A case for the sailing YouTuber

[AKscamp]

In Defense of the Sailing YouTuber

My name is Breena and I am a YouTuber. I’m 30 years old, a millennial, so millennial, in fact that our boat’s name is the Millennial Falcon. My husband and I started sailing when we were 20 years old. We had never sailed before when we bought our first boat, a 30 foot Irwin Citation, Lorax. Since then we have sold, bought and sailed 3 boats. That is all to say, sailing is our passion and we strive to do it for the rest of our lives. We work construction in the off season in Alaska and sail for as long as the money holds out. This past season we started a youtube channel.

Never before have I seen the sailing community so polarized over a subject as young cruisers starting a youtube channel…actually, that’s not true anchoring may be more polarizing, but that’s a different article entirely! It surprised me, as cruisers are often the type to say , “I don’t get it, but hey, everyone has their thing.” And yet on this subject I saw people, young and old, taking a very hard lined stance. On the one hand people felt like it was a way that people were, inevitably trying to make money while sailing they saw it as panhandling, and on the opposite side of the spectrum, people were excited to get insight into life on a sailboat.

For a while, I was on the fence. I watched a lot of the youtube channels that have become so well known within the sailing community and slowly, I found myself rooting for them, laughing with them and feeling their pain when their anchor drug. I started to think. These youtube episodes evoke a similar feeling that so many of the articles within Cruising Outpost, Cruising World, Practical Sailor and other blogs and magazines stir within me. I began to look at these short videos in a different light, the new version of article writing.

My husband and I finished our last stint of working, 2 years and took off from Alaska in search of our next boat. This time, we started to film ourselves and the whole process. The journey from land to sea, the nitty gritty of boat searching, yacht buying, refitting and getting her in the water. The filming process was at the same time more work than I had anticipated; filming, editing, and uploading and yet so rewarding. I found myself excited to document our life, as a sort of journal and to share that with friends and family. The thought of it growing to other cruisers and sailors or soon to be sailors, was awesome. We are writing our story through the camera lens and putting it out there in the most prolific way possible, YouTube.

I know many have argued that it is a cry for money, a stunt for millennials to avoid working and travel instead, but I implore those to look at You Tubers making money in a different light. To see their efforts as simply a different form of sharing this lifestyle with a broader audience, and similar to the writing of an article or selling photos, or charging for a carb clean on an outboard, selling their craft of constructing the bits of life that make up living aboard into a short 7-15 minute trailer giving us insight into the different lives we lead on the sea. Despite the fact we are all out here sailing, even liveaboards have different stories to share. All unique and diverse, just as those of us that have chosen land life. So, next time we see the success of a YouTube sailor I would hope you remember the articles you read in sailing magazines, remember the insight they allowed you into this alternative lifestyle and just test the waters to see if these short films make you feel the same. With that being said, you should totally subscribe to my channel “Litzenbergers!” No, but seriously, we’re all out here together, let’s start supporting our fellow live aboards and creators.

[gmakhs]

If people want to support someone , it's good ,specially if you make a good show that they enjoy.

But yes asking for donations is like begging and it's no different from a person with a guitar on the street .

P.S I do like the fact that people get a chance through crowdfunding or by creating content don't get me wrong .

[Steadman Uhlich]

Howdy Breena.

I read your post. It is a good one.

I think your POV is clearly explained and that may help others see the issue from your POV. I agree that good sailing videos can be similar to a good article.

I did a quick YouTube search for “Litzenbergers” and did not immediately see anything related to sailing.

My Friendly Suggestion: If you have a YouTube channel you want to promote here on CF, I suggest you add that info (a link or real name of it) to your CF Profile (About Me) page and make sure to provide some more info (perhaps an edited excerpt from your post) in that About Me page too.

Good luck with your sailing and your video production efforts.

And Bon Voyage on the Forum.

[AKscamp]

Thanks for the kind words and suggestion, I will be sure to add it to our profile. In the meantime I'll put the link below.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCax...Ncgxb06V60SEkw

[billknny]

I think you have taken some valid criticism and extended it to a place it does not apply.

If you produce content that people want to watch, and they enjoy it enough they pay you for it, good on you! No big deal if you have to ask them to do so. I don't find that offensive in any way. You are giving value, you have a right to get value in return. But to be sure, there are very, very few people producing content that I watch with that much interest.

I have done just enough video editing that I understand that it is really HARD to produce good content that is worth watching. It is not "like work" it IS work. A 20 minute video easily take me 4 or 5 hours of work to polish to the point I am ready to release it "in the wild."

The people I have trouble with are those who expect other people to send them money simply because they need it. The various crowdfunding projects that start with, "We wrecked our boat and need a new one..." are the ones that get my contempt--not my money.

[AKscamp]

Originally Posted by billknny

The people I have trouble with are those who expect other people to send them money simply because they need it. The various crowdfunding projects that start with, "We wrecked our boat and need a new one..." are the ones that get my contempt--not my money.

Very good point, I understand that completely. I have heard people extend that type of criticism to the Sailing YouTubers as well, and I think that's the grey area I was trying to address.

[atoll]

personally,and with no predjudice against you.
i think that the worst thing to happen to cruising was the GPS and Jimmy cornell who through his many books promoted independent cruising.

this has resulted in almost all countries levying some sort of anchoring restriction and tax on cruising,couple that with overcrowding,price gouging, marina monopoly price fixing cruising permits etc.

you tubers ,sailing and promoting the lifestyle will lead to its ultimate demise for the average cruiser of modest means.

social media will also lead to unfavorable realtime exposure of less than favorable reports in popular cruising destinations forcing more rules and regulations on cruising yachts by proxy of the less than low profile youtubers.

enjoy it whilst it lasts,in 20 years time you will wish you had told nobody,as you share your remote anchorage with 200 other yachts,and cannot visit any main anchorage due to the $100 a night anchoring fee..........

[rbk]

“enjoy it whilst it lasts,in 20 years time you will wish you had told nobody,as you share your remote anchorage with 200 other yachts,and cannot visit any main anchorage due to the $100 a night anchoring fee..........”

X2

[Mike OReilly]

Creating quality content, be it vids or magazine articles, is hard work. If you're good enough to make some money doing it, then goodonya! Few people here complain about that. It's the pure beggars that put people off.

Personally, I bet cruising as a lifestyle will/is on the decline. It's an affluent western phenomena (so far), and the coming generations are less affluent. I also think the growth of Youtubers is a sign of fewer "doers" and far more "viewers."

Right now. If you want seclusion, just go somewhere outside of Internet/wifi/cell range.

[atoll]

some role models here.....screwing it up for the rest of the cruising community,in real time youtube style...........

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXVEYUpIutU

[Dove1955]

First - Anyone who has ever done any serious, quality video work knows it takes hours and hours to complete a project, and that's working from the comfort of a studio, not a rocking sailboat with minimal access to internet which in some countries is dreadfully slow.

Second - Look what the Youtubers are doing for the sailing community. People who were fearful previously, have now taken the leap. There are lots of instructional tips and plenty of honest, transparent mistakes showing what not to do as well.

Third - Its great entertainment. With all the crap on TV, the fake "reality TV"
I would much rather watch some honest people, living their dream and showing me parts of the world I never knew existed through an unfiltered lens, all for five or ten bucks a month. Nobody is getting rich here from begging. They earn every dollar.

[grantmc]

Fantastic post Breena! I have huge regard for people that can YouTube well and so pull in significant audiences. You discuss articles in various magazenes that allowed people to live vicariously through others experiences. There were/are plenty of books too.
Please be my friend and I would love a sticker even if only a virtual one as I'm a long way away. But hey I ticked subscribe and will follow your adventures with much interest and excitement.

[Hardhead]

To each their own I say.

Hopefully, showing beautiful marine environments will also help to increase pollution/plastic awareness among more people.

Have you ever thought of graphically focusing a good few moments on whatever pollution, garbage, plastic waste that you come across?

Show yourselves having a good time -- but also show the very worst of where the environment is going, as you may come across it. That could be a great thing.

[Nobody]

I get the feeling there are cruisers here that feel they have the right to go cruising and anybody that came along after him should not be able to

[alaskaflyfish]

Just do what you want to do as long as it doesn't hurt anybody else. Some people will love you, some people will hate you... (just like any other aspect of life). The generation gap (concerning youtube) is large between boomers and millennial's. As an Xer I would rather be outside doing anything else instead of watching a video, but I did use YT to teach myself how to sail. Good luck with your journey.

P.S. I live in Soldotna as well.