Do skippers really want crew? Doesn't seem so...

[Cap Erict3]

My best experience with an unknown crew was a young couple that were both professional mariners.


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Looking for another pretty place to work on the boat.

[messias]

Wow...

This is actually the first time I "launch" such a big number of replies to a post!

First of all, yes... I should have been more "commited" in spending more time around CF and should have been more involved in chatting with all of you. After all, Cruising and all that has something even remotely related to it is what I want to do, so... Point taken!
And for that (not being around that much) I really cannot say anything on my behalf... job, wife, kids, lack of boat, lack of time is really not an excuse when you are aiming for something. I know.
Nevertheless, I am really glad that I've shared my "frustration" with this, because not only you guys (and gals ) have given me direct feedback, mentioning all the "doubts and fears" that a skipper looking for unkown crew is facing... but you have also made some serious crewing proposals, which I am really greatfull for!

Thank you!
Thank you all for the enlightment as well.

So, going back to the first coment on this post, I will take "Captain Obvious" advice and post my "CV", expectations, intentions and what I am hoping to get from this. Hope it doesn´t get too boring from this line down...

I started sailing (dinghies) when I was young and loved it. I owned a few boats but never actually did any racing. I was out alone all the time and apart from the initial sailing lessons, I basically taught myself how to "tame the damn thing" up to a point where I could have it rigged, sail... and come back to shore in one piece! I also crewed up on some longer passages in very big boats (from Oporto to Azores or Lisbon).
A few years later, and only because of legal requirements, I took the portuguese "boat licence" that actually alowed me to "steer" both motor and sailboats up to 7mts in lenght. All my boating then was made in motorboats (RIBS), since I was then "hooked" on freediving and spearfishing, which meant that from that moment on, I never set foot on a sailboat for years!
Five years ago I went to live in Brasil, hired a 6mt sailboat for one day with the wife... and kept coming back again and again, bringing those initial "sailing dreams" back to life. I took another sailing course and ended up having the brazilian "coastal licence" but, again, just theoretical knowledge that although gave me the licence... did not give me any practical ability! (unlike Portugal, licences in brasil are purely theoretical and ZERO practice is required).

So here I am... I have 2 "official" licences, theoretical knowledge that was never put to much use, own tuition dinghy sailing (if at all relevant... I never sank a boat! Well... almost). I intend to buy myself a "proper" small yacht and make some coastal cruising until I have enough ocean miles and knowledge to venture myself further offshore. Ultimate goal (I tend to have a fixed target) is being able to make it to the Azores islands and back! But since they are right in the middle of the Atlantic... i figure I have a LONG learning process before I can get there. After that I would really love to steer a course to high latitudes, but that is only on the "wish thinking" level right now.
(I am only 40, so I guess I still have the time ).

I am currently living in the Czech Republic and sailing here is...well... "limited" to say the least. I do intend to have my boat moored in Germany/Italy/Poland/Croatia or even the Netherlands, as I can drive there (not a cheap ride, but not soooo far away. I´ve done it before a couple of times). I could have it moored here and sail it on the weekends, but that would mean sailing in the lake... and that's not what I need.

I do work for a living, wife, 2 kids (no dog) which means that it is not always easy to find the appropriate time window to crew-up, but I do have a semi/flexible schedule, will make my best effort to make it possible and will reply promptly to any cruising proposal)

Like I said, I speak Portuguese/English/Spanish, acceptable French and basic Czech.

I understand that cruising is not that cheap and I am perfectly fine in contributing to reasonable expenses. I cook rather well. I don't have "electronic gadgets" that follow me everywhere. I don't need to text the wife every day and I have nothing against rain. I have good sense of humor but I am a low profile guy. I have been spearfishing "compulsively" for more than 20 year, so I may be able to provide some fish while close to shore. Or you can let me take my "tuna" speargun with me....and just drag me behind the sailboat as bait if you're fed up with my questions ).

Now what I expect from it...
To learn! From keeping watch to dropping the anchor properly. Oh! and the handling in between, preferably in all kinds of weather conditions, if you don't mind.
Now seriously, I need to learn the ropes in real cruising and I am -for sure- not hoping for a sunny day cruising in the greek islands (although I could definitely learn from it as well).

Thank you all for reviewing this "application", and to suggest any changes!



Ahoj,
Filipe Messias.

[tomfl]

Originally Posted by messias

SNIP

it is not always easy to find the appropriate time window to crew-up

SNIP

As a boat owner, and at least by legal definition a captain, it is not always easy for me to find the right weather window to go out sailing.

On a weekly basis the harbor where I live on my boat has what's known as "sail away Sunday" (which use to be "sail away Thursday"). There are always boats going out who have asked for crew on the net and wound up single handing.

No question being in the right place at the right time is the key.

Or as Woddy Allen said '90% of life is showing up and 95% of life is showing up on time'.

[svfinlandia]

[QUOTE=Suijin;1779441There is just about nothing worse in sailing than being stuck on a boat with someone who either 1) has a disagreeable personality 2) has inflated their sailing knowledge and experience, or heaven forbid, both. I've been on passages with people who at the outset seemed reasonable and level-headed only to watch as some hitherto unknown and problematic personality traits emerged. That includes selfishness, argumentativeness, insecurity, inappropriate comments and/or behavior, and downright insubordination. I've also been on passages with crew who crowed about their experience only to find that it was vastly overstated.\.[/QUOTE]

Works the other way around too. I signed up once with a guy who needed crew for a small sailboat from Washington, NC to Jacksonville, FL. Once I was on board I found out that he thought that he was going to do the trip in 5 days! Of course it took us three just to get to the ocean at Beaufort, NC.
After we got out I find out that he has no bluewater experience. I turned out to be the "captain" on this trip and we turned back to Beaufort the next day.

[Andy73]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

Rich,
Your a dirty old man, this little girl can't be much more than 13 yrs old.

A64 - That's ok, he's not superstitious...

[Island Time O25]

Originally Posted by captain58sailin

Something that I come to is: When it is time to cast off the lines and go for a cruise or trip you have all kinds of volunteers to help, but they are never around when it is time to clean the bilge or help get the boat ready to go. The last crew I took to cross the gulf of Alaska, as soon as we cleared Cape Edgcoumbe, he hit the bunk sea sick and I ended up making the crossing single handed, so if it is all the same to everyone, I'll just single hand and save myself listening to someone retching for 4 days and me worrying about another person getting dehydrated from puking. I am quite picky when selecting crew for a run and if you don't make the cut it is not a personal insult, I'll just pass. If you are really interested in running with me, come on down to the boat I am right in the middle of an engine swap and could use some help swabbing the bilges.

I don't get your post. If you paid your crew why wouldn't they do the jobs such as bilge cleaning, etc? If you did not pay them why do you expect them to do unpaid maintenance work on YOUR boat?

[Island Time O25]

A while back, about 15 years ago, I was about 3-4 seasons into sailing. My buddy who got me into it was by then about 12-14 seasons in. Another acquaintance of mine had then recently acquired a rather large, for his then experience, sailboat (after less than a week on a 34footer and some rudimentary day sails with others). Anyway this acquaintance after some basic shakedown short cruises was itching to get from FL to the Med. And he offered me the opportunity to sign on as a crew for "nominal charge" to be paid by me toward food, incidentals, etc. plus my own airfare back.

Even being a sailing newbie I thought it strange that a crew instead of being paid is expected to chip in. But this guy was waxing eloquently how this is an opportunity of a lifetime for me and how I should be sorry if I don't take it. He also knew of my sailing buddy's experience and offered the same deal to him. Well knowing his total lack of experience and a fondness for the bottle I talked to my sailing buddy and related this crew opportunity. My buddy just laughed and told me the guy was totaly out of his element and/or was trying to swindle us, thinking us to be shmucks. Without any deep knowledge to pass on to us the boat's owner's offer to take us as an unpaid "student" crew was worthless.

My buddy said (early 2000s) that such a FL to Med pro crew for a 70'+ sailboat would be at least $10K and probably more (the boat owner had actually already turned down a generous offer from a mutual acquaintance - a marine pro and a fully licensed unlimited tonnage captain to cross for only $10K which included similarly experienced 1st mate). But my sailng buddy said considering economic situation at the time he would be willing to do it (but only as a skipper with me as the 1st mate and the newbie boat owner keeping his mouth shut at all times and acting as a 2nd mate) for the total of $5K which we would split 3/2 him taking the larger portion as he was more experienced + owner to pay for airfare, food, etc. And that this was dirt cheap everything else considered. Sort of us doing this guy a big favor with the discount for the experience of sailing his boat (which was in pristine condition at the time and quite luxurious).

What do you know - the boat owner went apoplectic on the phone, telling us we're insulting him, that he was so generous offering us such a great adventure blah-blah and we were ungrateful demanding even the airfare and food costs from him, etc, etc. His reaction definitely made me feel right about us refusing to go with him even if he paid us.

Fast forward few months later. I find out he did find some naive wannabee newbie crew of 3 to take him up on his offer "to school them in seamanship" crossing the Pond. And they even paid up to $2K each for the privilege plus their own airfares, etc. To make the long story short the whole crew abandoned him at the first opportunity in the Azores and he had to limp into Giblartar single handed and fly his wife and daughter in to stand watches in the Med.

And 15 years later, he is still sailing mostly singlehanded, although by now I'd probaly go with him as crew on a short trip (no more than a few days as our personalities would not allow for longer time together in close quarters) as I figured if he did not get himself killed in the past 15 years he's probably a much better sailor now than he was in 2000.