February 2016 The-Triton.com
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/tritonnews | www.The-Triton.com | February 2016
Commodore: Cuba needs to prepare for yachts By Suzette Cook If megayachts gearing up to visit Cuba want to travel in luxury, they should plan to bring it with them, said Jose Miguel Diaz Escrich, commodore of the Hemingway International Yacht Club. “The trip is possible, but when the megayachts go to Cuba, they must be
prepared with everything: diesel, water, electricity, everything. They want to enjoy all the beauty of Cuba, but if you don’t have all that, maybe the trip would be uncomfortable.” Escrich, 69, is an ambassador of recreational yachting in his country. He was 16 years old when he joined Cuba’s Revolutionary Navy as a midshipman. He studied at the Naval Academy
and graduated in 1969 as a Corvette Lieutenant. He went on to serve in the Cuban Navy for 25 years, retiring as a Commander. Now, Escrich and the nonprofit Hemingway International Yacht Club of Cuba, which he founded in 1992, are often the first contact for captains and potential visitors who want to cruise See CUBA, page 42
ICW, marinas digging deeper for yacht traffic
News
The future is now Industry gets amped over electric, hybrid power.
Romantic gestures Former chief stew creates jobs for crew and surprises for sweethearts.
See DREDGE, page 6
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Where in the World
Travel north and south Take a trip to Colombia’s Old City and British Columbia’s new maritime Web site.
By Dorie Cox Every season Capts. Donald and Natalie Hannon navigate segments of the 1,100-mile Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway from Virginia to Florida. The combination of natural inland waterways and dredged channels allows yacht owners to visit marinas, sites and towns while captains can avoid occasional hazards of the open ocean. “For 20 or more years, most all my career, we go up north in the summer and back during the winter,” Donald Hannon said from the yacht’s winter home in Florida. “Although offshore is easier, a lot of owners like the stops. When we travel inside, there are stops people like to make, like Coinjock [North Carolina], it’s a must-do.” The ICW is just one part of the vital waterways that comprise navigation arteries for boats. Although managed by different entities, all work toward the same goal: to keep these waters navigable.
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ALL HANDS ON DECK: The crew of the M/Y Lady Lola are bundled up in immersion suits during a drill enroute to La Paz. PHOTO/CAPT. MAC McDONALD
Veteran captains say jobs hard to find From the Bridge Lucy Chabot Reed With age comes wisdom. And with time comes experience. But wisdom and experience don’t automatically bring jobs, as a group of yacht captains noted in our monthly From the Bridge roundtable discussion. Neither does it bring a clear reason why. “In the last 10 years, it’s been extremely difficult for veteran captains to get jobs,” one captain began. When asked why he thought that, this captain fingered management companies – and in particular, the managers in charge
– for wanting to maintain control over a yacht, something a veteran captain is less likely to give, he said. “There’s a vested interest from someone who supplies something to the boat,” he said. “If they’re not careful, owners end up getting the wrong information,” another captain said. “Instead, hire a captain, who is ethically bound to give you the best information.” As always, individual comments are not attributed to any one person in particular so as to encourage frank and open discussion. The attending captains are identified in a photograph on page 45. The problem with simply hiring a
See JOBS, page 44
Events
Triton networks Enhance your career this year with a focus on making new connections.
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Triton Survey During a refit, do you prefer to pay as you go or to pay at the end of the job? Pay at the end 27%
Pay as we go 73%
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