mid-90's to early aughts. Dealt with extremely drunk, obnoxious coked up yacht brokers and Manhattan stock traders. The absolute worst! I gave up doing charter yachts after that. Went to private yachts. Was with some owners who decided to put their boat up for charter. They were really good to us and asked me to stay to help look after 'their baby' for them. Sweetest people ever. So I agreed. The captain was a former charter captain and he stayed in contact with people that always liked to charter, so the first guests we got were people he knew. He warned us, they liked to drink a lot, but after hanging out with coked up stockbrokers, figured how bad could it be. Worse! Way frigging worse! We had a pirate theme night. We had real swords, but dull blades and the fake flintlock pistols, tri-corner hats. The full experience. We wanted authenticity! What a dumb decision that would later be. The guests, some, had been drinking pretty hard all day, they had a couple fights, they complained we couldn't go in the tender when it was lightning, they were all drinking later so no more waverunners, then dinner comes and we were busy helping the Stewardesses serve because the guests were so very drunk, they were being overly demanding. You know how it goes I'm sure. We'll one guest went to the bathroom and he was gone for a while. Then we hear the sound of a waverunner going by. Didn't register because the other 9 guests are being jerks, but then the captain comes running and says 'Mr.X just took off towards another boat on of our waverunners, go get him' into the tender we went...but we didn't see where he went, then we heard the screams. So picture this, you are on your lovely 10 million dollar yacht in the Bahamas, eating dinner with your family on the back deck. Suddenly some crazy guy comes speeding at your boat on a waverunner, dressed as a pirate. Hops off and runs up the steps, pulls a pistol out and a sword and wants you 'give up the booty!'. Scary right? Well that yacht owner along with the captain and their bosun just frog marched him off the back of the boat. We got there, apologized profusely, took the guest back in the tender. The deckhands were yelled at for not putting the toys up, but that was something we did at dinner service, but we were called in to help the interior. The chief stew apologized and knew the captain longer than I had and said he was just upset at himself blah blah. But again, served as yet another reminder of why I was done with charters. They were going to go with a professional charter company after that and I left. Oddly enough, got a job on the boat that our 'pirate' tried taking over 8 months later.
People don't realize this stuff happens. I've had many experiences like yours over 9 years. Alcohol was ALWAYS the common factor. I'll write a horror book one day. So many amazing times of course too. But for any young or old yachties in that situation, walk off the boat, take photos and video, report the incident. You WILL be paid if not paid damages and it will not hurt your career in yachts. There are thousands of boats who run professional and safe operations. As it should be. Enjoy yachting and be safe, it's EVERYONE'S RESPONSIBILITY. Even the new green crew members. Great video by the way. ❤👍🙏
I think I'm jaded because I watch Below Deck. I can't imagine all crews as dysfunction as those on Below Deck. Please tell me they are not all like that!?!?
You will have a long career in the industry. I am a captain but I think that you are a problem-maker. That is not a holiday, there are a lot of responsibilities and money.
Can you give your honest opinion on working in this industry🙈 I wanna get into it with my boyfriend and best friend but we are a bit worried about dangers and if it’s really worth it (pros outweigh cons, etc) will you please please give me your advice🥺 Id love to do it but I am a bit scared because I’m worried I don’t know what I’m getting myself into. Are bad programs like yours more common? Have you ever had guests that abuse/mistreat or try anything dodgy with you?
Bad times are rare. Usually most of the guests are super nice. You will occasionally have people that are really demanding and kind of Jervis, but they are usually placate by the senior crew and by the time you deal with that you'll have experience. As new crew, you'll be learning the ropes...literally...but will have little interaction with guests usually. The experience you gain, the places you'll visit, the money you earn, the people you meet...it's worth it. You work hard. 16 hour+ days aren't uncommon on charter. You'll usually share a cabin with 1 or sometimes more people. Usually not more than 2 though. If you are hardworking, detail oriented, friendly, outgoing, and dedicated to learning you will prosper immensely and you can go far and earn lots of money, meet terrific people and maybe some guest will hire you to come work for them. Lol. Sounds crazy, but I've seen it happen before. They either want you to come work on their yacht, or work in their home or business. You'll get odd requests. But you truly get out of it, what you put into it, but yachting is a high value activity so you get way way more out of it then what you put into it.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Awful you were put in that position. Discipline is key when working on the seas, no matter type of ship. No room for drug/alcohol subtence abuse. Leadership comes from the top and that captain is a risk to everyone working under him. Deaths occur at sea and allot of it can be avoided by being vigilant and respecting the environment you work in. Thanks again.
🎉 Didn't know that yatching has such loose drug and alcohol policies. While getting drunk ashore is one thing, I'm wondering how even the pilot ( for Panama canal crossing ) , allowed the master to be in command if he's not okay and sober. I pity the owner who has left his valuable expensive assets to such unprofessionalism. I'd have called the company DPA and inform them of the misdeeds on the boat. Almost all yatchs are supposed to have some form of safety and quality management system..Alcohol abuse , crew welfare and grievance addressal mechanisms are part of this .
Hi, I just wanted to give you a tip to being a youtuber. @mrthomasenglish made a RU-vid saying how he got subscribers: he had 1mil followers on TT but nothing in comparison on YT. So he decided to start posting his tts on yt (shorts?) & that's how his yt subscribers # jumped/grew extremely fast. BTW, just gotta say that I've been a follower on tt 😁 for over 2yrs now, when the shutdown happened, when you only had like 10 or 15k followers. I'm gonna get into yachting too. I'm about to be a certified lifeguard. Thanks for all your tips. 🙂
I love what you're doing here. I used to work for the majority owner of Christensen Yacht Co, and I worked for a SCUBA shop on the Big Island. I know you can't always film people, or talk about what boat you're on, but there's tons of stuff that I think would make great content. Personally, I love the underwater stuff, so you're always visiting these unique and far-flung locations, and I would love to see snorkeling or diving video from these places, maybe spearfishing video. The amount of content at your fingertips is amazing. Then there's other stuff like location video, for like historical locations, WWII, ancient temples, whatever. Oh man. You could blow up.
Horrifying! Where is the professionalism? If I owned the boat, I would not object to the crew having a good time when not on duty but no-one, no-one would be permitted to operate any equipment if intoxicated and responsible for the safety and well-being of others! That is intolerable! Instant sacking. I like the idea of having a superyacht, doing a World cruise, treating the yacht as as a floating hotel for family and friends, going ashore to sample the delights. I'd take the crew too, they can enjoy the sights, the restaurants and cafes, the vineyards or distilleries but there must always be the caretaker crew aboard and sober driver for the tender or minibus. I will only buy a superyacht that treats the crew well, I'd expect they'd have access to enjoy all the facilities, maybe with a deference, my family and friends come first. I'd expect the crew off duty to be able to sit at the big dining table for my family and friends. I'd expect the chef to be the most valued crew member but not 24/7. My wife can cook too or others can, even if it is only tacos or pizzas. And I don't mind peeling potatoes or washing dishes, or doing a watch from midnight to 6am. Just not often.
hi you deserve to be a chief stew emery! thank you for the tips what to look out for our safety! im a greenie looking for my first job in a yacht industry.. maybe you could help me get onboard.. im currently here in south of france and im a filipino national.. thank you and God bless!
Summed up version is you and other staff went out on a day off drank too much and operated/were passengers of a tinder boat being driven by those who were intoxicated. It’s unsafe but it was done on your off time and you should share some responsibility since it’s similar to getting in the car with a drunk driver. You always have a choice. Glad it wasn’t worse then a scratch on your leg by the coral as you attempted to wakeboard.
Sounds like you don’t have much common sense to see how the captain repeatedly put her life in danger displaying complete unprofessionalism and incompetence
I love how 20 yr olds just think theyre grown amd they always wanna be heard. Dude, just do a good job and save the ideas for your solo business. 2wink wink
