Crew Crap

[cheryfee]

On a cruise to the Keys I was having friction with my crew. My boat a 45 ft sailboat, my crew a 60 yr old sailor and a 43yr old Sportie. After a couple discussions with my Sportie he advised me he felt he was Ranking Officer by virtue of his coastie license even without any sail experience. This was on day four of ten. I decided to terminate the cruise early as it was not working out. This issue did surprise me. Just looking for insight, laughs, and other experiences!

[David_Old_Jersey]

What's a "Sportie"?

IMO an easy one to sort out if you also be the Owner - tell him he can call himself Lord High Admiral of the 7 Seas if it makes him happy (and you'd even help him make a suitable hat )...........but if he starts trying to turn his delusion into reality he gets to swim home.

FWIW I think you did the right thing in simply getting rid of him, just a shame that appears to have also terminated the cruise.....but it's all a learning experiance

[SkiprJohn]

Sorry you had a bad experience with crew. It does happen sometimes. I do screen crew and always appoint them to positions before the cruise or delivery starts and make certain they know and agree that the owner is the captain and in charge unless they defer leadership to someone else. It helps to establish this ahead of time.
Your crew should know that responsibility and therefore liability lies with the owner of the vessel and therefore all decisions ultimately are theirs to make. Anyone with a coastie license should realize that and not try to pull rank.
I think you did the right thing to quit the cruise early. Your jerk crew would have made the rest of the time miserable for the rest of you.
kind regards,

[capngeo]

Originally Posted by SkiprJohn

Sorry you had a bad experience with crew. It does happen sometimes. I do screen crew and always appoint them to positions before the cruise or delivery starts and make certain they know and agree that the owner is the captain and in charge unless they defer leadership to someone else. It helps to establish this ahead of time.
Your crew should know that responsibility and therefore liability lies with the owner of the vessel and therefore all decisions ultimately are theirs to make. Anyone with a coastie license should realize that and not try to pull rank.
I think you did the right thing to quit the cruise early. Your jerk crew would have made the rest of the time miserable for the rest of you.
kind regards,

Whoa! Not so fast.. If the license holder was HIRED because of that license, then they would have been responsible for the vessel. True that an owner can fire a captain, but until the captain actually relinquishes command the owner can bludi well go pound salt! The above notwithstanding, if the license holder was a GUEST and became an “I’m in charge ass” then YES by all means he was in the wrong.

Either way, we are only hearing one side of the story.

[SkiprJohn]

Oh, I forgot to mention that I like skippers to tell me where in the crew positions I fit so that there is no question. I also make it clear that I might suggest things from time to time but it is in no way a demand that the skipper do anything that I suggest.
kind regards,

[SkiprJohn]

I assumed that the crew was not hired to be the Captain. Let's see how that plays out.
kind regards,

[MarkJ]

I think you did the right thing to terminate the cruise.
If you are not enjoying it whats the point in continuing.

Have to be brave at times and pull into the nearest port and give some marching orders. Not nice but needed to be done.

[EC Sailor]

Cheryfee- I agree with your decision. I had a similar situation sailing from the Dominican to the Chesapeake Bay. Bottom line I had to pull into Beaufort, NC and disembark my girlfriend Great place to stop and recharge! Single handed into the Potomac river. Much more enjoyable with out a dissenting crew onboard.

[Butler]

A bit of Gilbert and Sullivan seems in order here!

The Pirate King.

Oh, better far to live and die
Under the brave black flag I fly,
Than play a sanctimonious part,
With a pirate head and a pirate heart.
Away to the cheating world go you,
Where pirates all are well-to-do;
But I’ll be true to the song I sing,
And live and die a Pirate King.

For I am a Pirate King!
And it is, it is a glorious thing
To be a Pirate King!

For I am a Pirate King!Chorus.You are!
Hurrah for our Pirate King!King.And it is, it is a glorious thing
To be a Pirate King.Chorus.It is!
Hurrah for our Pirate King!King & Chorus. Hurrah for the/our Pirate King!

When I sally forth to seek my prey
I help myself in a royal way.
I sink a few more ships, it’s true,
Than a well-bred monarch ought to do;
But many a king on a first-class throne,
If he wants to call his crown his own,
Must manage somehow to get through
More dirty work than ever I do,

For I am a Pirate King!
And it is, it is a glorious thing
To be a Pirate King!

For I am a Pirate King!Chorus.You are!
Hurrah for the Pirate King!King.And it is, it is a glorious thing
To be a Pirate King.Chorus.It is!
Hurrah for our Pirate King!King & Chorus. Hurrah for the/our Pirate King!

[EC Sailor]

Hurrah for our Pirate King!

[David M]

Who is master is determined before the vessel gets underway and is logged.

[sabray]

Originally Posted by David_Old_Jersey

What's a "Sportie"?

IMO an easy one to sort out if you also be the Owner - tell him he can call himself Lord High Admiral of the 7 Seas if it makes him happy (and you'd even help him make a suitable hat )...........but if he starts trying to turn his delusion into reality he gets to swim home.

FWIW I think you did the right thing in simply getting rid of him, just a shame that appears to have also terminated the cruise.....but it's all a learning experiance

Sportie is a short skirt I think I would usually not bring male crew wearing a sportie. Or is it skort no man wearing a a skort or a sportie is getting aboard with out really good references and some explanation

[markpierce]

My title should make it clear who is in charge on my boat.

[cheryfee]

Sportie is a sportfish captain. No he was not hired he was a guest. Otherwise there would not have been any misunderstanding. He had an idea that he had "groping" rights as well. Not a good situation. Arrogant bastard.

[osirissail]

Aha! the rest of the story . . . But in any case bringing a "stink potter" on a sailing vessel was the first mistake. And that would work also going the other way. Sail boaters have little or no clue how power yachts/sport fisherman operate their boats.
- - But I suspect that you did not carefully vet the crew and/or most probably did not tell them the "rules" as to how things are done on "your boat."
- - That is something quite normal for a "new" skipper. We all assume way too much that friendships and behavior patterns that we see on shore will be duplicated or transferred to what you will see on the boat when out cruising.
- - Be it a boat or airplane or whatever, once underway a lot of people's personalities seem to undergo a "Dr Jekyl/Mr Hyde" transformation. Only by carefully and adamantly "setting down your set of rules and practices" can you hope to minimize such occurrences.
- - Remember once underway you are the "Captain" first and a friend second. That doesn't mean that you should ignore suggestions from other crew members, but the responsibility for the final decisions is solely yours.