Muggings of crew Raise caution in Antibes A4
To call or not to call?
Sail back Bequia’s roots still in boats. Vol.6, No. 5
LESSON LEARNED
Evaluating freelance assignments
www.the-triton.com
August 2009
Steering our industry to better times
THAT PIONEERING SPIRIT
Captains discuss what to keep, what to ditch as tough times carry on
By Capt. Taylor Lawson Since the onslaught of stripping yachts to just skeleton crews, I find there is more demand for freelance captains. A boat sits understaffed for movement and when it’s time to move … it means it’s time to hire … but just long enough for the trip, sea-trial, voyage or crossing. I have a list of questions that I use to qualify my potential employer and the yacht itself before accepting a freelance gig. Keep in mind that this list is fairly thorough and I’ve had the luxury of time for its composition. The calls usually come at inopportune moments with unrealistic time expectations and definitely not when you’ve got a list of questions handy. Keep in mind that these questions may take several communications. Make sure the important ones are answered and more realistically, that they get answered during the handover. Not all questions will apply to every gig bar one: how to get paid. First you want to find out if this is a job you want, so you need to ask all the questions about what the gig entails. How did you hear about me? Will I be running the boat as captain, OOW, local knowledge guide or other? (If you are going as a watch captain or OOW, and working with a captain you know socially, ask for a reference of someone they have worked with. That captain may be nice off the water, but amazingly different as the master.) When am I needed and for how long? What kind and size of boat? How many crew? Where is the boat now, and where is it going? Will the owner or guests be onboard, or just the crew? (If the owner will be aboard, ask how long they have owned boats, and if they like to drive it themselves.) Is there an itinerary or shall I plan
See FREELANCE, page A12
B1
Captain struggles with pilots. A18
Milt and Judy Baker, founders of Bluewater Books and Charts, have officially retired, sort of. Read more about these yachting industry pioneers in the first in a series of profiles, beginning on page A8. PHOTO FROM MILT BAKER
TRITON SURVEY
Do you think yacht sales brokers are compensated fairly? After last month’s My Latest Rant, we asked captains if they thought brokers earned their money. More than half thought they did. Find out what else they think, starting on page C1.
No – 47.1%
Yes – 52.9%
A few short years ago, crew enjoyed a crest in the yachting industry driven by a strong economy and bustling growth. Now, not so much. But if the current state of the industry can be seen as a trough, then higher times are ahead. From the Bridge With that in Lucy Chabot Reed mind, we gathered seven captains to talk about how best to steer the industry out of this low point. What weak spots need to be fixed? What good parts need to be protected? And how do we have a little control over the state of the industry in the months and years ahead? The first – and, it turned out, last – thing on every captain’s mind was the work ethic and quality of yacht crew. So when asked what troubling part of the industry they would change, several captains jumped right in on crew. “Clear communication with new people joining the industry,” one captain said. “I still get people who walk up the dock and knock on the hull and say, ‘Hi, I’m here and I’m ready to be paid $1,000 a week, and what do you mean I have to work weekends?’ It’s what they hear from a friend who just got a $5,000 tip on a charter, but it’s not what happens on most boats.” 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 A17. “I think we’re past that, though,” another captain said. “Maybe some crew like that come by, but I just don’t talk to them.”
See BRIDGE, page A16