www.the-triton.com March 2011Vol.7, No.12

Scams continueE-mailed job offers take unique twists, names. C10

Reading starsReal sailors become one with the heavens.

Booking chartersWhat is the captain’s role? C1

B1

It can feel isolated on a boat at sea, but eventually the world knocks on the hull of every yacht. Social, political, economic or environmental, global

issues impact the lives of captains, crew and the yachting industry.

For example, the attacks in the United States by international terrorists in 2001 affected one

captain’s American crew.“We were 150 miles out during 9/11

and we had our crew airlifted out,” this captain said. “They had to get to their family.”

Captains shared how their wallets, safety, destinations and staff are affected by events the world over at this month’s From the Bridge luncheon in Ft. Lauderdale.

As usual, 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 A14.

Even weather a half a world away affects business. When Cyclone Yasi hit

Australia in February, small Caribbean islands, some 9,000 miles away, had an increase in charter guests, a captain said.

“Atlantis marina was filled with VIP clients booking when the cyclone hit,” he said. “A Saudi prince had planned his honeymoon in Australia and had to move to the Bahamas instead.”

Although, the Middle East and Arab nations are not as popular as the Mediterranean when it comes to cruising grounds, captains said they monitor political instability across the

Yacht crew too, touched by global events

From the Bridge

Dorie Cox

See BRIDGE, page B14

By Lucy Chabot Reed

In the hours and days after Somali pirates hijacked a 58-foot yacht off the coast of Oman and subsequently killed the four Americans aboard on Feb. 22, the yachting community struggled to make sense of news reports, government statements and military action.

“I see no reason for pirates to kill four people with a warship staring down their necks,” said Capt. Mike Dailey, who has traversed the region three times in the past year. “It just makes no sense.”

Indeed, the immediately released details present an almost unbelievable situation.

Nineteen pirates were involved in

the hijacking, most of who were on the yacht when the shooting began. Four U.S. Navy warships were involved in the response force – an aircraft carrier, a guided-missile cruiser and two guided-missile destroyers.

Gunfire, believed to have been a rocket-propelled grenade fired from the yacht toward one of the Navy ships, began while officials from the FBI were

in negotiations with two pirates aboard the Navy ship. The remains of two pirates were found on the yacht when Navy forces boarded, killing two others and detaining 13 others.

“What possible use was an aircraft carrier?” Dailey asked. “How do you get 19 pirates on board? With the four

Hijacked American sailors killed by Somali pirates

See PIRATES, page A12

How valuable are charter shows in selling charters?

TRITON SURVEY

– Story, C1

They are the most important marketing tool – 2.2%

Valuable but not crucial – 48.9%

Not that valuable – 19.1%

We don’t attend charter shows

– 33.3%

Despite a slow start and moderate crowds, brokers and crew were optimistic about the results from the 2011 Yacht & Brokerage Show in Miami Beach, giving it the moniker “the good little show.” See more photos and news from the show on pages A10-11. PHOTO/TOM SERIO

IN MIAMI AND READY FOR DUTY

A� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton WHAT’S INSIDE

Advertiser directory C15Boats / Brokers B12Calendar of events B14Columns: Fitness C11 In the Galley C1 Latitude Adjustment A3 Nutrition C7 Personal Finance C12 Onboard Emergencies B2 Photography B13 Rules of the Road B1 Sound Waves B3

Stew Cues C5Career News C10Crew News A8Fuel prices B5Marinas / Shipyards A16Networking Q and A C3,4Networking photos C2News A6Photo Gallery A10Technology B4Triton spotter B15Triton Survey C1Write to Be Heard A18,19

Did you see that?

Crew keep busy – and entertained – at the Yacht & Brokage Show. See how on page A11. PHOTO/DORIE COX

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 A�LATITUDE ADJUSTMENT

It was an invite we could refuse: a Cuban-style pig roast – complete with homemade guava barbecue sauce – to celebrate survival.

Spencer Boat Company has been in business a year now, leasing space at the Merrill-Stevens shipyard on the Miami River. When Merrill-Stevens laid off nearly all its employees a couple of weeks before Christmas

in 2009, former yard superintendent John Spencer decided to put everything he had on the table to hire back his crew and keep working on boats. It’s what he does.

And he does it well. Within days, he had enough work to last six months. In January, he had a party – complete with a cake – to say thank you to his guys.

“I want you to know I appreciate the help,” the soft-spoken Spencer said. “Thank all of you here today because without you, none of us would be here today.”

Connie James was there, a man who worked at Merrill-Stevens his whole life.

“He must have hauled the Blackhawk a hundred times,” said Capt. Sandy Broome of the 123-foot Feadship that made its home at Merrill Stevens for more than 20 years.

Other long-time Merrill-Stevens employees were there, including Whit Kirtland, the longtime Merrill-Stevens broker who is now with Bradford

Marine, his dad, Fred Kirtland, former CEO of the shipyard, and Ron Baker, the old yard’s president.

Spencer wrote the name of each of his roughly three dozen employees on a slip of paper and drew names for prizes that he either bought himself or had donated from vendors such as Interlux and Merritt Yachts. There were T-shirts, a camera, restaurant gift certificates, grocery gift cards, and a fishing pole.

To kick off the barbecue, he held a quiet ceremony at the yard, hoisting a Spencer Boat Company flag.

“On the last day of Merrill-Stevens, we took the flag down, gave it a military fold and gave it to Whit Kirtland,” Spencer said.

“Today, we raised a new flag to usher in a new era.”

We all wish you luck.

Capt. David Gunn recently commissioned M/Y Perspicaz, a Marlow 78. He and Mate Michelle Doveton received the yacht off its transport ship in January and prepared her for the Yacht & Brokerage Show last month. They expect to go to the Caribbean towing a 32-foot Intrepid and eventually head to South America.

“We’ll train the crew so he’ll be able to run the boat himself,” Gunn said. “Then, in about six to eight months, we’ll be back on the market for work.”

The new yacht is 86 feet overall, Gunn said; Marlow measures its vessels by the waterline.

Capt. Chris Day has joined the Ft. Lauderdale office of Yacht Concierge, a company that takes care of vessels with regular inspections, system checks and detailing. It focuses on yachts of about 110 feet and smaller that don’t have permanent crew.

Have you made an adjustment in your latitude recently? Let us know. Send news to lucy@the-triton.com.

It’s never too late to celebrate our survival, especially now

Latitude adjustment

Lucy chabot Reed

Former Merrill-Stevens CEO Fred Kirtland, left, and former President Ron Baker helped Spencer celebrate one year of work on the grounds of the old Merrill-Stevens Dry Dock Company in Miami. PHOTO/LUCY REED

Spencer

A� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton NEWS

By Alison Gardner

Two years ago, naval architect and megayacht designer Ron Holland started falling in love with Vancouver, British Columbia. The end result, after 36 years operating exclusively out of Ireland, is a second base for Ron Holland Design, which opened New Year’s Day.

“Originally, I went to Vancouver to design a motor yacht for a client who was considering building at a respected shipyard there,” Holland said. “I made several trips to the yard and the city over the next two years, establishing a personal relationship with two shipyards.

“During that time, I identified the Pacific Northwest as an important region for custom and semi-custom yacht building,” he said. “To be frank, I see it as the most important yacht building location in North America. While there are builders in Maine, Derecktor in Connecticut and Trinity in the Gulf area, I believe that Washington State and British Columbia are leaders in the field, based on the history of ship building and the yachts produced there during the last 15 years.”

Most of RHD’s clients are from North America, making opening an office somewhere on the continent a logical

choice. Having an office in a city with a vibrant business community and harbor will allow clients better communication and greater access to the studio’s design work, Holland said.

It will also raise the possibility of more high-profile work coming to British Columbia. Already he has seen signs of opportunity, especially for local yacht builders, with new project enquiries for both sail and power.

“I see a diverse range of yachts presently being produced in the Pacific Northwest and believe my clients could benefit from this,” he said. “To date, we have produced design work for Worldspan Marine (Crescent Yachts) and Platinum Marine. I see this as the first step to establishing a design influence with builders and clients in this area of the world.”

A transplant of eight years with RHD in Ireland – but a Canadian by birth – new manager of the Vancouver office Catherine Walsh picks up the story.

“There are definite design differences on the West Coast,” she said. “One of the motivations for establishing this second base nearly half way around the world is to understand and meet the challenge of adapting designs to local factors, including four-season cruising weather

as enjoyed by many West Coast-based yacht owners.”

Platinum Marine General Manager Tim Charles offered RHD space in his building, including shared reception services and a conference room.

“Once the yachting community knows Ron is here, we expect to get lots of visitors and former clients stopping by,” Walsh said.

The majority of the firm’s designs up to now have been sailing yachts, but the expansion to the Pacific Northwest lets RHD further expand its designs into motor yachts, Walsh said. One such project is a 146-foot yacht with Worldspan Marine, builders of Queenship and Crescent yachts.

“We’re thrilled to be working at close quarters with a world-renowned ship designer like Ron Holland,” said Lee Taubeneck, president of Worldspan Marine. “Through Ron Holland’s global connections, the studio will also create a profile and acceptance for large yacht-building shipyards on the West Coast, leading to expanded clientele.”

Equally enthusiastic is Jim Connolly, a broker with Freedom Marine.

“With Ron being one of the top naval architects in the world, his presence in Vancouver brings real credibility to any yacht brokerage partnerships we establish,” he said.

Yachtsmen, too, have taken note of the expertise that has moved into town. Holland has given two standing-room-only presentations at the prestigious Royal Vancouver Yacht Club. Fifty-year member Dr. Gordon Westgate had visited Holland’s studio in Ireland when he heard about his interest in opening in Vancouver. He suggested Holland as a guest speaker, remarking on him afterward as “very personable and humble for someone so famous in the yachting world.”

Alison Gardner is a freelance writer in Victoria, BC. Comments on this story are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com.

Ron Holland Design opens ‘second base’ in Vancouver

After 36 years, designer Ron Holland opens his first satellite office. PHOTO FROM RHD

Walsh

A� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton NEWS BRIEFS

Octopus chopper in water landingOne of the helicopters from the 414-

foot M/Y Octopus made an emergency landing on water off Ushuaia the last day of January while en route to pick up the boss, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, according to news reports.

Reuters news service reported that the helicopter co-pilot was hurt in the landing and taken to the hospital. Bloomberg reported that both pilots were treated for minor injuries and released. Nasdaq.com reported that no one was injured.

The helicopter took off from Octopus

at about 8 a.m. local time (1100 GMT) on Jan.31, according to Reuters.

Crew members activated flotation devices and landed upright and were rescued by crew on theyacht. Photos and video online show the helicopter’s rotor blades twisted.

Allen’s spokesman David Postman told Reuters the cause of the emergency landing was not clear.

An official with the coast guard station in Ushuaia told Nasdaq.com that the helicopter likely hit an antennae on the megayacht upon take-off.

Pilotage eased for yachtsCalifornia has raised the tonnage

threshhold for pleasure yachts in and around San Francisco needing pilots from 300 tons to 750 tons.

The rule – California Codes, Harbors and Navigation Code, Section 1127-1128 – went into effect Jan. 1.

The rule covers ports in Monterey Bay and the bays of San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun. It does not apply to “a vessel that is less than 750 gross tons and is manufactured and used for private recreation.”

San Francisco was recently selected as the host city for the 2013 America’s Cup.

Summit looks at yacht industryAlmost 50 people attended a dinner-

debate at the Yacht Club de Monaco in mid-January to discuss superyachts and the current economic situation in the industry.

Organized with the support of Only Yachts, this third symposium featured an introductory speech by David Legrand of Fraser Yachts.

“After a difficult end of year in 2009, 2010 saw a recovery in sales with transactions to the value of 2,575,866,000 euros, a more than 30 percent increase on 2009,” he said. “And the average value of these transactions

was 13 million euros.”The rise is explained by a

significant drop in prices for the 30m to 40m vessels, generating a volume of business. 2010 also led to an adjustment in prices of second-hand boats. It was also noted that the refit business has held up, and contrary to expectations, 2010 was a difficult year for the charter market (30-40 metres).

Crewing is one of the sectors most affected by the crisis, attendees noted, with falling wages (of about 30 percent) and the number of staff onboard reduced.

This year will be a pivotal year for shipyards, as recent deliveries are the result of contracts signed in 2007-2008. There will probably be more mergers in 2011. The present difficulties with order books for 2012 and 2013 should sound the death knell for speculative orders from those who sometimes built yachts before they had even been sold,” said Olivier Blanchet, fund manager for yachts over 40m at BNP Paribas.

The next symposium will focus on the environment and is scheduled for March 30.

Foreign crew can get TWIC, tooThe U.S. government has created

Octopus helicopter makes emergency landing off Ushuaia

See NEWS BRIEFS, page A7

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 A�

an annotated version of the B-1 visa – the visa issued to foreign citizens visiting the United States for business purposes, and the most often referred-to appropriate visa for yacht crew – that will make foreign maritime workers eligible to apply for a Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC).

The TWIC is a biometric identification card that maritime workers must have to gain unrestricted access to secure areas of maritime facilities, including ports and sections of some high-level security marinas.

Under this process, foreign maritime workers who need a TWIC must provide notice of that need to the U.S. Department of State (the same body that issues visas) upon application for a B-1 visa, as well as a letter from their employer indicating that the individual will be required to perform service in secure port areas.

Upon receipt of the new TWIC-annotated B-1 visa, each individual will apply separately for a TWIC. All applicants will undergo background checks.

It is unclear if foreign yacht crew need a TWIC. They may still be granted access to secure areas of ports and marinas, except they need an escort.

For more information, visit www.tsa.gov/twic or http://homeport.uscg.mil.

Cannes show backs up 1 dayThe Cannes boat show is shifting

back a day to make room for the G20 Summit being held in Cannes, France, .

The 34th Festival de la Plaisance de Cannes for 2011 will take place Sept. 6-11, (instead of the afore announced Sept. 7-12).

The show traditionally showcases yachts a bit smaller than those in the

Monaco Yacht Show two weeks later. (The Monaco show is Sept. 21-24.)

Still, the Cannes show has more than 500 boats on display, including close to 200 new model debuts.

For more details, visit www.salonnautiquecannes.com.

State to cut boat tax exemptionsConnecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy

has proposed eliminating four tax exemptions for boating-related business, including labor fees on maintenance and repair and broker commissions, according to a story in Soundings Trade Only.

The state has a 6 percent sales tax, which is currently not charged on these activities.

Malloy’s budget proposals must still be debated in the Connecticut legislature. A new budget goes into effect July 1.

Malloy’s budget comes on the heels of legislation that would cut the sales tax from 6 percent to 4 percent on boat purchases and give buyers as much as a million-dollar-a-year break. The bills await action in the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee.

Yacht club back for St. Pete raceThe Honda Grand Prix in St.

Petersburg is once again offering the Acura Yacht Club for visiting yachts that want a stern-to view of the race.

The weekend of March 25-27, Indy cars will zoom around the 1.8 mile, 14 turn course through downtown St. Pete.

Twenty slips are available for between $4,000 and $9,500, depending on size, and include water, electric, closed circuit video feed of the race.

Yachts in the 80- to 150-foot slips will receive four VIP Suite passes and four IndyCar paddock passes. Smaller vessels receive two Trackside Club

passes and two IndyCar paddock passes.

Transient dockage is available at the City of St. Petersburg Municipal Marina on a per-foot basis.

– Jordan Sullivan

Scientists find whaling ship wreck Maritime heritage archaeologists

working with the U.S.’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminstration (NOAA) have found the wreckage of the 1800’s Nantucket whale ship Two Brothers on a reef off French Frigate Shoals, nearly 600 miles northwest of Honolulu, in the remote Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument.

Two Brothers was captained by George Pollard Jr., whose previous Nantucket whaling vessel, Essex, was rammed and sunk by a whale in the South Pacific, inspiring Herman Melville’s famous book, Moby Dick. Pollard gained national notoriety after the Essex sinking, when he and a handful of his crew resorted to cannibalism to survive their ordeal drifting on the open ocean. He went to sea again as the master of Two Brothers. On the night of Feb. 11, 1823, Two Brothers hit a shallow reef off French Frigate Shoals. Pollard did not want to abandon ship but his crew pleaded with him and they clung to small boats overnight. The next morning they were rescued by the crew of another Nantucket whaler.

For the past 188 years, the wreckage has been lost on the ocean floor. The vessel was part of a fleet of several hundred whaling ships that were part of America’s economic and political expansion into the Pacific.

A 2008 NOAA-led expedition to the

Foreign crew eligible for TWIC with visaNEWS BRIEFS

NEWS BRIEFS, from page A6

See NEWS BRIEFS, page A9

A� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton CREW NEWS

By Dorie Cox

Megayacht Chef Victoria Allman has published her second book, “SEAsoned: A Chef ’s Journey With Her Captain,” based on adventures accumulated during her career onboard yachts with her husband, Patrick.

The ingredients of her comic tales are blended from stories of her life as chef, crew and captain’s wife, and then they are sprinkled with recipes.

This book follows her first work from 2009, “Sea Fare, A Chef ’s Journey Across the Ocean,” a collection of vignettes from experiences in international ports with regional recipes.

“The first book was 100 percent what happened in yachting,” Allman said. “But people kept asking, ‘where’s the gossip?,’ because that’s what they really want to know.

“SEAsoned has fictionalized characters and boats with no real names,” she said.

But, as she said in the book’s introduction, “Although these stories have all happened to Patrick and me over the past 12 years in yachting, I fictionalized other characters and yachts to protect the extremely guilty.”

There are about 30 recipes in the 185-page book with enticing chapter titles including: The Disintegration of

Dinner, The Galley Explosion, Better Than Sex and Loco. Recipes connect with yacht hot-spots throughout the Bahamas, Italy, France, Greece and Spain.

Some samples from the book include a chapter of sunburns and

swimming pigs with a recipe for Angel Hair Napoli. The recipe for Luke’s Five-Year-Old Macaroni and Cheese follows Allman’s tale of the charter featuring two children, possum sandwich threats and her defeat during a cook-off with a 5-year-old.

Yacht crew will recognize yarns of the panic caused by the return of departing guests when their flight is cancelled, necessitating a recipe for Quick Parmesan Chicken. And the exhaustion of cooking for guests who are still awake at 4:30 in the morning with a recipe for Bresaola and Salmon Tartar. And the horror of attempting to make Italian food for an award-winning Italian chef with a recipe for Vitello Tonnato.

Allman’s first book won first place in the 2010 Royal Palm Literary Award from the Florida Writers Association. She also authored a chapter in “Female Nomad and Friends” by Rita Golden Gelman, as well as a variety of magazine articles and a blog.

Despite her writing success, Allman remains chef on M/Y Cocoa Bean.

“I still have to make a living.”More details are available through

her website www.victoriaallman.com.

Dorie Cox is associate editor at The Triton. Comments on this story are welcome at dorie@the-triton.com.

‘SEAsoned’ blends cooking, humor into a good read

Meet the authorChef Victoria Allman will be

signing her new book, and offering a sampling of her culinary talents, on Friday, March 11, at 6:30 p.m. at Well Read, a used book store in Ft. Lauderdale.

Reservations are required. The $17 door charge includes a signed copy of “SEAsoned,” all applicable taxes and food. RSVP +1 954-467-8878.

Find Well Read at 1373 S.E. 17th St. in

the Southport Shopping Plaza near Luxury Yacht Group and Lauderdale Diver.

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 A�NEWS BRIEFS

Northwestern Hawaiian Islands found an anchor, three trypots (cast iron pots for melting whale blubber to produce oil), another large anchor, hundreds of bricks and the remains of the ship’s rigging.

Easier entry for USVI local boatersImagine cruising from St. Thomas to

Jost Van Dyke for one of those famous cocktails at the Soggy Dollar Bar and returning to St. Thomas without having to sit an hour and clear customs. This option has been available by phone since 2006 for U.S. citizens and legal residents in the Local Boaters Option (LBO) program.

But as of Jan. 1, those enrolled in the LBO can use the Small Vessel Reporting System’s online reporting system to report their arrival from a foreign port to any U.S. Virgin Islands’ port. The admission of the USVI to the LBO was announced at the Maritime Security Summit in St. Thomas in February.

New applicants can enroll by making an appointment for a face-to-face interview at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection office. Personal identification documentation is required, and captains need to show their vessel’s registration. Those who clear the background check will receive an e-mail with a Boater Registration number and password.

Mariners who already have a LBO number must apply online for a password so they can access the float plan functions of the Small Vessel Reporting System.

Float plans, which are a new feature of the LBO program, can consist of as little as the last foreign port of departure and current U.S. port of arrival. These plans need to be entered and activated within 24 hours prior to departure from the U.S.

Enrollment in the LBO program is voluntary and free. Arriving mariners and passengers who either are not U.S. citizens or who have elected not to participate in the LBO must still report to the port of entry for an in-person inspection upon arrival.

For more information, visit https://svrs.cbp.dhs.gov/

Registration locations in the U.S. Virgin Islands are:

Port of St. Thomas: CBP, Edward W. Blyden Terminal, Veterans Drive, Charlotte Amalie, 340-774-5539

Port of St. John: CBP, Cruz Bay, 340-776-6741

Port of St. Croix: CBP, Gallows Bay Marine Facility, Christiansted, 340-773-1011

– Carol Baruether

CG medevacs shark victimThe U.S. Coast Guard medically

evacuated a shark-bite victim about 18 miles north of West End, The Bahamas,

in late January.Jim Abernathy, 55, was on a diving

excursion with a commercial diving vessel when he was bitten on the arm.

A Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Air Station Clearwater, Fla., deployed in support of Operation Bahamas Turks and Caicos (OPBAT) hoisted Abernathy and transported him to St. Mary’s Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Fla.

New EU Code ends yacht perksTwo years after its commissioner

was scolded for vacationing on Oleg

Deripaska’s yacht, the European Union has unveiled a plan to ban senior officials from accepting such perks, according to a story in The Moscow Times.

A clause in the new code of conduct for EU commissioners says they may not “accept hospitality except when in accordance with diplomatic and courtesy usage.”

The 14-page draft code was presented to European Parliament members in mid-February.

The clause effectively bans private invitations like the one that caused a scandal in 2008, when it became

known that then-Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson had vacationed on Deripaska’s megayacht in Greece.

The episode caused a political storm in Mandelson’s native Britain, with critics alleging that his ties to Deripaska led to cuts in European aluminum duties, creating benefits for the tycoon’s United Company RUSAl.

The new rules come as France is rocked by a similar scandal after that the country’s foreign minister and prime minister accepted luxury trips from Tunisian ruler Zine El Abidine

Yacht perks for officials to end with EU code of conductNEWS BRIEFS, from page A7

See NEWS BRIEFS, page A16

A10 March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton PHOTO GALLERY

Yacht crew were at their show best for the 23rd annual Yacht and

Brokerage show in Miami Beach from Feb. 17-21. Whether cleaning, smiling, cleaning, giving tours, cleaning or relaxing at the end of a long day, The Triton tried to capture every moment. See some of the news from our daily edition, Triton Today, on page A11 and tons more photos in our online gallery at www.the-triton.com. PHOTOS/TOM SERIO, DORIE COX,

JORDAN SULLIVAN

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 A11

Optimism, not crowds, opens showTalk on the docks this year indicated

there were more boats in the show than in previous years.

“There are lots of boats here,” said Capt. Wayne Nolander of M/Y Shear Fantasea. “It’s better than it’s been.”

“It feels better than I’ve seen in a while,” Capt. Paul Stengel of M/Y Sea Owl said.

And because the point of these events is showings, sales and closings, many conversations centered on numbers. Although many brokers and crew felt the visitor count was down, many believed the caliber of potential buyers was up.

Boat Show Bingo a hit

Second Stew Tehane Brown of M/Y Life’s Finest II kept people entertained with her Boat Show Bingo. She encouraged crew, brokers, and anyone else needing a laugh, to spot passers-by and events seen from the stern of a yacht at a show, through her

illustrated bingo cards with more than 30 things to spot, including an all-white outfit (including shoes), an obnoxious amount of “bling” on one person and raccoon eyes.

SeaKeepers Society fundraiserCapt. Steven Breen and the crew

on the 220-foot M/Y Golden Shadow hosted a fundraiser for International SeaKeepers Society as the yacht prepares for a four-year global reef expedition. The yacht will carry

scientists to some of the most remote reefs in the world to collect data, analyze the reefs’ health, and offer suggestions to help preserve them.

Golden Shadow is part of the Golden fleet, which includes the 265-foot

M/Y Golden Odyssey, owned by Prince Khaled bin Sultan of Saudi Arabia. The prince’s Living Oceans Foundation is conducting the research.

Florida’s tax cap helps brokers sellYacht brokers reported a strong vibe

of interest from potential buyers, and they credited the cap on state sales tax that Florida legislators approved last summer.

Capping sales tax on yachts to $18,000 – what is due on a yacht sold for $300,000 – makes it easier and more enticing for owners to keep their yachts in Florida, and possible to flag or even reflag their vessels to the United States.

“We had seven boats just in

December that took advantage of the tax cap, and that’s what made the difference,” said Raymond Young, a yacht broker with Robert J. Cury & Associates. “Utilizing the tax cap makes American buyers more comfortable. It’s easy in and out of ports because of the flag, and we should see an influx of American crew.” Question of the Day

Triton reporters also surveyed crew every day.

Who is onboard? Seventy percent of the crew at the show were full-time crew, leaving less than a third as temporary for the week.

How do you get your news? The largest group (36 percent) read trade publications targeted to crew, followed by those who access the Web (20 percent) and those who rely on fellow crew (also 20 percent). Just 10 percent read yachting industry publications (not crew-focused) and about 8 percent rely on their industry contacts.

What’s the worst job onboard? Cleaning the heads/bilges is easily the worst task onboard (50 percent said so), followed by detailing (21 percent), and dealing with crew issues (12.5 percent).

What would you change about the show? Most wanted the basics improved, including the power, docks and food. Sixteen percent voted for more crew activities.

Where are you taking the yacht tomorrow? More than three-quarters of yachts were headed to docks in South Florida after the show, with the remainder going to South Florida yards.

Miami’s boat show was a ‘good little show’

Breen

Despite a slow start and moderate crowds, brokers and crew were optimistic about the results from the 2011 Yacht & Brokerage Show in Miami Beach, calling it “the good little show.” Here’s a look of The Triton’s coverage from Feb. 17-21.

YACHT & BROKERAGE SHOW

A1� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton

Americans, that’s 23 people on a 50-foot boat. Who decided to divert Navy assets in aid of a 50-foot sailboat and four people?”

Details so farAccording to government statements,

news reports, and involved parties, S/Y Quest had been in the Blue Water Round the World Cruising Rally from Phuket, Thailand, to Mumbai, India.

After arriving in Mumbai, “The skipper then made a decision to leave the Rally in Mumbai on 15 February and sail a route independent of the Rally to Salalah, [Oman],” rally organizer Peter Seymour told Sail-World.com.

According to that Web site, the owners, Scott and Jean Adams, requested an escort by the Navies patrolling the area but were denied. The yacht was hijacked about 280nm off Oman and was being taken to the northern tip of Somalia when U.S. military forces responded.

Two pirates boarded the Navy ship Feb. 21 to negotiate the crew’s release with FBI officials, according to news reports and U.S. government statements. During these negotiations, at about 1 a.m., gunfire could be heard on board the Quest, U.S. Navy Vice Admiral Mark Fox told reporters.

U.S. forces then approached and boarded the Quest, getting into a skirmish with pirates aboard. All four of the crew – the Adamses of Marina del Rey, Calif., and Phyllis Mackay and Bob Riggle of Seattle – had been shot by their captors, according to a statement from U.S. Central Command. Efforts to revive them were unsuccessful.

Two pirates were killed in the skirmish and 13 were captured and detained, CNN reported.

“In total, it is believed 19 pirates were involved in the hijacking” of the vessel, Central Command said.

No details of the negotiations or whether a ransom had been offered were available.

U.S. forces had been monitoring the Quest since it was hijacked Feb. 18. U.S. Central Command said four U.S. Navy warships were involved in the response force.

More yachts attackedThe attack on the S/Y Quest is the

latest in a number of attacks on yachts. According to the BBC:

1. South African couple Bruno Pelizzari and Deborah Calitz are still

being held in Somalia, four months after their vessel, the S/Y Choizil, was hijacked.

2. Paul and Rachel Chandler were held for nearly 400 days after their yacht was hijacked near the Seychelles in October 2009.

3. French yacht owner Florent Lemacon was killed in April 2009 when French commandos tried to liberate him and four other people from their hijacked yacht, the Tanit, off Somalia.

Somalia has had no functioning central government since 1991, allowing

piracy to flourish off its coast.

In addition, the German-owned transport ship Beluga Nomination was carrying eight yachts on deck when it was hijacked en route to the Seychelles on Jan. 22. A German newscast of the incident shows photos of the ship and its yacht cargo. At least

one is a megayacht. The yachts have since been off-loaded and are believed to remain in the hands of pirates, who may use them for additional attacks.

The international security flotilla’s response to that incident is another cause for question. After reporting their mayday, the crew of 12 locked themselves in the citadel, the secure room onboard where they can be safe and disable the ship.

After three days, pirates were able to enter the room and take control of the ship. It remains in pirate hands.

“And we divert four warships from their primary mission of protecting the world’s merchant fleet for a 50-foot sailboat and four Americans?” Dailey asked. “How arrogant can we be? Do you think the Germans got that kind of response? The Brits didn’t.”

The Chandlers, a British couple kidnapped from their yacht, the Lynn Rival, were taken ashore in Somalia. British authorities negotiated their release after more than a year for about $1 million, it was reported.

In April 2009, pirates seized the U.S.-flagged Maersk Alabama, leading to a standoff in the Indian Ocean. U.S. forces moved to rescue American Capt. Richard Phillips after seeing a pirate aiming a weapon at his back, officials said at the time.

Navy sharpshooters killed three pirates; one was arrested. The Somali man arrested was convicted of acts related to high-seas piracy, and a federal court in New York sentenced him last week to more than 30 years in prison.

PIRATES, from page A1

See PIRATES, page A13

On an independent course, S/Y Quest hijacked near Oman

Scott and Jean Adams in an undated photo.

PHOTO FROM SVQUEST.COM

NEWS: S/Y Quest

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 A1�

As of Feb. 15, pirates were holding 33 vessels and 712 hostages, according to the International Maritime Bureau.

Piracy hits recordDespite having been prevalent for

centuries, piracy in the region reached record numbers in 2010, the fourth straight year of increases.

According to the International Maritime Bureau, which tracks such attacks, pirates took a record number of hostages, 1,181, and killed eight mariners. Somali pirates accounted for 49 of the 53 ships hijacked last year and 1,106 of the kidnappings. A total of 445 attacks on ships were logged by the IMB’s piracy reporting center in Kuala Lumpur, a 10 percent increase over 2009 and the highest figure since the previous peak in 2003.

“These figures for the number of hostages and vessels taken are the highest we have ever seen,” said Capt.n Pottengal Mukundan, director of the Malaysia-based Piracy Reporting Centre, which has monitored piracy worldwide since 1991.

“As a percentage of global incidents, piracy on the high seas has increased dramatically over armed robbery in territorial waters. On the high seas off Somalia, heavily armed pirates are overpowering ocean-going fishing or merchant vessels to use as a base for further attacks. They capture the crew and force them to sail to within attacking distance of other unsuspecting vessels.”

More than 90 percent of ship seizures occurred off the coast of Somalia. The number of attacks in the Gulf of Aden has dropped sharply due to an international naval presence there, the IMB reported.

“I’ve seen them moving farther south, farther east all the way to the Maldives and the Mozambique Channel,” Dailey said.

The problem is area. The entire United States east of the Mississippi River could fit into the Somali basin, Vice Admiral Fox said.

Thirty-four warships patrol the region under 15 flags and work well together, he said, but “there’s a lot of places where we are not.”

A few solutionsAbout 800 miles to the south

and east of Somalia, travelers to the

Seychelles often pass through the same areas as S/Y Quest. As a yacht management company supporting visiting megayachts to the region, Alastair Maiden of Seal Superyachts Seychelles monitors piracy news.

He recommends vessels take security companies with them when transiting the Indian Ocean, Gulf of Aden and Red Sea areas.

“There are options of armed escorts,” he said. “They have small patrol boats in the area. They have six crew on

each vessel and stay with the traveling yacht. Sometimes if smaller or private vessels are cruising together, they can organize a convoy and possibly afford it together.”

Most often, however, boats will use onboard security, he said. As to why S/Y Quest didn’t have security onboard, Maiden thought it might be for financial reasons.

“We had a guy in the marina on a smaller yacht going to the Maldives and, basically

on the advice of the port authorities, he had the boat wintered and cancelled the trip,” Maiden said. “That size and speed cannot be protected and typically they don’t have the funds to do so.”

“Anything over, say, 50m, there is a risk [of piracy], but if they take precautions and have armed security, I would say it is OK,” Maiden said. “But they must take all precautions, the razor wire, trail lines, all of it.”

Not even that will prevent an attempted attack.

“How do you go in the middle of the ocean and find a 50-foot sailboat?” Dailey asked. “These attacks are well orchestrated and well organized. They knew where they were going, and they got that information from somebody. That’s why I run dark, no AIS. When the AIS is on, I run confusing information before I leave. And I don’t tell the agents in Egypt where I’m going.”

The Marshall Islands shipping registry issued an advisory soon after the killings to advise its yacht and commercial clients to cease transiting the area.

Jon and Sue Hacking, cruisers aboard the 45-foot catamaran Ocelot who have contributed stories about their travels to The Triton since 2004, have spent the past year cruising in the Indian Ocean.

“We have thought about the problem [of piracy] quite a bit, of course, being here in the Indian Ocean,” they wrote in an e-mail to friends the day the

Piracy attacks at record high with few solutions for yachts PIRATES, from page A12

See PIRATES, page A16

NEWS: S/Y Quest

S/Y Quest underway in undated photo.

PHOTO FROM SVQUEST.COM

A1� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton FROM THE BRIDGE: World Events

region, including Egypt.“No one will go to the Suez area, not

with the piracy,” a captain said of Egypt’s Suez canal, a megayacht’s most direct route to the Mediterranean from points east and south.

“But it’s always been like that,” another captain said. “They used to be called agents, government workers; they were legal pirates.”

“There used to be one reason; now there are more reasons not to go to some areas,” the first captain said.

Security is a daily news topic around the globe; due to war, religion, economics, politics, governments; just about anything.

“It’s like that article,” another captain said, pointing to the February Triton article ‘Yachts burgled in St. Maarten’s Simpson Bay.’

“You have to watch where you go.”When the economy is down, another

captain said, theft becomes an issue no matter where yachts travel.

“We had crew from Palau who was traveling back here to take courses and he had everything stolen, laptop, everything,” the captain said.

”You have to decide where to go based on reports,” another captain said.

“When I go into a place like that, as a deterrent, I go straight to the local sheriff to make introductions,” a captain said. “I make a contribution to the local widow and orphans fund or whatever, and ask if I can hire someone to travel with me to keep me out of trouble.”

“Then I’m the one on the island with a guy with a gun.”

How do captains and crew get their information about the global events that affect them? From everywhere they can find it.

“Insurance companies have tons,” a captain said. “They say, ‘we’ve gotten notice of intelligence from this area.’”

“Yeah, they tell you you can go here but, if you go there, you will not be insured,” another captain said.

Single-sideband (SSB) radio is a fail-safe way to get information, several captains said.

“I used to listen to the BBC on the single-sideband on the beach,” a captain said about his time in the South Pacific. “I heard the 9/11 news from an island.”

“I’m amazed at the boats without SSB,” a captain said. “And how many of them have a ham radio? You can use it just for listening if you’re not licensed. That’s real information around the world.”

The captain said he had used that technology since day one, but now the younger crew don’t know how to use it. Egyptian protesters were reported to have used SSB when the Internet was shut down.

“Carib net is another way,” another captain said. “It’s real-time news, first-hand information from people who are there. It’s critical and you get answers back from cruisers in the harbor.”

“I think that was the origin of networking,” a third captain said.

Another captain mentioned listening to high-frequency radio stations in Cuba

for current news, and another suggested print and Internet media.

“I think some of the magazines and newspapers are important for what’s going on,” a captain said. “Some are what I call Prozac media, but there are some good ones with real information, not just fluff.

“Like The Triton,” this captain said. “And Latitude 38 on the west coast. That tells you Joe the dockmaster is good or whatever. But there is a lag time in magazines.”

BRIDGE, from page A1

See BRIDGE, page A15

‘As a deterrent, I go straight to the local sheriff ’ for introductions

The attendees of The Triton’s February Bridge luncheon were, from left, Ian Walsh (freelance), Don Vogt of M/Y Inch by Inch, (top) William Maguire (freelance), Karen Holtan (freelance), Robb Shannon (freelance), Herb Magney of M/Y At Last, and George Frazier of M/Y Imperial Princess II.

PHOTO/DORIE COX

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 A15FROM THE BRIDGE: World Events

All of the captains talk with other captains and travelers from the regions the boss wants to go.

“Definitely use the U.S. State Department for their alerts,” a captain said. “I check that before I get on any plane.”

“But when in doubt,” a captain said, “Google it.”

The lunch attendees were a diverse group with a variety of citizenships, abilities in many languages and exposure to a variety of regions and cultures. They said their knowledge of cultures outside their own – and which passport they hold – can change the feel of their international travel.

“Americans do have a bad image, that’s why I carry different passports,” a captain said.

“Yeah, I put Canadian stickers all over my luggage,” another said.

“I’ll say I’m from somewhere else,” a third said.

But another captain countered that people have prejudices no matter where they live.

“In the U.S., they’ll say, don’t go there, you’ll get shot,” a captain said of places such as the Middle East. “But, people say the same thing everywhere. In the Middle East they say, don’t go to New York, don’t go to Central Park, you’ll be killed. It is exactly the same no matter where you are.”

“In places like Qatar and Oman, when I live there, I can do anything and go anywhere with no problem,” a captain said. “They are regular people and do regular things, just like everywhere.”

Another captain talked of an experience in which he thought he would not be able to relate with a different culture.

“We met with some Russians for a game of football and I didn’t expect a lot,” this captain said. “But it was a real-eye opener. They were so hungry for contact with other people. It was the kind of situation where we would have been friends if we could have.”

But several captains in potentially hazardous regions said it still takes planning and research before they travel.

“I was in a Muslim part of the world and it was a mob violence mentality,” one captain said. “You really have to gauge the attitude to other countries.”

“Like where I was travelling, they hated the Dutch,” another captain said. “I heard someone saying I was Dutch so I spoke to them in their local language to tell them I wasn’t. Then I was American.”

Passport and visa status are a concern for many yacht captains and crew. Governments affect international relationships, which dictate who can be onboard, where yachts visit, what they are able to do and for how long.

“There are lots of rules and

regulations,” a captain said of experiences with international crew.

For example, one captain suggested that the French laws regarding rules of employment have made hiring their citizens more difficult due to strict laws on severance pay and dismissal.

“Don’t hire French because you can’t fire them,” the captain said.

“You can do it if you hire them in a sovereign territory,” another captain said. “Just don’t get near France.”

Prices, currency values, international stock markets and more cannot be separated from most every aspect of yachting, especially the owner’s wallet.Events from the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico to political instability in the Middle East cause fluctuation in fuel production, distribution and pricing.

“Fuel prices, for us, definitely make a big difference,” a captain said. With a

boss new to yachting, he said the boat used to travel between Ft. Lauderdale and the Bahamas.

“When the fuel prices went up, the boss did the calculations and decided to just stay in the Bahamas.”

“It all makes a difference, how much money, how you travel, how fast,” another captain said.

“We can go 26 knots, but now we go slow and save a lot.”

“When fuel was $5 a gallon, our fuel bill was $12,000, twice as much as normal,” a third captain said. “So on the way south I lowered the RPM. Of course, I had to change the oil more, but we ran like that afterward, too.”

When the boss asked why the trip took longer, the captain explained that by running the boat at 10 knots instead of 12, he saved fuel costs.

“She asked about the extra dockage

and I said that was about $500,” he said. But in fuel, “I saved [her] $6,000.”

“We’ve been running like that ever since.”

Whether positive or negative, captains said world events are part of yachting and always will be. Yachties need to maintain awareness of social, political, economic and environmental issues around the globe.

“I never left home before boats,” a captain said. “It was the beginning of my education about other people. It opened up my eyes to the world.”

Dorie Cox is associate editor of The Triton. Comments on this story are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com. If you make your living working as a yacht captain, e-mail dorie@the-triton.com for an invitation to our monthly Bridge luncheon.

BRIDGE, from page A14

‘Definitely use the U.S. State Department for their alerts’

A1� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton NEWS: S/Y Quest

USVI check-in online valid for U.S. citizens

Ben Ali and his Egyptian counterpart, Hosni Mubarak.

E-book for NZ helps entryCruisers Ken Machtley and Cathy

Siegismund have written a guidebook for yacht crews visiting New Zealand for the first time and planning to stay several months.

Their sailor-specific e-book, “Destination Guide to New Zealand,” is available from the Web site supporting their cruising aboard S/V Felicity, www.svfelicity.com, by clicking on “articles”.

The e-book includes web links to the government departments relevant to visiting yachts such as Customs, Biosecurity and NZ Police.

Superyacht Australia Superyacht Australia is organizing

the first ever Australian Superyacht and Marine Export Conference (ASMEX) to be held prior to the 2011 Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show in May.

ASMEX will be held May 17-18 to promote Australia as a cruising destination, place for refit and repair services, and address issues facing the superyacht and export industry.

“It is a timely initiative for the industry, given the recent publicity generated globally as a result of the Queensland and Victoria floods, Tropical Cyclone Yasi and the fires in Western Australia,” said Barry Jenkins, conference chairman.”

For more details, visit www.superyachtbase.com.

NEWS BRIEFS, from page A9

Adamses were reported killed. “As we see it, the long-term solution

probably involves lots of aid to Somalia as well as helping them establish a working government. But the Somali warlords who currently hold the power are unlikely to relinquish it anytime soon, so we also need a shorter-term solution.

“Shipping companies have no option - they must pay the ransoms - so the solution has to be military,” they wrote. “We don’t like to complain without proposing solutions, so here are a couple of proposals we’ve come up with:

“1. Blockade Somalia. The coastline is 1,600nm if you include Puntland and Somaliland along the north coast. Station ships 50-100nm off the coast

(so out of Somalia’s territorial waters), search all ships coming out of Somalia and take away any weapons. No weapons, no piracy.

“The Israel’s have been doing this for years on their own coast, and Australia patrols a much longer coastline. Given Somalia’s sad economic state, not many boats are going to or from Somalia so there shouldn’t be many boats to search.

“If necessary, designate entry and exit paths and let it be known that any boat using different lanes will be attacked. This solution also prevents others from fishing the Somali coast, which has been one of their complaints.

“2. Set up stations in the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea where ships could stop to take on about four Marines.

“The Marines would need to be allowed to fire on pirates, or at least to return fire. The Marines would ride on and protect the ship for 2-3 days as they transit the pirate areas and then get off to catch another ship going the other way.

“Both the ships and the Marines would love it. About 300 ships/day go through that area. Unfortunately, this wouldn’t help us (unless more stations were setup) & also wouldn’t stop the attempts at piracy (the ransoms are just too great).

Like the Hackings, the Adamses were long-term cruisers who would rather be aboard their boat than just about anywhere else. Shipping their beloved Quest on a cargo ship to the Mediterranean was not an option for them.

Christian missionaries seven years into a round-the-world cruise, they opted instead in favor of sailing a new passage, even without an escort.

“They know the risks,” said Nancy Birnbaum, a freelance journalist and former editor of the Seven Seas Cruising Association newsletter.

“Certainly, there are other options,” she said. “Shipping your boat is obviously safer, and it gets your boat where you want it.

“As a cruiser, though, I know it’s just part of it,” she said. “This type of trip is typical of long-term cruisers; that’s just what they do.”

Lucy Chabot Reed is editor of The Triton. Dorie Cox contributed to this report. Comments are welcome at lucy@the-triton.com.

Long-time cruisers offer blockade and military ideasPIRATES, from page A13

A1� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton

By Gary Carroll

It seems there’s been a spate of break-ins and burglaries on yachts recently. Regardless of the hype, it brings to light a point that bears consideration and discussion.

While captains and crew on luxury yachts like to think local police and security are responsible for preventing this from happening, at the end of the day one simple truth remains: if a burglar wants to get onto and into your boat badly enough he will. So, what do you do?

Simple: you comply.You do what the intruder says, give

him what he’s looking for and facilitate his exit as quickly and violence-free as possible. Then you call the police, report the crime and file a claim with your insurance company.

While there may be times when physical confrontation is unavoidable, the best thing you can do is avoid confrontation if at all possible.

There may be some who disagree with this strategy, but I believe wholeheartedly that if you are surprised by an armed intruder, the intruder has the upper hand and you – as a victim – are in a more vulnerable position, which means that if something goes bad, you will probably get the worst of it.

As one who has been in a position of facing an armed person on more than one occasion I can tell you one thing: Unless you have the proper training to respond to violence with violence with a reasonable expectation that you will prevail, you are better off avoiding confrontation, complying and walking away. All it takes is one wrong move with a drugged-up crackhead to ruin your day, your job, your career and possibly your life. So comply and let the police and insurance companies do what they are paid to do.

And if you’re worried about losing your stuff, consider this: the yacht’s insurance policy has an allowance for theft of personal belongings – yours, the guests’ or the owners’. Read your policy for specifics. And I would be willing to bet that a vast majority of yacht owners would much rather deal with a burgled boat than with

the serious injury or death of a crew member who died protecting items whose loss are covered by insurance.

Boats have security plans, watchkeepers, cameras, etc., and routinely dock in marinas with patrols, all of which can give owners and crew a false sense of security. It’s this false sense of security that’s the problem. While we may think marina security guards are paid to prevent crime, the reality is they are paid to do nothing more than be present in the hopes that their presence will deter would-be criminals. If you think they’ll risk their lives for yours, you are sadly mistaken.

Owners and crew take measures to prevent their boats from burning and sinking; and the No. 1 goal in both of those situations is preservation of human life. So, too, should be the goal when dealing with armed intruders.

When boats burn or sink, owners have insurance to help cover losses. When boats are burgled, insurance can help with those losses as well.

If you avoid confrontation with an armed intruder there is a higher probability that you will be able to do three things: 1. continue breathing; 2. file an insurance claim and recoup some or all of your losses; and 3. assist law enforcement with possibly apprehending the thief. These are three things that would be difficult to do if you were dead.

There is nothing in or on a yacht that is more valuable than your life or the lives of your fellow crew, the owners or your guests – a point

that is lost on an intruder whose only goal is to board your boat and take your stuff.

No marina is 100 percent safe and no security system is 100 percent effective, so if you find yourself in a position in which you are forced to deal with an armed intruder, do everything you can to stay alive, and let the insurance company worry about paying for stuff – exactly what they are paid to do.

Gary P. Carroll is the owner of CYA/Comprehensive Yacht Assurance, an insurance brokerage company in Ft. Lauderdale. Contact him at gary-p-carroll@cyacht.net. Comments on this essay are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com.

Heroes and cowards only die oncePreserve your life first when confronted by an intruder.

If you avoid confrontation with an armed intruder there is a higher probability that you will be able to do three things: 1. continue breathing; �. file an insurance claim and recoup some or all of your losses; and �. assist law enforcement with possibly apprehending the thief. These are three things that would be difficult to do if you were dead.

WRITE TO BE HEARD

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 A1�WRITE TO BE HEARD

PublisherDavid Reed, david@the-triton.com

Advertising SalesBecky Gunter, becky@the-triton.com

Mike Price, mike@the-triton.com

EditorLucy Chabot Reed, lucy@the-triton.com

News staffDorie Cox, dorie@the-triton.com

Lawrence Hollyfield, Jordan Sullivan

Production ManagerPatty Weinert, patty@the-triton.com

The Triton DirectoryMike Price, mike@the-triton.com

Contributors

Mike Avery, Carol Bareuther, Gary Carroll, Mark A. Cline,

Jake DesVergers, Alison Gardner, Beth Greenwald, Bob Howie,

Chef Mary Beth Lawton Johnson, Chief Stew Alene Keenan,Keith Murray, Steve Pica,

Capt. Gordon Reid, Rossmare Intl., James Schot, Capt. Tom Serio, Kirsten Tarafa,

Chef Peter Ziegelmeier

Vol. �, No.1� The Triton is a free, monthly newspaper owned by Triton Publishing Group Inc. Copyright 2010 Triton Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.

Contact us at:Mailing address: 757 S.E. 17th St., #1119

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(954) 525-0029; FAX (954) 525-9676www.the-triton.com

By Bob Howie

Three icons, I suppose you could say, identify pilots: Ray-Ban sunglasses, leather flight jackets and rather large watches.

Over the years, Ray-Bans have given way to more durable eyewear, but I do still wear the flight jacket. The watch thing until recently, though, hadn’t been a focus of mine. But, that has changed.

Now, as I sit here with a tick-tock that cost more than my monthly mortgage payment strapped to my wrist, I wonder if I have lost my mind.

Expensive, accurate, functional, likely to prompt a stick-up … but, what the hell? After more than 30 years and 13,000 hours of accident- and incident-free flying, I think maybe I’m due for, well, a trophy of some sort. And, no, it’s not a Rolex; pilots wear Breitlings.

I told a pilot friend who also wears a Breitling that I finally bought mine. He laughed and said, “Hey, man, what’s the use of working if you can’t spend a little money on something that makes the statement that somewhere along the line you actually ‘made it’ at least once?”

That’s what got me to thinking.My new watch represents fine

craftsmanship and is considered by some – me included – as one of those ubiquitous “finer things” in life.

And, that is what my profession – as well as my friends’ in the yachting world – provides; one of the “finer things” in life.

Private aviation and yachting customers the world over expect our services to be those “finer things” and, if my watch is a reminder of that, then our presence aboard either bridge or flight deck should likewise represent that, too.

Now, it might be silly to say that something as trivial as a new watch should be the constant reminder that customer service is the objective, but it sure beats a string around your finger.

Bob Howie is assistant chief pilot with Wing Aviation Charter Services in Houston, Texas. He spent 13 years as a writer with the Houston Chronicle, and is a lifelong boat owner.

[Editor’s Note: This letter comes to us from a known captain who asked that neither his name nor the name of the boat be printed. We are honoring his request in the interest of sharing this story.]

We were under way in big seas and our stew went to the walk-in cooler to get something. She did not turn the light on, and the door slammed shut behind her. The emergency door release was working but it is stiff and she was not able to open it.

It was early in the morning and she did not have a radio with her and did not tell the bridge what she was doing. She was locked in there for more than an hour.

Luckily, she had her iPhone and we have Internet so she Facebooked a friend in Thailand to call her sister in the Philippines to call the boat.

She is fine now and we have a learned a few things. At sea always be ready for a door to slam shut. Carry your radio at all times.

Name withheld by request

Chef’s log keeps ideas freshI just read “Consider the benefits of

a Chef ’s Log” [Culinary Waves column, page C1, February issue.] I love this idea.

I have been keeping a menu log for the past 12 years (somewhat regularly) and it has helped me remember dishes and combinations that work. On day 19 of a three-week charter, when it is hard to focus and think of new things to cook, it is easy to look at an old menu and run on auto-pilot.

Plus, I seem to forget some of my favorite dishes for long periods of time unless I casually flip through the menu log to remember.

Great idea.Chef Victoria Allman

M/Y Cocoa BeanAuthor of “SEAsoned: A Chef ’s

Journey With Her Captain” Taking advantage of others

In reference to “Chef falls victim to e-mail job scam,” [page A4, January 2011 issue], my daughter has also

received a job offer from these scammers, offering her $12,000+ per month as a deckhand.

There were red flags all over the information the “captain” sent her (which, thank God, she forwarded to me and my husband).

The signature on the offer letter did not even match the name listed right below it, the questions asked in the questionnaire had nothing to do with her experience or skills, and when we Googled the so-called captain’s name, we couldn’t find him anywhere.

And, of course, he needed her “immediately.” My daughter is in Thailand and was seriously considering to fly to the UK for this job.

She has not sent them any money, and since she stopped cooresponding with them, she has not heard from them again.

It sickens me to think that there are people who spend their lives taking advantage of others.

Ann BurchettKansas City, Mo.

It’s a reward, a trophy and a reminder – it’s a Breitling

Facebook saves a stew trapped in the walk-in

The Perfect Owner

You have a ‘write’ to be heard. Send us your thoughts on anything that bothers you.

Write to us at editorial@the-triton.com

www.the-triton.comSection B March 2011

The beginning of the year saw an influx of announcements by various regulatory agencies.

These safety alerts ranged from issues dealing with safety equipment to fire suppression and fuel valves. Here is a summary of those topics potentially affecting yachts.

Misuse of lifejacket strapsRecent U.S. Coast Guard

inspections of Type I Personal Flotation Devices (PFDs) in both adult and child size identified a potential hazard that could prevent proper donning in the event of an emergency. The chest strap was threaded through the fixed “D” ring that the strap is intended to clip to when worn.

It was discovered that several PFDs were assembled this way at the factory and, if not corrected, could create a hazardous condition during an emergency when they are donned. Instead of the strap falling away, allowing the wearer to put it on, the clip end of the strap could snag in the “D” ring, preventing the wearer from getting it around his or her body.

Captains and crew should review the instructions provided with these types of life jackets. Emphasis on proper use should be made during crew training and guest orientation. Fuel oil quick closing valves

U.S. Coast Guard inspectors are discovering fuel oil quick closing valves (QCVs) intentionally blocked, modified and poorly maintained,

Rules of the Road

Jake DesVergers

New alerts in safety equipment

See RULES, page B6

By Capt. Gordon Reid

“What time does the moon set?” I asked.It was a set-up question posed after a bit of light banter. Funny how

sometimes the celestial bodies align and good things happen. She moved a fraction closer, made eye contact and stirred my soul.

She was taller than me and a lot prettier.

The joy of astro-navigtion

“Never though about it,” she said. “What time?”

“About an hour later each day.” I paused. “The rest of the stars and planets are on a 24-hour orbit. The moon is unique; she is in her own orbit, about 25 hours.”

It turned out later that she knew well what the Mayans had proven 3,000 years earlier, and what Galileo had been threatened for declaring in the 16th century. The Earth is not the center of the universe or the solar system. In fact, the west-to-east spin of our planet makes the celestial bodies appear to be stuck on a canopy in orbit around us. Our night sky is an illusion, but a convenient one for we-the-navigators.

“Are you a pilot?” she asked. She closed in a fraction; my stomach tightened.

“I fly, but I deliver yachts for a living,” I said. “I’m a sailor.”

Her body-language relaxed and revealed that she was slightly less impressed.

“I didn’t think sailing was a profession,” she admitted as she rocked away slightly.

“It’s a niche,” I said. “Yachts have to be moved around. I do the off-shore stuff mostly.”

“That’s why you know about the stars and the moon,” she offered.

“I use them to navigate.” “Sexy,” she said with a smile as she

regained interest.“My boat is the white one with two

masts and three hulls. Would you like to see her?” I asked as I pointed down the dock from the pool bar.

Linda was athletic, agile and equipped with 44-inch legs. She bounced aboard with ease. She loved Scheherazade: the wide expanse of deck, the chrome, mica and mirrored interior, the neat low-aspect offshore rig and the clean cockpit featuring a stainless steel destroyer wheel that I had wrapped in doe skin with baseball stitching.

“Is this how you track the stars?” she asked as she lightly brushed my sextant on her way past the chart table.

Over the next few weeks I fear I created a monster. Linda and I became a couple. She became an accomplished sailor and helmswoman, and she became obsessed with astro-navigation.

See STARS, page B8

The Triton at the Superbowl

B15Spotted in Texas, Virgin Gorda, BVI

Don’t think: No way, not me.

B2Don’t ignore heart attack symptoms

The lights are dimming

B3Voltage surges bad for boats

Clouds, cleats and colors

B13Tips for photo composition

Shows the world over

B14Palm Beach and Middle East

B� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton ONBOARD EMERGENCIES: Sea Sick

sea sick

Keith Murray

If someone tells us we may be having a heart attack, our first reaction is, “No way, not me.” Our second reaction: “What if I am wrong? Could I be having

a heart attack? Am I going to die?”

Few people truly understand heart attacks and what causes them.

A heart attack, also called a myocardial infarction, is usually caused by

a blood clot that stops the flow of blood in the artery of the heart. Think of this like a clogged fuel line.

This blockage deprives the heart of oxygen-carrying blood. The more time that passes without treatment to restore blood flow, the greater the damage to the heart. If blood is not restored quickly, the heart muscle typically dies, resulting in acute heart failure or death.

Remember, the longer you wait, the worse your condition becomes.

Heart attacks are the leading cause of death in the United States for people over the age of 40.

Half of all Americans who have heart attacks die. And they aren’t all men.

Fifty-three percent of the people who die from heart attacks in the United States were women.

Symptoms of heart attack may include chest pain or discomfort in the center of the chest. Sometimes people say it feels like an elephant is sitting on their chest. This pain may come and go for minutes at a time.

Other symptoms include discomfort in the upper body (including the arms, left shoulder, back, neck, jaw or stomach); difficulty breathing or shortness of breath; sweating; a feeling of fullness, indigestion or choking; nausea or vomiting; dizziness; extreme weakness or anxiety; and rapid or irregular heartbeats.

The top five heart attack symptoms for men are:

Chest pain and/or pressureUpper body discomfortShortness of breathRacing heartIntense anxiety and/or cold sweatThe symptoms of heart attack in

women are often more subtle and may include:

FatigueShortness of breathUpper back painNeck or jaw painIndigestionNauseaVomitingWeaknessDizziness

Not all symptoms of a heart attack occur in everyone. Sometimes symptoms come and go. Sometimes men feel the symptoms common in women; sometimes women experience more classic male symptoms.

So it looks like it could be a heart attack. Now what? The first thing you must do is call 911 or radio for help. When a heart attack strikes, time is critical. Time equals muscle. The longer it takes the victim to get to the hospital, the greater the damage that will occur to the heart muscle.

Doctors only have a few hours to

restore the blood supply to the heart muscle by unblocking the affected heart artery. Treatments such as the administration of clot-busting drugs to dissolve the clot, heart catheterization and angioplasty must be done in a hospital.

Until we get our victim to the hospital, we can help him/her to a comfortable resting position. If you have a telemedicine service, call it. Often the doctors will instruct you, if the victim is alert and able to swallow, to give aspirin. Ask the victim if he/she has prescribed medication such as nitroglycerin that you can assist them with.

As with any medical issue, when in doubt, get checked out. Make the call, talk to a medical professional quickly and let them decide the next step. Always err on the side of caution when it comes to your life or the lives of your crew and passengers.

Keith Murray, a former Florida firefighter EMT, is the owner of The CPR School which provides onboard CPR, AED first aid safety training for yacht captains and crew as well as AED sales and service. Contact The CPR School at +1-561-762-0500 or www.TheCPRSchool.com. Comments on this column are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com.

When guest feels chest pain, is it a heart attack or indigestion?

Heart attacks are the leading cause of death in the United States for people over the age of 40. Half of all Americans who have heart attacks die. And they aren’t all men.

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 B�TECHNOLOGY: Sound Waves

Managing power on audio/video equipment on motoryachts must begin in the planning stage of the design of the system. Switching from shore to

ship’s power is a sensitive transition and creates a lot of stress on audio/video equipment. When equipment is constantly subjected to over/under voltage, it begins to diminish the lifespan of the

equipment and creates failures in the operation of the equipment.

Monitoring the input voltage with a power management product that has some kind of AVM (automatic voltage monitoring) will protect equipment from damage and major component deterioration by disconnecting and reconnecting the power from the different power changes. This type of device will maintain a constant voltage. When the transition of shore power to ship’s power occurs, it will take over and maintain the correct voltage level.

Have you ever seen the lights in a room dim and flicker when a power change occurs? This happens when something new comes on (i.e., a hair

dryer) and pulls power from the flow already being used.

Simple things change the voltage and make visual differences, so imagine what you can’t see and the damage it’s causing.

Voltage regulation (or stabilization) is the best way to stabilize power, either with a battery back-up or a device for controlling voltage. This keeps your voltage at a constant level and keeps your equipment operating at an optimum level, giving it the lifespan it was intended to have.

Once you’ve switched from shore to ship’s power the challenges really begin. Concerns with voltage drops and power surges need to be addressed.

Equipment on a yacht doesn’t face some of the things that land-based equipment does, such as natural disasters, but it is subject to lightning and power surges and needs to be protected the same way. The question is always the same: protect or disconnect? Protecting equipment during such electrical nightmares is a must with some sort of surge protection.

Using thermal fuses and high capacity metal surge protectors also known as MOVs (metal oxide varistors) or other power management protection products have a catastrophic protection circuit as a fundamental layer of defense to keep equipment

protected. These devices are the last line of defense to protect equipment from electrical events.

As more and more new gadgets flood the market, their digital components become more sophisticated. As these components evolve, their power supplies become more efficient as well. It’s important to use the recommended power supply for each piece of equipment and not mix and match these or use what is leftover in a drawer.

Power management devices such as a power line conditioner and surge protection filter out unwanted noise that is often contributed to severe electrical feedback and is common in audio/video equipment.

Most line conditioners use a generic circuit to filter the AC line noise. These basic internal components do their job, but they still leave behind unwanted harmonic noise, which is detrimental to your system’s performance and is unacceptable in a power management product. Most high performance home theater devices (Blu-ray disc players and digital projectors, for example) benefit greatly from noise filtration.

Using Lift (Linear Filtration Technology) in specific power management products will filter the unwanted noise evenly and ensure first-class noise filtration.

Changes in technology have created

smaller devices such as iPhones and MP3 players. These do not need 120volts out of the wall, so they use a small black box -- a conversion transformer -- on the power cables for charging these devices. Using your ship’s laptop computer is one way to charge these devices as well as using surge protectors with built-in USB connection on the front of the panel.

Some gaming items such as Xbox and PlayStation 3 are powered by internal batteries and require transformers to be connected to the wall. The problem here is that some outlets are not always convenient to access, so using an extension or power strip is necessary.

Power management can be confusing at times, and it’s difficult to understand which technology is right for protecting equipment and maintaining performance. If it’s important, plug it into a quality surge protection device, not a $9 power strip bought at the nearest store.

Mike Avery is a founder of MC2 (Music, Cinema and Control), which specializes in design, engineering, and installation of audio/video, lighting, remote control and theaters for yachts. Contact him at 954-914-4755. Comments on this column are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com.

Manage voltage surges, noise to protect life of A/V equipment

sound Waves

MiKe avery

B4 March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton TECHNOLOGY BRIEFS

Dometic Marine introduced the In-Duct Breathe Easy Air Purifier at the Miami International Boat Show in February. The purifier works within the ducting of a yacht’s air conditioning system using photocatalytic nano-mesh technology with UV light. If retrofitted, it does not require alterations to the vessel’s existing air conditioning unit.

It won a mechanical systems 2010 IBEX innovation award and is used by yacht builders including Trinity Yachts.

For details visit www.dometic.com. Ocean Signal launches new GMDSS

Ocean Signal announced a series of GMDSS products for the pleasure and commercial shipping markets at the Miami International Boat Show in February.

The products include the SafeSea E100/E100G series of EPIRBs, the SafeSea S100 search and rescue transponder (SART), and the SafeSea V100 survival craft VHF hand portable radiotelephone.

The EPIRBs have maximized battery life, with capacity to operate continuously, typically for four days, even using the GPS fix. The batteries can be replaced by the user, eliminating the need to return the unit to the manufacturer. It is fitted with a 50 channel, integral GPS.

The SART, when switched on, remains in a standby mode until automatically activated by an X band radar sweep from any vessel in the vicinity.

For more information, visit www.oceansignal.com. KVH introduces smaller VSAT

KVH announced the ultra-compact TracPhone V3 at the February Miami International Boat Show. The TracPhone V3 uses a small maritime VSAT antenna, measuring 14.5 inches (37 cm) in diameter and weighing 25 pounds (11 kg). The TracPhone V3 offers download speeds as fast as 2 mbps on KVH’s global mini-VSAT broadband network.

The TracPhone V3 includes a stabilized antenna, a ViaSat ArcLight spread spectrum modem, and integrated below-decks antenna control unit. ArcLight spread spectrum technology enables small antennas such as KVH’s 24-inch (60 cm) TracPhone V7 and now, the TracPhone V3 to receive satellite transmissions with the speed and reliability of older, 1-meter VSAT antennas that use TDMA transmission schemes.

For more details, visit www.kvh.com. Edson: new mounting system

Edson International introduced a new radar, satellite antenna and accessory mounting system. Known as the Vision Series, the new product line offers a sleek, modern design in a modular system that makes

installations easier.Designed and manufactured at

Edson’s Massachusetts facility, the new towers have a series of mounting plates that let customers mount any manufacturer’s antenna onto any Edson Vision Series Tower.

The towers are available in single, dual and the first production triple mount configuration.

For more information, visit www.edsonmarine.com. New gyro increases stabilization

Maryland-based Seakeeper has introduced the new M8000 Gyro Stabilization System that delivers 8,000 nms (Newton meter seconds) of righting force to stabilize any vessel with up to 35 tons displacement.

The system has an internal system without the need for external fins that create drag, lowering top speed and reducing fuel efficiency. The M8000 is speed-independent and performs optimally whether the boat is at anchor, at the dock, or under way. Suited to new builds or retrofit projects, the M8000 measures 36.2 inches by 39.2 inches by 27.7 inches and weighs 1,155 lbs. Multiple gyros can be installed on heavier craft, or Seakeeper’s larger M21000 may be used.

With a two-year, unlimited-hour warranty it is expected to be available this spring. For information, visit www.seakeeper.com. BoatUS offers smart phone app

Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS) offers a smart phone application to assist in calling for a tow and includes location and tracking features. Anyone, not just BoatUS or BoatUS Angler members, can download the free app.

“The new BoatUS App can greatly improve towboat response times due to the accuracy of the GPS latitude and longitude technology built into these high-tech phones,” said Jerry Cardarelli, BoatUS vice president of towing services.

“The moment you hit the app’s ‘call now for a tow’ button, it automatically provides us with critical information before our crew even answers the phone,” he said.

Dometic launches air purifier

See TECH BRIEFS, page B5

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 B�

Today’s fuel prices One year agoPrices for low-sulfur gasoil expressed in US$ per cubic meter (1,000 liters) as of Feb. 15.

Region Duty-free*/dutypaidU.S.EastCoast

Ft.Lauderdale 785/830Savannah,Ga. 750/NANewport,R.I. 770/NA

CaribbeanSt.Thomas,USVI 885/NASt.Maarten 1010/NAAntigua 1020/NAValparaiso 870/NA

NorthAtlanticBermuda(IrelandIsland) 925/NACapeVerde 890/NAAzores 870/NACanaryIslands 800/970

MediterraneanGibraltar 890/NABarcelona,Spain 910/1,790PalmadeMallorca,Spain NA/1,840Antibes,France 850/1,795SanRemo,Italy 980/1,890Naples,Italy 965/1,840Venice,Italy 945/1,715Corfu,Greece 920/1,695Piraeus,Greece 890/1,630Istanbul,Turkey 860/NAMalta 900/1,650Tunis,Tunisia 850/NABizerte,Tunisia 860/NA

OceaniaAuckland,NewZealand 890/NASydney,Australia 895/NAFiji 910/NA

*When available according to local customs.

TECHNOLOGY BRIEFS

Prices for low-sulfur gasoil expressed in US$ per cubic meter (1,000 liters) as of Feb. 15.

Region Duty-free*/dutypaidU.S.EastCoast

Ft.Lauderdale 570/608Savannah,Ga. 520/NANewport,R.I. 565/NA

CaribbeanSt.Thomas,USVI 690/NASt.Maarten 868/NAAntigua 782/NAValparaiso 815/NA

NorthAtlanticBermuda(IrelandIsland) 789/NACapeVerde 650/NAAzores 610/NACanaryIslands 560/743

MediterraneanGibraltar 560/NABarcelona,Spain 680/1,407PalmadeMallorca,Spain NA/1,375Antibes,France 622/1,462SanRemo,Italy 765/1,633Naples,Italy 702/1,570Venice,Italy 713/1,505Corfu,Greece 663/1,530Piraeus,Greece 640/1,507Istanbul,Turkey 620/NAMalta 615/1,270Tunis,Tunisia 580/NABizerte,Tunisia 585/NA

OceaniaAuckland,NewZealand 644/NASydney,Australia 660/NAFiji 695/NA

*When available according to local customs.

Available for iPhones and Android phones, the app gives boaters three choices: call now for a tow, share your location, and the BoatUS directory.

The “share your location” allows users to privately send text messages or e-mails containing latitude and longitude with a Google map link.

For more information, visit BoatUS.com/app. New nav device for smart phones

Digital Yacht offers iAIS, a navigation device designed to work with Apple’s mobile products. It wirelessly links a boat’s navigation data to the iPhone, iPad or iTouch and incorporates a dual channel automatic identification system (AIS) receiver and NMEA data converter allowing compatible apps access to NMEA instrument, GPS and AIS data.

The free app provides an AIS overlay on a radar-like display and an AIS target list. The AIS receiver helps boaters identify other vessels equipped with an AIS transponder and decodes these transmissions. No connection to the Internet is needed. The AIS data (which brings information such as position, name, call sign, MMSI number, course and speed of other ships) then becomes available for any compatible application.

The iAIS black box requires a connection to a standard AIS / VHF antenna, is priced at $499 and is compatible with any PC or other application (Android, Windows Mobile, etc.) that can accept wireless (TCP/IP) data for navigation information.

For details, visit www.digitalyacht.co.uk. 3 cameras optimize night vision

South Florida-based OceanView has introduced the Poseidon HD Tri-Camera System an all-in-one unit that includes a high-definition, thermal-imaging camera, a low-light camera, and a color camera. The night-vision camera has two-axis gyro stabilization and offers surveillance for any time of day.

The thermal imager has 4x zoom; the low-light/lux camera has a 10x zoom; and the color daylight camera has a

312x zoom.The Poseidon also comes standard

with radar and ARPA target tracking and 360-degree continuous pan capability. It retails for $84,370. The Poseidon without HD thermal retails for $74,995.

For more information, visit www.nightboating.com. Honda debuts concept outboard

Honda Marine debuted an outboard engine model at the recent Miami International Boat Show. The concept BF250 engine provides the first indication of the design direction for the all-new 250hp outboard, which will be available to boaters later this year.

The engine is based upon a 3.6-liter engine platform designed to deliver fuel economy and outstanding performance.

For more information, visit http://marine.honda.com. FarSounder software upgraded

FarSounder recently released SonaSoft version 2.3, an upgrade to the software that powers all FS-3 series sonars. Major upgrade features include improved in-water target detection and automatic bottom detection, and support for C-Map vector charts.

Previously focusing on long range performance, the system transmits signals for customers using sonars at short ranges and when navigating in shallow waters. The software will automatically switch to the appropriate transmit signal when setting the sonar’s range mode in the processor settings.

FarSounder has also upgraded its chart plotting capabilities and now offers support for C-Map vector charts by Jeppesen-Marine.

For more details, visit www.farsounder.com. TRAC add distributors

TRAC Ecological Products announced 29 new U.S. and international dealers and distributors for its onboard equipment cleaning and maintenance product line.

The line includes Barnacle Buster for raw water cooling systems, Descaler for fresh water systems, Sew Clean for black water systems, PSR for potable water systems and GreenClean Boat Soap.

For more details, visit www.trac-online.com. BOW sells, distributes De-Oil-It

D.S. Hull Company will now handle South Florida wholesale distribution for De-Oil-It, an environmentally friendly stain remover for scuff marks, wine and fuel stains, bugs, carbon build-up.

De-Oil-It is available retail in three South Florida Boat Owners Warehouse locations.

For more information, call BOW at 1-800-BOATS-99.

New nav unit is Apple friendlyTECH BRIEFS, from page B4

B� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton

preventing them from operating as designed during an emergency. QCVs are positive shutoff valves on fuel oil systems that isolate fuel tanks in the event of a fire and also prevent “fueling” of a fire in circumstances where system piping and components are compromised.

In some circumstances they could be the only means of securing the fuel to a flammable liquid fire. These valves are designed to be remotely operated. Inoperable QCVs create a serious hazard, putting the vessel and its crew at greater risk in the event of a fire.

Blocking or disabling these valves is unacceptable under any circumstance. It is absolutely critical that they operate correctly, are regularly maintained, and are ready for use at all times. Proper routine maintenance, and in some cases approved modifications and/or replacement of components may be necessary to ensure reliability of the remote operator and closure of the valve. Fixed CO2 fire suppression system

A machinery space fire onboard a relatively new vessel was effectively responded to and extinguished by the vessel’s response team firefighters using

portable extinguishing equipment. However, before it was declared completely extinguished and about five hours after the fire started, the master of the vessel made the decision to release CO2 from the vessel’s fixed firefighting system. It failed to operate as designed.

Subsequently, crew members were unable to activate it manually and CO2 was never directed into the machinery space. The following issues pertaining to the CO2 system were discovered. l Numerous piping and hose

connections leaked extensively. When the system was activated, on scene

video taken by the firefighters showed numerous leaks into the CO2 room. Post casualty, while pressure was still on the system, some of these leaks continued even after the connections were tightened.l The zone

valve for the aft machinery space that admits CO2 from the bottle bank manifold to

the space failed. Specifically, the ball valve’s opening actuating arm fell off the valve when the gas-powered piston actuator attempted to move it. The ball valve actuating arm was held in place by a small machine screw and washer. When firefighters attempted to open the valve manually using the provided hardware, it could not be moved. The valve was only able to be moved after the gas pressure was relieved from the inlet side of the valve.l Actuating arms to five of the six

other zone valves were found loose. They were also attached by small machine screws.l Hemp-type pipe sealant was used

extensively on pipe threads throughout the system and in some instances seems to have entered the system.l Certain elements of the

distribution manifold contained low points that allowed the accumulation of water within piping that could not be drained. Such a circumstance could cause corrosion that could negatively affect operation of other components.l The CO2 system’s pilot bottles

did not appear to operate correctly, according to firefighters involved, and thus had to be manually activated using the valve handles on top of the cylinders. Additionally, during the event, the bank bottles were similarly activated due to the uncertainty of their release. At least one pilot bottle activation hose was reported to have leaked.

Inoperable QCVs on fuel tankscreate serious onboard hazardRULES, from page B1

See RULES, page B7

QCVs are positive shutoff valves on fuel oil systems that isolate fuel tanks in the event of a fire and also prevent “fueling” of a fire in circumstances where system piping and components are compromised.

The system had been recently serviced and inspected by an authorized service provider. Captains and crew should conduct thorough and regular examinations of these systems, especially after refit periods. During the annual service of the system, it should be verified that the authorized inspector completed the required tests in accordance with international regulations and the manufacturer’s recommendations. Bridge team operations

With respect to vessel operations, the bridge team management approach to safe navigation is an essential element of risk management and safe operations. The team approach to safe navigation requires the clear, frequent and accurate exchange of information between all crew members relative to the safe operation of the vessel.

In other evolutions, such as loading fuels, full attention is required by all involved to prevent casualties or pollution incidents.

Additionally, when mariners are navigating or working alone, the use of cellular or other devices unrelated to the operation at hand could impede the exchange of vital operational

information, delay reaction time, or cause attention lapses of those involved that could result in unwanted circumstances having serious consequences and causing injuries and fatalities, material damage, and environmental impact.

In investigation findings involving other transportation modes, it has been noted that the use of cellular telephones and other wireless devices can degrade performance, slow response times, and increase attention lapses of those in safety-sensitive positions. Consequently, the U.S. Coast Guard strongly recommends vessel owners and operators develop and implement effective operational policies outlining when the use of cellular telephones and other devices is appropriate or prohibited. Ship Security Alert Systems (SSAS)

Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Chapter XI-2/6 mandates the carriage of shipboard equipment for sending

covert alerts indicating the security of the ship under threat or having been compromised (such as piracy, terrorism, or armed robbery). SOLAS requires that the SSAS is capable of being activated from the navigation bridge and in at least one other location. The SSAS

should conform to performance standards equivalent to those adopted by the International Maritime Organization.

An investigation into a recent Breach of Security (BOS) onboard a vessel operating overseas revealed that the

system did not function properly. It was discovered that the primary activation button failed to send the BOS message and that when the secondary location activation button was depressed, not all critical data was transmitted. Under other circumstances, this type of failure could have been disastrous and result in significant harm to the crew.

Although the SSAS was serviced two days prior to the incident as part of the annual Safety Radio Survey, records

indicate that the technician did not have the proper testing equipment for the system on board and only an internal operational self-test was carried out and accepted.

A complete SSAS survey with an external test would have identified the system faults that then could have been corrected prior to the incident.

Unfortunately within our industry, most safety improvements are implemented based upon an accident. It is imperative for professional crew to keep current on these topics. This will ensure preventative actions are integrated into a yacht’s daily operation.

Capt. Jake DesVergers is chief surveyor for International Yacht Bureau (IYB), an organization that provides inspection services to private and commercial yachts on behalf of several flag administrations, including the Marshall Islands. A deck officer graduate of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, he previously sailed as master on merchant ships, acted as designated person for a shipping company, and served as regional manager for an international classification society. Contact him at +1-954-596-2728 or www.yachtbureau.org. Comments on this column are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com.

Fire suppression systems need thorough and regular examsRULES, from page B6

It has been noted that the use of cellular telephones and other wireless devices can degrade performance, slow response times, and increase attention lapses of those in safety-sensitive positions

FROM THE TECH FRONT: Rules of the Road

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 B�FROM THE TECH FRONT: Rules of the Road

preventing them from operating as designed during an emergency. QCVs are positive shutoff valves on fuel oil systems that isolate fuel tanks in the event of a fire and also prevent “fueling” of a fire in circumstances where system piping and components are compromised.

In some circumstances they could be the only means of securing the fuel to a flammable liquid fire. These valves are designed to be remotely operated. Inoperable QCVs create a serious hazard, putting the vessel and its crew at greater risk in the event of a fire.

Blocking or disabling these valves is unacceptable under any circumstance. It is absolutely critical that they operate correctly, are regularly maintained, and are ready for use at all times. Proper routine maintenance, and in some cases approved modifications and/or replacement of components may be necessary to ensure reliability of the remote operator and closure of the valve. Fixed CO2 fire suppression system

A machinery space fire onboard a relatively new vessel was effectively responded to and extinguished by the vessel’s response team firefighters using

portable extinguishing equipment. However, before it was declared completely extinguished and about five hours after the fire started, the master of the vessel made the decision to release CO2 from the vessel’s fixed firefighting system. It failed to operate as designed.

Subsequently, crew members were unable to activate it manually and CO2 was never directed into the machinery space. The following issues pertaining to the CO2 system were discovered. l Numerous piping and hose

connections leaked extensively. When the system was activated, on scene

video taken by the firefighters showed numerous leaks into the CO2 room. Post casualty, while pressure was still on the system, some of these leaks continued even after the connections were tightened.l The zone

valve for the aft machinery space that admits CO2 from the bottle bank manifold to

the space failed. Specifically, the ball valve’s opening actuating arm fell off the valve when the gas-powered piston actuator attempted to move it. The ball valve actuating arm was held in place by a small machine screw and washer. When firefighters attempted to open the valve manually using the provided hardware, it could not be moved. The valve was only able to be moved after the gas pressure was relieved from the inlet side of the valve.l Actuating arms to five of the six

other zone valves were found loose. They were also attached by small machine screws.l Hemp-type pipe sealant was used

extensively on pipe threads throughout the system and in some instances seems to have entered the system.l Certain elements of the

distribution manifold contained low points that allowed the accumulation of water within piping that could not be drained. Such a circumstance could cause corrosion that could negatively affect operation of other components.l The CO2 system’s pilot bottles

did not appear to operate correctly, according to firefighters involved, and thus had to be manually activated using the valve handles on top of the cylinders. Additionally, during the event, the bank bottles were similarly activated due to the uncertainty of their release. At least one pilot bottle activation hose was reported to have leaked.

Inoperable QCVs on fuel tankscreate serious onboard hazardRULES, from page B1

See RULES, page B7

QCVs are positive shutoff valves on fuel oil systems that isolate fuel tanks in the event of a fire and also prevent “fueling” of a fire in circumstances where system piping and components are compromised.

The system had been recently serviced and inspected by an authorized service provider. Captains and crew should conduct thorough and regular examinations of these systems, especially after refit periods. During the annual service of the system, it should be verified that the authorized inspector completed the required tests in accordance with international regulations and the manufacturer’s recommendations. Bridge team operations

With respect to vessel operations, the bridge team management approach to safe navigation is an essential element of risk management and safe operations. The team approach to safe navigation requires the clear, frequent and accurate exchange of information between all crew members relative to the safe operation of the vessel.

In other evolutions, such as loading fuels, full attention is required by all involved to prevent casualties or pollution incidents.

Additionally, when mariners are navigating or working alone, the use of cellular or other devices unrelated to the operation at hand could impede the exchange of vital operational

information, delay reaction time, or cause attention lapses of those involved that could result in unwanted circumstances having serious consequences and causing injuries and fatalities, material damage, and environmental impact.

In investigation findings involving other transportation modes, it has been noted that the use of cellular telephones and other wireless devices can degrade performance, slow response times, and increase attention lapses of those in safety-sensitive positions. Consequently, the U.S. Coast Guard strongly recommends vessel owners and operators develop and implement effective operational policies outlining when the use of cellular telephones and other devices is appropriate or prohibited. Ship Security Alert Systems (SSAS)

Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Chapter XI-2/6 mandates the carriage of shipboard equipment for sending

covert alerts indicating the security of the ship under threat or having been compromised (such as piracy, terrorism, or armed robbery). SOLAS requires that the SSAS is capable of being activated from the navigation bridge and in at least one other location. The SSAS

should conform to performance standards equivalent to those adopted by the International Maritime Organization.

An investigation into a recent Breach of Security (BOS) onboard a vessel operating overseas revealed that the

system did not function properly. It was discovered that the primary activation button failed to send the BOS message and that when the secondary location activation button was depressed, not all critical data was transmitted. Under other circumstances, this type of failure could have been disastrous and result in significant harm to the crew.

Although the SSAS was serviced two days prior to the incident as part of the annual Safety Radio Survey, records

indicate that the technician did not have the proper testing equipment for the system on board and only an internal operational self-test was carried out and accepted.

A complete SSAS survey with an external test would have identified the system faults that then could have been corrected prior to the incident.

Unfortunately within our industry, most safety improvements are implemented based upon an accident. It is imperative for professional crew to keep current on these topics. This will ensure preventative actions are integrated into a yacht’s daily operation.

Capt. Jake DesVergers is chief surveyor for International Yacht Bureau (IYB), an organization that provides inspection services to private and commercial yachts on behalf of several flag administrations, including the Marshall Islands. A deck officer graduate of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, he previously sailed as master on merchant ships, acted as designated person for a shipping company, and served as regional manager for an international classification society. Contact him at +1-954-596-2728 or www.yachtbureau.org. Comments on this column are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com.

Fire suppression systems need thorough and regular examsRULES, from page B6

It has been noted that the use of cellular telephones and other wireless devices can degrade performance, slow response times, and increase attention lapses of those in safety-sensitive positions

B� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton

During World War II, sight reduction tables were published by the United States and the United Kingdom. They are virtually identical. There are two versions: one for aviators, one for mariners. The mariners’ version became known as U.S. publication HO No. 229. The tables greatly simplify celestial navigation; they all but eliminate trigonometry from the calculations.

Mariners could now navigate with ease by measuring the angle of a celestial body above the horizon at a precise time. A simple calculation from HO No. 229 combined with data added from a current nautical almanac gives the navigator a bearing

or azimuth to the body and a line-of-position (LOP) perpendicular to the bearing on which the vessel must lie.

Linda embraced the concept, and she soon understood the process.

The stars are outside our solar system and must be treated differently from the sun and moon. They have their own set of sight reduction tables, sometimes known as the Points of Aries.

The exact time is essential for calculating lines of position from celestial bodies. Greek mythology has it that the god Zeus rides his sun chariot from east to west across the sky. He completes his 360-degree journey in 24 hours, a velocity of more than 900 nautical miles per hour. An error of one second during the timing

of a sight results in a plotted position error of about four miles.

When possible, mariners keep two times on a boat: The first is Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), also known as Zulu or Co-ordinate Universal Time on the ship’s clock below. I adjust GMT every morning with a time-tick from the National Observatory in Colorado.

And I keep local mean time (LMT) on my wristwatch or chronometer. I keep track of the chronometer error each day and update it with a time-tick at noon every Sunday. Knowing chronometer error is critical; one never knows when one will be navigating from a life raft.

The rest of the tools of the trade are simple:

HO No. 229 for the intended

latitudePoints of Aries for the intended

latitudeA current nautical almanacPlotting sheetsSextant. Accurate modestly priced

sextants are available. A weekend routine

The crew of Scheherazade fell into a weekend routine. We sailed into the Gulf of Mexico on Friday afternoons; we tacked on the wind, we reached, we set and jibed the spinnakers, practiced man-overboard drills and anchored off the beach. We faithfully shot sun lines during the day, moon lines if she was visible, and a round of stars sights at dawn and dusk.

Linda would go below, concentrate on her calculations and announce our Lat/Long with pride. Soon after, a gourmet meal would magically appear from the companionway. Good crew is hard to find.

There is no more fun for an offshore crew than to gather at dusk in the cockpit to shoot a round of stars.

Step 1: the would-be navigators should each consult the Points of Aries tables for the azimuth (bearing) and altitude of the seven designated stars of the day.

Step 2: the navigators should gather around the compass binnacle a.k.a. the Monkey Island. Each star has a name like an old friend to the navigator: Archturus, Sirius, Altar, Antares, Spica, Alderbran, Regulus, Rigel, Polaris and The Southern Cross constellation.

The Mayans were not navigators of the seas, but they lived under the night sky and observed the movements of the stars, passing on knowledge generation to generation. They made sophisticated calculations and predicted celestial events such as eclipses far into the future.

The Polynesians were the master mariners of history. Two thousand years before Europeans ventured across the western ocean, they navigated thousands of miles of open Pacific, with their entire families, to find tiny islands by the declination of stars.

It is believed that the Chinese, too, were master navigators. They circumnavigated the globe beginning in 1421 with three huge armadas consisting of hundreds of ships each. They explored most of our planet using Polaris and the Southern Cross as their main navigational aids and left their DNA footprint on most of the peoples of the world.

Polaris almost exactly matches the latitude of the observer: Height Observed - HO equals latitude. The Southern Cross offers a mariner’s trick: project four and half times the length

Exact time essential for calculating lines of positionSTARS, from page B1

See STARS, page B10

CELESTIAL NAVIGATION

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 B�XXXXXXXXXXFITNESS: Keep It Up

B10 March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton

of the cross at the horizon, then drop a perpendicular to the horizon to find true south.

Modern-man might learn a thing or two and gain an extra measure of appreciation for our Earth if we spent more time under the stars. In fact, some astrophysicists hypothesize that we are made from the same dust as the stars.

Back in the cockpit, the would-be navigators should gather around the Monkey Island and pre-set their sextants to the altitude of the target star. One by one, they should align the bearing of the target star with their sextant and observe the magic. Your new star-friend will appear like a headlight bouncing on the horizon long before she is visible to the naked eye. Make a final adjustment and mark for the exact time GMT. Incidentally, the western horizon disappears from visibility last, so shoot the stars in the western quadrant last.

Step 3: each would-be navigator must work out their calculations for each star line and plot them on a plotting sheet.

Three or four of the seven calculated stars of the day offered by the Point of Aries are usually clear of clouds. That number is sufficient to produce a “cocked-hat” or intersection of lines on the plotting sheet.

The tighter the cocked-hat, the more confidence the navigator can have in the calculated position. The navigator with the tightest cocked-hat wins the cupid doll and has the privilege of transferring the ship’s position to the chart with a circled dot and the time.

Our first trip as a crew – and Linda’s first offshore navigator role – came soon enough. We departed the boat yard in Tampa Bay on a new factory delivery after a full day of stowing supplies and completing last-minute tasks. We cleared the Skyway Bridge at sunset and set course: 180 degrees for Rebecca Shoal. I took a reef in the main, balanced the helm, engaged the auto-helm and we reached south in a force five westerly.

Thank you Jesus; steering wears out

a crew. The night was glorious but it

had been a long day and our dead reckoning position was fresh; celestial navigation was tabled until the ’morrow. We fetched Rebecca the next day and rounded north into the Gulf Stream. We set a course for Isaac Light and let the Gulf Stream set us north at a good clip.

“Altered course to zero-eight-five degrees at Isaac Light,” I entered into the ship’s log that evening. We popped out of the Northeast Passage into the broad Atlantic hard on the wind in the dead of night.

A few hundred miles offshore, the night sky intensifies like nothing most land-lubbers ever see. Brilliant planets and millions of stars appear down to

the horizon. Linda shot Polaris for latitude, energetic girl.

Just before the purple dawn cracked in the southeast, she put my Rolex on her slender arm and pulled my sextant out of its mahogany box. She shot a round of stars before they disappear for 12 hours. Her calculations became routine and flawless; no longer did I double check her lines of position.

The offshore routine for any navigator is demanding:

At dawn: Shoot a round of stars, which produces a “cocked-hat” calculated position that launches navigation for the day.

At 9-ish: The sun has enough altitude for a line of position more or less north-south.

At local noon: The sun reaches its zenith. It stops rising out of the east; it hangs in the sky like a trapeze artist for a few seconds then it rolls into a descent to a final splash down in the west.

In late afternoon: Shoot another sun line of position. This completes the tracking of Zeus for the day.

If the moon is visible during the day, it can add to the certainty of any line of position. The moon is tougher to shoot and calculate, but it is worth the effort, especially in clouding conditions.

At dusk: Shoot a final round of stars that will produce a “cocked

Three or four stars of the day can produce good ‘cocked hat’STARS, from page B8

See STARS, page B11

Just before the purple dawn cracked in the southeast, she put my Rolex on her slender arm and pulled my sextant out of its mahogany box. She shot a round of stars before they disappear for 1� hours. Her calculations became routine and flawless; no longer did I double check her lines of position.

hat” calculated position, which gives the navigator confidence to put the sextant away ‘til dawn tomorrow. ‘You had better get up here’

The night that we cracked off the easterlies at 69 degrees west and footed southeast for the Virgin Islands, the full moon exploded out of the sea in the eastern quadrant at full dark. I had watch below; Linda had the con.

“You better get up here skipper,” she sang out.

I had been anticipating her reaction to a full-moonrise at sea.

“It’s the moon, babe,” I said, matter-of-factly from the companionway.

“It looks like a bloody city; can I shoot it?”

“Let it gain some altitude; you may not get much of a horizon,” I said, knowing that the reflection of the moon on the sea would probably wash out the horizon line. But Linda was getting good at rolling the sextant to allow the body to kiss the horizon with precision and averaging the visible horizon from the deck of a sailboat at sea.

By the time we fetched the Silver Banks of Hispaniola, where Columbus

wrecked the Marie Gallant (a.k.a. Santa Maria), my navigator-girl was bleary-eyed but fully graduated as an astro-navigator.

When we went ashore in Tortola for dinner, Linda seemed to have grown taller.

Her shoulders were ram-rod straight, her smile was unstoppable, and her eyes radiated confidence. When I saw her emerge from below, I had to take a round turn and two half

hitches on my heart strings.

At sea, as in life anywhere, experience begets competence and confidence. I believe that in order to become a true blue-water mariner, a navigator should become one with the stars.

Capt. Gordon Reid holds a 200-ton Yacht Master license. He has cruised his 44-foot trimaran and delivered yachts throughout the Caribbean and Mediterranean

for decades. He works with www.kaliafoundation.org in the Kingdom of Tonga. Contact him at captaingord@gmail.com. Comments on this story are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com. Cover image copyright Aaron Price; from.bigstockphoto.com.

STARS, from page B10

Become one with the stars to become a true navigator

By the time we fetched the Silver Banks of Hispaniola, my navigator-girl was bleary-eyed but fully graduated as an astro-navigator.

When we went ashore in Tortola for dinner, Linda seemed to have grown taller. Her shoulders were ram-rod straight, her smile unstoppable, her eyes radiated confidence.

CELESTIAL NAVIGATION

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 B11

of the cross at the horizon, then drop a perpendicular to the horizon to find true south.

Modern-man might learn a thing or two and gain an extra measure of appreciation for our Earth if we spent more time under the stars. In fact, some astrophysicists hypothesize that we are made from the same dust as the stars.

Back in the cockpit, the would-be navigators should gather around the Monkey Island and pre-set their sextants to the altitude of the target star. One by one, they should align the bearing of the target star with their sextant and observe the magic. Your new star-friend will appear like a headlight bouncing on the horizon long before she is visible to the naked eye. Make a final adjustment and mark for the exact time GMT. Incidentally, the western horizon disappears from visibility last, so shoot the stars in the western quadrant last.

Step 3: each would-be navigator must work out their calculations for each star line and plot them on a plotting sheet.

Three or four of the seven calculated stars of the day offered by the Point of Aries are usually clear of clouds. That number is sufficient to produce a “cocked-hat” or intersection of lines on the plotting sheet.

The tighter the cocked-hat, the more confidence the navigator can have in the calculated position. The navigator with the tightest cocked-hat wins the cupid doll and has the privilege of transferring the ship’s position to the chart with a circled dot and the time.

Our first trip as a crew – and Linda’s first offshore navigator role – came soon enough. We departed the boat yard in Tampa Bay on a new factory delivery after a full day of stowing supplies and completing last-minute tasks. We cleared the Skyway Bridge at sunset and set course: 180 degrees for Rebecca Shoal. I took a reef in the main, balanced the helm, engaged the auto-helm and we reached south in a force five westerly.

Thank you Jesus; steering wears out

a crew. The night was glorious but it

had been a long day and our dead reckoning position was fresh; celestial navigation was tabled until the ’morrow. We fetched Rebecca the next day and rounded north into the Gulf Stream. We set a course for Isaac Light and let the Gulf Stream set us north at a good clip.

“Altered course to zero-eight-five degrees at Isaac Light,” I entered into the ship’s log that evening. We popped out of the Northeast Passage into the broad Atlantic hard on the wind in the dead of night.

A few hundred miles offshore, the night sky intensifies like nothing most land-lubbers ever see. Brilliant planets and millions of stars appear down to

the horizon. Linda shot Polaris for latitude, energetic girl.

Just before the purple dawn cracked in the southeast, she put my Rolex on her slender arm and pulled my sextant out of its mahogany box. She shot a round of stars before they disappear for 12 hours. Her calculations became routine and flawless; no longer did I double check her lines of position.

The offshore routine for any navigator is demanding:

At dawn: Shoot a round of stars, which produces a “cocked-hat” calculated position that launches navigation for the day.

At 9-ish: The sun has enough altitude for a line of position more or less north-south.

At local noon: The sun reaches its zenith. It stops rising out of the east; it hangs in the sky like a trapeze artist for a few seconds then it rolls into a descent to a final splash down in the west.

In late afternoon: Shoot another sun line of position. This completes the tracking of Zeus for the day.

If the moon is visible during the day, it can add to the certainty of any line of position. The moon is tougher to shoot and calculate, but it is worth the effort, especially in clouding conditions.

At dusk: Shoot a final round of stars that will produce a “cocked

Three or four stars of the day can produce good ‘cocked hat’STARS, from page B8

See STARS, page B11

Just before the purple dawn cracked in the southeast, she put my Rolex on her slender arm and pulled my sextant out of its mahogany box. She shot a round of stars before they disappear for 1� hours. Her calculations became routine and flawless; no longer did I double check her lines of position.

hat” calculated position, which gives the navigator confidence to put the sextant away ‘til dawn tomorrow. ‘You had better get up here’

The night that we cracked off the easterlies at 69 degrees west and footed southeast for the Virgin Islands, the full moon exploded out of the sea in the eastern quadrant at full dark. I had watch below; Linda had the con.

“You better get up here skipper,” she sang out.

I had been anticipating her reaction to a full-moonrise at sea.

“It’s the moon, babe,” I said, matter-of-factly from the companionway.

“It looks like a bloody city; can I shoot it?”

“Let it gain some altitude; you may not get much of a horizon,” I said, knowing that the reflection of the moon on the sea would probably wash out the horizon line. But Linda was getting good at rolling the sextant to allow the body to kiss the horizon with precision and averaging the visible horizon from the deck of a sailboat at sea.

By the time we fetched the Silver Banks of Hispaniola, where Columbus

wrecked the Marie Gallant (a.k.a. Santa Maria), my navigator-girl was bleary-eyed but fully graduated as an astro-navigator.

When we went ashore in Tortola for dinner, Linda seemed to have grown taller.

Her shoulders were ram-rod straight, her smile was unstoppable, and her eyes radiated confidence. When I saw her emerge from below, I had to take a round turn and two half

hitches on my heart strings.

At sea, as in life anywhere, experience begets competence and confidence. I believe that in order to become a true blue-water mariner, a navigator should become one with the stars.

Capt. Gordon Reid holds a 200-ton Yacht Master license. He has cruised his 44-foot trimaran and delivered yachts throughout the Caribbean and Mediterranean

for decades. He works with www.kaliafoundation.org in the Kingdom of Tonga. Contact him at captaingord@gmail.com. Comments on this story are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com. Cover image copyright Aaron Price; from.bigstockphoto.com.

STARS, from page B10

Become one with the stars to become a true navigator

By the time we fetched the Silver Banks of Hispaniola, my navigator-girl was bleary-eyed but fully graduated as an astro-navigator.

When we went ashore in Tortola for dinner, Linda seemed to have grown taller. Her shoulders were ram-rod straight, her smile unstoppable, her eyes radiated confidence.

CELESTIAL NAVIGATION

B1� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton

Neptune Group has added two new yachts to its charter fleet: M/Y Seas the Moment, an 85-foot Pacific Mariner, and M/Y Andiamo, an 85-foot Symbol. M/Y Seas the Moment will be based in Harbour Island, Bahamas and then to New England for the summer. M/Y Andiamo will be based in Marathon, Fla., chartering Florida, the Florida Keys and the Bahamas.

Ocean Independence has sold the following yachts:

M/Y Sensation, a 50m built by Sensation Yachts; the 43m Feadship M/Y Masquerade of Sole; M/Y Jade 112, a 34m vessel built by Jade Yachts; M/Y Teneo II, a Sunseeker Predator 82; and M/Y Windrose, a 21.5m Holland Jachtbouw.

The company also has added the following yachts to its new central agency listings for sale:

M/Y Reverie, a 70.1m Benetti; M/Y Asteria, a 49m vessel built by Anastassiades; M/Y Explorer, a 43m Eurocraft; M/Y Maxima, a 37m Technomar ready for delivery in 2013; the 34m Feadship M/Y Eleanor Allen; M/Y Devil’s Advocate, a 23m vessel built by Cape Horn Canada; and M/Y Cleopatra, a 23m Maiora.

New central agency listings for charter include the 47m Heesen M/Y Seadweller, and M/Y Polycarpus, a 34.6m vessel built by Arsenal de Toulon.

Ocean Independence’s management division has appointed Piers Flood as a yacht manager based at the head office in Uster, Switzerland.

Sanlorenzo has delivered the SD92, M/Y Lady Kathleen, a 27m (92-foot) which represents the company’s 14th SD92 hull delivered since debut of this model in 2007.

Dan Shea of Bristol Boat Company plans to build a “new” boat from Capt. Nathanael Greene Herreshoff ’s (NGH) designs. The H-20 Class will be built to Herreshoff ’s design of a model of the 12½, initially known as the Buzzard’s Bay Boys Boat.

The model was never built in Herreshoff ’s lifetime and sat unnoticed for 80 years. Working in collaboration with Herreshoff Designs, hull No. 1 is nearly complete. The new class of recreational and sail-training boats

will have greater sailing abilities and a deeper, bigger and drier cockpit than the 12½ and will allow for an optional electric inboard.

For more information visit www.bristolboatcompany.com.

Heesen Yachts has sold two new megayachts and has 15 in construction. YN 16551, a 51M, full-displacement vessel, was completed in December, and YN 15850, a 50M, all-aluminium semi-displacement vessel, was completed in January under a contract with Burgess.

The yachts in construction are expected to be delivered by the end of 2014. Heesen sold seven vessels last year.

YPI Brokerage announced its latest exclusive signing for sale, and the second with AB yachts for M/Y AB 116. The new-build AB 116 is expected to be delivered in June.

Northrop & Johnson has hired Katya Jaimes to the charter retail division, based in Ft. Lauderdale. Originally from Siberia, Russia, Jaimes has worked for a megayacht

management company in New York.

M/Y Audacia is at Pendennis Shipyard for a two-meter stern extension and is due for re-delivery in the middle of April. Other current projects include new builds Barracuda 105 Sloop S/Y Akalam and Ron Holland 150-foot S/Y Christopher; refits S/Y Adela, S/Y Andromeda La Dea, and M/Y Dardanella; and the completion of 44m catamaran S/Y Hemisphere.

Delta Marine has announced the signing of a contract to build a new 50m full-displacement motor yacht. This is the sixth yacht built to Delta’s hull design with large tank volumes and extended range needed for transoceanic cruising. Designed and engineered by the Delta Design Group, this motor yacht is more than 750 gross tons ITC. For more information, visit www.deltamarine.com.

Jaimes

Neptune adds to charter fleet: Seas the Moment, Andiamo

This Delta yacht has plus-sized tank volumes. COURTESY OF DELTA MARINE

BOATS / BROKERS

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 B1�PHOTOGRAPHY: Photo Exposé

Welcome aboard photo enthusiasts. On the last go around, tips to improve your photographs through better composition were on the agenda.

I suggested to try and always include something in the foreground to add depth to your composition, and when including objects, to have odd numbers, such as three, five or seven sailboats in a photograph. These are not steadfast

rules, but they generally make for more interesting images.

We now continue on with the subject of composition.

There are a variety of elements from art we can use in our photographs to achieve compositionally superior results.

The use of lines is the most basic. They can direct the viewer and define space or shapes, and even evoke emotional responses in more abstract visualizations.

The lines formed by triangulation of three elements in a photograph can carry a viewer around an image.

Enough lines in some sequence may give the impression of texture, another effective compositional element.

How does what is photographed appear to feel? A steel cleat will reflect as something hard and possibly cool; the folds of a blanket will appear soft and give a feeling of warmth.

Clouds provide a texture that I always hope to include in landscapes, and are even a more welcome addition to my seascapes.

With enhancing texture, keep in mind the importance of the direction of light. We professionals often use early morning or late afternoon light for the very reason that such intense side-lighting adds to texture.

Shapes are geometrical, two-dimensional elements that we photograph. If they are angular, they can project a more high-tech or graphic vision and they can be more disturbing to the eye. Curves will tend to be more from nature, giving a feeling of the organic or sensual responses, and can feel more relaxing.

The shapes of objects in your photographs occupy positive space. Placement of objects in space will give a photograph its sense of depth. I always try having something in the foreground when taking a land, sea, or cityscape. This adds depth, and this means drama in the visual experience.

At the same time, do not overlook negative or empty space, as it can work power to the overall composition.

When talking about depth, considerations for depth of field are important. Previous articles I’ve written cover more technical aspects, explaining that higher, smaller f-stop, such as f/8, f/11 and especially f/16 will allow for greater depth of field.

Most lenses on SLR cameras, but unfortunately not on pocket cameras, will have a depth-of-field button, so you can preview the depth of field given by a specific f/stop.

One last terrific tip I can pass on is about where to focus for the best depth of field, but it requires manual focus to do.

I could also go into hyper-focal distance, but the new digital camera systems have made this approach to focusing obsolete, that is to say the setting scales are no longer even

available on current equipment, so there’s not much sense in exploring it further.

Using tones can also help define your composition. Tones would be shades of gray from white to

black that make up an image, along the lines of the Zone System developed by Ansel Adams.

Even though I am using tones from white to black, what I am talking about applies as well to color photographs. Highlights and shadows that are vital to visual dimensions are tones.

Tones will direct the eyes. The visual pull of a dark tone carries more weight than a light tone. They may also convey emotions.

Colors, we know for sure, convey emotion and harmony. Color can articulate space and provide modeling for fashions. Colors can represent symbols, for instance, a photograph of the scarlet letter or the golden religious aura, project color symbolism. They can also follow cultural preferences with the jade green and Chinese red or the strong reds, yellows and oranges found south of the U.S. border.

A photographer, an especially talented one, will know how to mix his/her lines, textures, shapes, spaces, tones, colors into their visual images. Oh, and don’t forget to keep your horizon line straight.

These suggestions should get you on your way to better compositions, so I’ll take leave to go ashore.

James Schot has been a professional photographer for more than 35 years and has a studio/gallery in Ft. Lauderdale. Send questions to james@bestschot.com.

Lines, textures, space and color mix to make best photographs

Photo exPosé

James schot

The visual pull of a dark tone carries more weight than a light tone.

B14 March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton CALENDAR OF EVENTS

March 1-4 Diesel Engine and Support Systems Certification, Thomaston, Maine. www.abycinc.org

March 1-5 The Dubai International Boat Show, Dubai International Marine Club. Among the top five largest international boat shows in the world. www.boatshowdubai.com

March 2 The Triton’s monthly networking event (the first Wednesday of every month from 6-8 p.m.); this month in Ft. Lauderdale with Nautic & Co. at Lauderdale Marine Center. See story page C3. www.the-triton.com

March 3 The Triton Bridge luncheon, noon, Ft. Lauderdale. A roundtable discussion of the issues of the day for yacht captains only. RSVP to Associate Editor Dorie Cox at dorie@the-triton.com or 954-525-0029. Space is limited.

March 4-13 16th annual Miami International Film Festival. 100 films, 40 countries, 10 days. www.miamifilmfestival.com

March 5 34th annual Waterway Cleanup by MIASF, Broward County, Fla. Volunteers and 100 boats gathering debris from the waterways, rivers and canals. 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. www.miasf.org

March 5-6 22nd annual Las Olas Art Festival, Ft. Lauderdale. Free. www.artfestival.com

March 6 Sunday Jazz Brunch, Ft. Lauderdale, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Free. www.fortlauderdale.gov

March 11-13 Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing! Saltwater Seminar, Naples, Fla. 1-888-321-LLGF (5543), www.ladiesletsgofishing.com

March 14-17 Cruise Shipping Miami Virtual Tradeshow. www.cruiseshippingmiami.com

March 16 Networking Triton-style (the occasional second Wednesday of the month), 6-8 p.m. with Dockwise Yacht Transport and Global Yacht Fuel Ft. Lauderdale. See story page C4. www.the-triton.com

March 16-17 Marine Pollution 2011, London. By Lloyd’s Maritime Academy. www.informaglobalevents.com

March 17-20 Dania Beach Marine Flea Market, Dania Beach, Fla. www.thedaniamarinefleamarket.com

March 20-25 Advanced Marina Management School by the International Marina Institute, Charleston, SC. www.

marinaassociation.org

March 21-April 3 27th Sony Ericsson Open, Miami’s Key Biscayne. Top world tennis tournament. www.sonyericssonopen.com

March 24-26 Abu Dhabi Yacht Show (ADYS). www.abudhabiyachtshow.com

March 25-27 Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, Fl. Boaters can reserve a spot at St. Petersburg Marina, call +1 727-898-4639 ext. 203. For race details, +1 727-898-INDY, www.gpstpete.com.

April 3 Sunday Jazz Brunch, Ft. Lauderdale, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Free. www.fortlauderdale.gov

April 7 The Triton Bridge luncheon, noon, Ft. Lauderdale. A discussion of the issues of the day for yacht captains only. RSVP to Associate Editor Dorie Cox at dorie@the-triton.com or 954-525-0029. Space is limited.

April 9 11th anniversary Captain and Crew Appreciation Party, Sunrise Harbor Marina, Ft. Lauderdale. Hosted by Westrec. This year’s theme is Saturday Night Disco Fever.

April 13 Triton Forum, Ft. Lauderdale. The captains forum is an educational opportunity for captains only. An industry topic will be discussed by a panel of captains with expertise. RSVP is required (lucy@the-triton.com) and space is limited. www.the-triton.com

MAKING PLANSApr. 6 Triton Expo, Ft. Lauderdale

Triton Expo, Ft. Lauderdale. Join The Triton and industry

businesses at Lauderdale Marine Center from 4-8 p.m. The Expo is the place to make new connections, find old friends and enhance your career. And see the latest styles in our nautical fashion show. www.the-triton.com.

March 24-2726th annual Palm Beach Boat ShowWest Palm Beach, Fla.

$350 million worth of boats, megayachts and accessories. In-water portion of the show is on the Intracoastal Waterway along Flagler Drive. Free shuttle buses, tickets are $14. www.showmanagement.com

EVENT OF MONTH

Boat shows on both sides of globe, cleanups, competitions

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 B1�

Where have you taken your Triton recently? Send photos to editorial@the-triton.com.

If we print yours, you get a cool Triton T-shirt.

SPOTTED: Dallas, Texas / Virgin Gorda, BVI

Triton Spotters

Kirsten Tarafa, the owner of Al T. Marine Electronics in West Palm Beach, brought her Triton to Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, site of the American football championship game, the 44th Super Bowl. Her team, the Green Bay Packers, beat the favored Pittsburgh Steelers.

“I grew up 30 miles south of Green Bay, bleed green and gold, and would not have missed this game,” Tarafa wrote us about two hours before kick-off. “I am here with my sister Beth who flew in from Minneapolis to attend the game with me. Go Pack.”

The Packers get their name from the cheese making and packing industry in northern Wisconsin. That’s a foam block of cheese on her head, and if you call her a cheesehead, it’s a compliment during football season.If we weren’t Packers fans before, we are now.

Chef Peter Ziegelmeier of M/Y Rena shared this energetic shot off of Bitter End Yacht Club in Virgin Gorda, BVI. “When it’s your mind you must enlighten, don’t hesitate to pick up The Triton.” We couldn’t agree more.

www.the-triton.com March 2011Section C

Marchnetworking

C3-4Nautic and Co., and DYT, GYF

Giving service, reading minds

C5Stew must figure guests out fast

Quick and easy recipeExotic and tastes like a million C6

February networkingWith TowBoatU.S. and PCS C2

By Lucy Chabot Reed

In the middle of charter season, with the Easter holidays still eight weeks away, we were curious to learn how much the crew on a charter vessel is involved in the process of booking charters.

So we asked. Nearly 50 charter captains replied to our survey, giving us a feel for vessels from less than 80 feet to more than 160 feet.

Who obtains the most charters for your yacht?

Far and away, the majority (52.2 percent) is charter brokers as a whole. We interpret that to mean that it’s not only the personal broker working with a vessel, but all brokers looking for the

perfect fit for their clients.Among all respondents, just 20

percent said it was a specific charter broker who booked the bulk of their charters. More than a quarter had other thoughts.

“We have always used a primary brokerage house, but use every and any means to get our program in front of prospective clients,” said a captain who has run charter yachts from 141-160 feet.

“We have referrals, repeats and happy brokers who book us because they are sure of our performance,” said a captain who runs a charter yacht between 121-140 feet.

“The owner gets a lot of charters through his network of friends,” said

the captain of a charter yacht less than 100 feet.

When we crunched those numbers a bit by size, we discovered an interesting phenomenon. Among vessels from 80-100 feet, the majority (57.1 percent) said a specific broker booked most of their charters, nearly triple the results from all charter captains as a whole.

The interesting thing is that the trend didn’t hold up for vessels less than 80 feet, which – like most vessels – credit charter brokers as a whole for booking most charters.

So if brokers book at least a half of all charters, where do captains and

Charters shows, such as this one in St. Maarten, are only one way to market a charter yacht, and not an overwhelmingly popular way at that. FILE PHOTO

TRITON SURVEY: BOOKING CHARTERS

See SURVEY, page C8

Captains play a role in booking charters

After 20 years as a private chef on yachts, I had my first chance to work as a freelance charter chef recently. I joined a vessel with five other crew,

all of whom were total strangers to one another. Yet we banded together as though we had worked together for years.

As a private yacht chef, you feel some sense of job security. After just one trip, you have some idea what the boss likes and dislikes and you

can tweak your performance to excel. You have some idea what to expect. It is not a guessing game.

As a freelance chef, it’s a guessing game. You don’t know the likes and dislikes of the guests other than what’s on the preference sheets. And you really have to function as part of a team and put in that extra effort.

My experience as a freelance chef was fun while it lasted but I enjoy knowing the person I work for. I feel more comfortable knowing what they want in food. As with any job, it is what you make of it. Nothing is forever but I act like this is the last yacht owner I will work for, and I go the extra mile to accomplish that goal.

Maybe I am old fashioned in needing that sense of job security. But it was invigorating to see how total strangers can make or break the yachting experience for someone who is paying.

I must say, I was impressed, and I credit that to our experience.

Older, more experienced crew really

A foray into the land of freelance chefdom

See WAVES, page C6

Culinary Waves

Mary Beth Lawton Johnson

C� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton NETWORKING LAST MONTH: TowBoat U.S./Professional Captain’s Services

Hundreds of brokers, insurance and legal professionals, captains and crew, and industry leaders networked on the third Wednesday in February at the Yacht & Brokerage

Show in Miami Beach to raise money for Shake-A-Leg. Produced by FYBA and the Ft. Lauderdale Mariners Club, The Triton and Professional Captain’s Services were proud sponsors. PHOTOS/TOM SERIO

More than 250 yacht captains, crew and industry folks joined

us on the first Wednesday in February at the Briny Pub in Ft. Lauderdale for networking Triton-style. Sponsored by TowBoatU.S. New River, guests enjoyed great company, delicious food and tours of a tugboat and workboat. See more photos online at www.the-triton.com. PHOTOS/TOM SERIO

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 C�NETWORKING THIS MONTH: Nautic and Co.

Network with The Triton, experienced folks at Nautic and Co.On the first Wednesday in March,

The Triton is bringing its networking event to Nautic and Co. at Lauderdale Marine Center in Ft. Lauderdale.

Join us on March 2 from 6-8 p.m. The Parrot Lounge will supply the food as well as wine, beer and soda. Enjoy music from Yacht Entertainment Systems and enter a raffle for some fun prizes.

Until then, here’s some background about Nautic and Co. from managing partner Harry Markle.

Q. So tell us about Nautic and Co. What do you do?

We are a one-stop shop for all boat repairs, from the smallest to the most difficult project. We cover all areas, including painting, bottom work, fiberglass, gelcoat repairs, bimini tops, interior work, carpentry, varnish, canvas, electrical, plumbing, mechanical and sail drive service.

We can also buff the hull, clean the engine room and detail boats.

We’ve expanded our inflatable business because they can be expensive to buy, so we save our customers money

by cleaning and repairing their tenders. We can pretty much handle anything.

Q. What do you consider your specialties?

We excel in carpentry work in our custom cabinetry shop, especially teak decks, custom cabinetry and interior finishing.

We have a spray booth and do a great job with full paint jobs, touch ups and bottom paint.

We have the full ability to handle electrical and mechanical repairs and can do new installs.

We just extended a boat 36 inches and removed the sugar scoops. And we do great work on all fiberglass, from repairs to customizing a vessel. We can produce and build custom molds and modifications.

We’re the place for window and hatch repairs or replacements, and we’re a dealer for Lagoon Catamaran parts. We do their warranty work.

Q. How long has Nautic and Co. been around?

Nautic and Co. has been in business for 13 years, 10 of which have been at

Lauderdale Marine Center. The current owners bought the company about a year-and-a-half ago.

My wife and I moved from Pennsylvania and my background is as an airline pilot and certified airline mechanic.

I run the business and the money side, and I’m picking up on stuff every day. Most importantly, we’ve really hired the right people here.

Q. Tell us about the person

captains will be working with.We used to have a revolving door,

but we have it down to the best people. We’ve built a good team with the right people in the right places.

Gilles Milon is our service manager and is our expert on catamarans. That’s been his specialty for more than 10 years.

Jesse Tiplicki is our project manager. He’s been working with motor yachts for the past 20 years.

Charlie Hottenstein oversees all of our projects as the general manager, and Bryan Jenkins is our electronics troubleshooter and installer.

Q. Why would a captain chose Nautic and Co.?

Customer service is our top priority. We stand behind our work and our estimates.

Our personnel all have their maritime cards, everyone has been through the OSHA (U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration) courses, including our office personnel. We think it is important for everyone to be knowledgeable and safe.

We go above and beyond in our safety, quality and workmanship.

Q. What will 2011 bring for Nautic and Co.?

We will set the standard of the business in safety and customer service. We strive to make the captains’ and owners’ time with us a pleasurable experience, not a stressful one.

We aim to have the Nautic and Co. name associated with quality and top customer service. We now offer the convenience of 24-hour service for emergency situations.

Nautic and Co. is in Lauderdale Marine Center at 2001 S.W. 20th St., Bay 117, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., 33315. It can be reached at +1 954-523-0057 and +1 954-523-0057 and on the Web at nauticandco.com.

Markle

We excel in carpentry work in our custom cabinetry shop, especially teak decks, custom cabinetry and interior finishing.

C� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton NETWORKING THIS MONTH: Dockwise Yacht Transport and Global Yacht Fuel

On the third Wednesday of March, join The Triton as we network with the Dockwise Yacht Transport and Global Yacht Fuel in Ft. Lauderdale. Since it will be the eve of St. Patrick’s Day, expect all things green (including the beer) and festive Irish music and hors d’oeuvres around the fountain at The Quay, 1535 S.E. 17th St.

Until then, learn more about DYT from managing director Jeff Last.

Q. Tell us about Dockwise Yacht Transport.

Based in Ft. Lauderdale, DYT operates a fleet of four dedicated, semi-submersible yacht carriers featuring the unique float-on, float-off loading method.

Our parent company is Dockwise Ltd., in Breda, The Netherlands, and a leading marine contractor. We got involved in the yacht trade in 1984 using two Super Servant vessels.

In 1992, Wijsmuller Transport and Dock Express established one joint venture – United Yacht Transport – which in 1995 became DYT.

Q. How does the float-on, float-off method work?

The yacht carrier begins by taking on 9 million gallons of water in its ballast tanks, causing the ship to submerge. Once at desired depth, the DYT loading master calls in each yacht, one by one, to float in over the dock bay in its designated position. After all yachts are in place, the ship begins to pump out the water from its ballast tanks and slowly rises from the water.

While de-ballasting takes place, the divers get busy placing the prepared temporary supports upright under each yacht. When the deck is dry, welders secure the supports to the deck and the yachts are tightly fastened with nylon straps. For a more detailed description, visit www.yacht-transport.com, click “Information” then “How does it work”.

Q. In what circumstances is this method better or preferred for transporting yachts?

Since there is no lifting involved, there is less strain on the yacht and we are not limited by size or weight; as long as the yacht fits inside the dock bay (beam of up to 70 feet with the catwalk removed), we can ship it.

Q. It’s expensive to ship a yacht with your company. Why so much?

I have heard captains and owners say that the cost of taking their yacht on its own keel vs. shipping it with DYT is comparable but worth the extra expense. If you take into consideration the rising costs of fuel, wear and tear on engine and parts, the costs of

maintenance once ocean crossing is complete, the ability to give the crew a break before (or after) a busy season – all these benefits outweigh the cost consideration.

DYT operates its own fleet of ships, thus is responsible for all operational costs, resulting in slightly higher tariffs. However, we provide custom cradling, and insurance is included in the overall price, as are custom clearances for loading and unloading ports.

DYT also offers voyages via the lift-on, lift-off service to destinations not normally serviced by our “sinking” ships. Like we say, you can travel coach or business class.

Learn a little about Global Yacht Fuel from the sisters who run it, Gail and Marianne Vanstone.

Q. Tell us about GYF.

Global Yacht Fuel’s primary function is to arrange supply of fuel (and lube oil) for yachts wherever they are in the world. We are able to help captains plan the best places to stop for fuel based on fuel price as well as efficiency of the port for delivery, and we know which ports to avoid. Aside from extending credit terms to our customers, which they wouldn’t get from local suppliers, we are also able to save them money. We also know some jokes.

The company was founded by Richard Manto in 1993. He sold it six years ago to ISO Industries based in Norfolk, Va., and has since retired.

Q. How did you end up at GYF? Marianne worked on yachts as

a deckhand, then went to cooking school, returning to yachting as a chef. She later helped Richard get his new company up and running.

Gail went to work for GYF in 2001, taking over when Marianne decided to try something non-yacht related. Gail recently did an Atlantic crossing.

Marianne returned in 2006 when Richard retired and we’ve been working together ever since. We enjoy confusing customers who can’t tell us apart on the phone.

Q. How has the yacht fueling business changed the past few years?

Captains complain a lot more about the price, but in the end say “it is what it is.” We experienced a sharp decline in business in 2009, but last year was markedly improved and this year is on track to be better. The charter market seems to be holding its own, which keeps the boats moving. As long as the celebs keep vacationing, we’ll be fine.

Share some luck o’ the Irish mingling with DYT, GYF

Gail, Marianne Vanstone

Last

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 C�

Today’s world has many examples of corporate and individual high-net-worth personalities.

These groups of people often have huge estates, large yachts and private aircraft that demand exacting management skills, technical knowledge, and an understanding of professional service relationships to function smoothly.

On yachts, in particular, the level of service skill demanded is high. What does this level of service look like?

Well, as we all know, in the minds of some captains, interior service is “not rocket science”, but what is it?

The abilities a good stew must have are so much more than housekeeping skills. Service is the management of meeting and exceeding expectations.

Today’s professional yacht stews have a sophisticated knowledge of entertaining, etiquette, computers, food, cleaning products, fine collectibles, technology, security, safety, and so much more.

Today, more than ever, managing the level of service expected of high-net-worth individuals – be it on a yacht, at an estate, or on a private aircraft – is more or less a process for managing a lifestyle and creating a particular quality of life.

How does one go about managing a lifestyle such as this smoothly, effectively, and consistently? How does one meet these expectations?

For great service to exist, there must be an exchange of information between a service giver and a service receiver. The giver must know what the service standards and expectations of the receiver are.

Without this exchange of information, the art of service cannot be consistent, smooth, and effective.

But that’s exactly what professional yacht stews are expected to do. Often, we are asked to perform to the highest levels of service without ever having met the owners or guests.

How do we give the best service if

we don’t really know what the specific service standards and expectations are?

Every chief stew who has ever taken a job on a yacht where there has been no formal handover knows how this feels.

If you are lucky, there will be a “manual” of sorts, with a list of preferences and “do’s and don’ts” at the very least. But if there is no manual, you may be on your own, unless the captain and the rest of the crew can clue you in.

The fact of the matter is, there are broad generalities of personality types among people who own and charter yachts, and each type requires different service.

There are commonalities among types, but there is a lot of specific and personal information we have to sift through in order to quickly and discreetly figure out how to provide the best service once the guests are on board.

Sometimes the only common language and a system of standards to

help us out here is the preference sheet we get from the captain, manager or charter broker. It would be great is we could read a personality profile and know more about the guests, but that is not really an option.

Those in positions of authority – be they captains, charter brokers or management companies – must acknowledge that this is an almost impossible

proposition. What makes a good stew great

is the ability to quickly discern the expectations from clues available beginning from the moment guests step aboard.

Then, hopefully within just a few hours, we are operating where we want to be and giving the guests the best service experience possible.

Alene Keenan has been a megayacht stewardess for 19 years. She offers interior crew training and crew placement through Nautic Crew International as well as the workshops, seminars, and onboard training offered through her company, Stewardess Solutions (www.stewardesssolutions.com). Comments on this column are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com.

INTERIOR: Stew Cues

Stew CueS

Alene KeenAn

Yacht stews must figure out expectation levels fast to serve

For great service to exist, there must be an exchange of information between a service giver and a service receiver. Without this exchange, the art of service cannot be consistent, smooth, and effective. But that’s exactly what professional yacht stews are often expected to do.

C� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton IN THE GALLEY: Culinary Waves

Tom Yum GaiBy Capt. John Wampler

Here is a quick and easy recipe for Tom Yum Gai (chicken soup with lemongrass). Some of the exotic ingredients can be found in any Asian supermarket – itself an adventure in shopping. The prep and cooking time is about 25 minutes. Tastes like a million bucks.

Ingredients2 skinless, boneless 1/2 chicken breasts3 cups chicken stock1 fresh lemongrass stem, cut into 2-

inch lengths2-3 kaffir lime leaves, torn7 oz can of whole straw mushrooms,

rinsed and strained3 tbsp Thai fish sauce (comes in a jar)Juice of 1 large lime1/2 tsp sugar6 cherry tomatoes, halved5 fresh hot Thai chilies, broken with

pestleCilantro leaves

Put the chicken breasts in a gallon zip-top bag and beat them thin with a rolling pin. Cut into 2-inch portions and set aside.

Lightly crush the lemongrass segments to release their flavor. Set aside.

Place the chicken stock in a pot, add

the lemon grass and torn lime leaves, and bring to a slow boil over medium heat.

Add the chicken meat, mushrooms, fish sauce, lime juice and sugar. Cook slowly and uncovered for 10 minutes. Do not stir.

Add the tomatoes and chilies and cook

5 more minutes. Remove from heat. Just before serving, add cilantro leaves.

Great served on a bed of jasmine rice.

Capt. John Wampler is a freelance contract captain and frequent contributor to The Triton.

A dish such as this one offers not only culinary intrigue but also a chance to learn some new things while shopping. PHOTO/CAPT. JOHN WAMPLER

are to be cherished in yachting as they bring so much more to the table than newbies. Not to discount anyone new in yachting, especially among charter yachts, but from someone coming from both sides, as well as freelance, I must say that veteran yachties who make this seemingly glamorous job a serious career offer a lot.

The deckhand was a gentleman who was a captain but also a marine surveyor with close to 45 years under his belt. He was in better physical condition than most.

The engineer was mind-blowing, a woman with incredible tenure, going for her Y4 license.

The second stew was new and was a sponge, opting to help instead of taking a break, learning in the process.

The first stew, a 20-year veteran, knew exactly what needed to be done and how.

The captain was the most sincere, thoughtful person I had ever met on the water. He did not mind helping with dishes, doing what had to be done to keep the owner and guests happy.

See WAVES, page C12

WAVES, from page C1

Crew was a perfect mix

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 C�

Cabbage might not be the sexiest vegetable in the produce department, but it’s certainly one of the healthiest. It’s also featured prominently on the

menu March 17 for St. Patrick’s Day when it pairs with corned beef and potatoes. If you haven’t indulged in this “super food” vegetable, now is the time.

Cabbage is a cruciferous vegetable like

broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts and kale. There are many types of cabbage. The typical pale green head with its dense-packed leaves is most common and is the variety of choice for cole slaw. Germans love pickled red cabbage, an almost purple look-alike of the green type. Then there’s mellow-flavored savoy cabbage and crinkly-leafed Chinese cabbage of egg roll fame.

Cabbage has been recognized as a health food for thousands of years. Food historians quote Cato, a Roman statesman who lived from 234 to 149 B.C., as saying that cabbage will “purge wounds full of pus, and canceps, and make them well when no other treatment can accomplish it.”

Food scientists have examined cabbage down to the cellular level and have amassed a library of data about what makes this vegetable so good.

For starters, cabbage is low in calories. One cup provides only 33 calories. This serving size also contains nearly 100 percent of an adult’s daily requirement for vitamin K, nearly 50 percent of vitamin C and nearly 20 percent of dietary fiber.

Studies have shown that the fiber in cabbage has special cholesterol-lowering benefits.

Steaming cabbage, rather than eating it raw, makes it easier for cabbage’s fiber components to bind with the bile acids in our digestive tract and cause these acids to be excreted thus lowering blood cholesterol.

In general, short steaming of cabbage is better nutritionally than microwaving. Research has shown that microwaving can destroy the healthful enzymes in cabbage.

There are many other nutrients in cabbage. For example, this vegetable is a great source of mineral manganese, vitamins B6 and folate, and even omega-3-fatty acids. It’s also a good source of vitamin B1 (thiamin), B2 (riboflavin), calcium, potassium, vitamin A and magnesium. Red cabbage is an especially good source of vitamin A.

Cabbage has a distinctive aroma whether it’s cut fresh or boiled. This comes from its sulfur-containing compounds called glucosinolates, which are converted in the body to

cancer-preventative compounds that can help avert cancers of the bladder, breast, colon and prostate. Glucosinolates are also one substance that has earned cabbage juice the reputation of being beneficial for stomach ulcers.

Interestingly, different types of cabbage contain different types of glucosinolates. Therefore, you’ll get the most health benefits if you eat a variety of cabbages.

However, Savoy cabbage is an especially good source of a glucosinolate called sinigrin. This

substance has shown potent tendencies to help prevent bladder, colon and prostate cancer.

On another cooking note, slice, shred or chop cabbage and let it sit 5 to 10 minutes before incorporating it in a recipe. This allows the vegetable’s natural enzymes to work and start converting the glucosinolates into disease-preventing isothiocyanates.

Cabbage’s rich supply of vitamins C and A make it a potent source of antioxidants. What’s more is that this vegetable contains a heaping helping of polyphenols or plant-based

antioxidants as well. The antioxidant content of cabbage is another reason for its cancer preventative powers.

The beauty of cabbage is that it can be enjoyed raw or lightly cooked. Experiment beyond coleslaw and corned beef and cabbage and enjoy cabbage in salads, soups, casseroles and even blended up with other fruits or vegetables in smoothies.

Carol Bareuther is a registered dietitian and a regular contributor to The Triton. Comments on this column are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com.

NUTRITION: Take It In

Cabbage recognized as a health food for thousands of years

take It In

Carol Bareuther

C� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton TRITON SURVEY: Booking Charters

Want repeat business? ‘Always go over and above what is expected by the guests’

crew come in? Are captains expected to work on booking charters?

Nearly three-quarters said yes. The larger the vessel gets, the less likely

the captain is expected to book charters. Among vessels 140 feet and above, just a third of captains do so.

“Chartering should be a great way to offset expenses for the owner, and lucrative for the crew,” said a captain on a charter yacht of 121-140 feet. “If the owner is pretending that the yacht is too expensive to maintain unless the crew get charters, I would recommend finding another boat to work on.”

For those captains who are expected to book charters, we were curious to learn who expects this of you?

The responses were evenly split between the owner expecting it and the captain expecting it of him/herself. Only one captain said the charter company expected him to book charters.

“Always go over and above what is expected by the guests,”said a captain who has run charter yachts of 141-160 feet.

“Repeat business is the best advertising.”For those captains who do book

charters for their vessels, we wondered are you compensated for it?

Again, the answers were almost evenly split between “yes, the boss gives me a bonus (47.7 percent) and “no, it’s part of my job” (52.3 percent).

“Make sure you get the owner to agree to blocks of time when he does not want to use the yacht,” said the charter captain on a yacht larger than 160 feet who is not compensated for booking charters. “The most unreliable part of the owner-broker-crew-client chain is the owner.”

In an effort to help the charter business along, we asked captains Do you contact previous guests?

Three-quarters of captains say they reach out to previous charter guests and invite them to return, even many who aren’t compensated for it.

As for marketing the yacht, we were curious how many captains out there are involved in things such as web sites, brochures and the like. Does the yacht have a Web site?

The largest group of yachts (almost

half) have a Web page with the charter company. Nearly a third has its own Web site. A full 20 percent don’t promote their charter vessel on the Internet.

Among those yachts with a Web presence, we wondered how active the charter crew is in that.

If the yacht has a Web site, who updates it?

Half of the sites are updates by someone with the charter company the yacht is registered with. Nearly a third of sites are maintained by the company the yacht hired to create the site. In just 17.6 percent of cases do the crew maintain the Web site.

In addition to the brokers and the Web, the only other charter marketing component we asked about were boat shows. How valuable are charter shows in selling your vessel for charter?

Nearly half said they are valuable, but not crucial. The surprise here was that a full third don’t attend charter shows.

“I attended, at my own expense, the show in Genoa charter show last April/May looking for work as a commercially licensed captain with U.S. and Caribbean

charter experience,” said a captain on charter yachts less than 80 feet who doesn’t find shows valuable. “I was surprised that the show consisted of mainly vessels larger than 120 feet with only two yachts in my size category exhibited. Although I wouldn’t have expected to see the smaller, U.S.-flagged vessels over there, I was surprised that there was no representation from European charter yachts in the smaller category.”

Only one charter vessel said boat shows are the most important marketing tool it has.

“We have superb food, great service and a great boat, but as a relatively small boat (less than 100 feet) have to be careful not to oversell,” said the captain of a charter vessel that does not attend charter shows. “Some guests have come aboard expecting cruise ship service and amenities.

With those marketing numbers sort of mid-range, we were surprised at the response to this question: Do you feel there is much competition in your sector of the charter industry?

Overwhelmingly, charter captains said

yes (84.8 percent).We crunched these numbers further

to see if size played a factor here, but they didn’t. Pretty much everyone agrees there’s a lot of competition in the charter market.

“It is a hugely competitive market out there with so many yachts now reducing prices,” said a charter captain on a vessel of 141-160 feet. “It was so bad last year we lost most of the season to rock-bottom pricing and also newer yachts new to the market wanting a chunk. This year (for the upcoming summer Med season) I have booked already a week and a half, but also lost a week from my repeat clients who chartered for the past seven years. We’re getting some good enquiries coming through, though. Let’s hope they come off.”

Lucy Chabot Reed is editor of The Triton. Lawrence Hollyfield is an associate editor. Comments on this survey are welcome at lucy@the-triton.com. We conduct our monthly surveys online. All captains and crew members are welcome to participate. If you haven’t been invited to take our surveys and would like to be, register for our e-mails online at www.the-triton.com.

SURVEY, from page C1

As a captain, are you expected to work on booking charters?

Yes – 71.7%

No – 28.3%Yes, the boss gives me a bonus – 47.7%

If you land a charter, are you compensated for it?

No, it’s part of my job – 50.0%

Who obtains the most charters for a yacht?

Charter brokers as a group – 52.2%Other – 26.1%

A specific charter broker – 21.7%

The owner – 48.5%

If so, who expects this of you, primarily?

I expect it from myself – 48.5%

Charter company – 3.0%

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 C�TRITON SURVEY: Booking Charters

Want repeat business? ‘Always go over and above what is expected by the guests’

crew come in? Are captains expected to work on booking charters?

Nearly three-quarters said yes. The larger the vessel gets, the less likely

the captain is expected to book charters. Among vessels 140 feet and above, just a third of captains do so.

“Chartering should be a great way to offset expenses for the owner, and lucrative for the crew,” said a captain on a charter yacht of 121-140 feet. “If the owner is pretending that the yacht is too expensive to maintain unless the crew get charters, I would recommend finding another boat to work on.”

For those captains who are expected to book charters, we were curious to learn who expects this of you?

The responses were evenly split between the owner expecting it and the captain expecting it of him/herself. Only one captain said the charter company expected him to book charters.

“Always go over and above what is expected by the guests,”said a captain who has run charter yachts of 141-160 feet.

“Repeat business is the best advertising.”For those captains who do book

charters for their vessels, we wondered are you compensated for it?

Again, the answers were almost evenly split between “yes, the boss gives me a bonus (47.7 percent) and “no, it’s part of my job” (52.3 percent).

“Make sure you get the owner to agree to blocks of time when he does not want to use the yacht,” said the charter captain on a yacht larger than 160 feet who is not compensated for booking charters. “The most unreliable part of the owner-broker-crew-client chain is the owner.”

In an effort to help the charter business along, we asked captains Do you contact previous guests?

Three-quarters of captains say they reach out to previous charter guests and invite them to return, even many who aren’t compensated for it.

As for marketing the yacht, we were curious how many captains out there are involved in things such as web sites, brochures and the like. Does the yacht have a Web site?

The largest group of yachts (almost

half) have a Web page with the charter company. Nearly a third has its own Web site. A full 20 percent don’t promote their charter vessel on the Internet.

Among those yachts with a Web presence, we wondered how active the charter crew is in that.

If the yacht has a Web site, who updates it?

Half of the sites are updates by someone with the charter company the yacht is registered with. Nearly a third of sites are maintained by the company the yacht hired to create the site. In just 17.6 percent of cases do the crew maintain the Web site.

In addition to the brokers and the Web, the only other charter marketing component we asked about were boat shows. How valuable are charter shows in selling your vessel for charter?

Nearly half said they are valuable, but not crucial. The surprise here was that a full third don’t attend charter shows.

“I attended, at my own expense, the show in Genoa charter show last April/May looking for work as a commercially licensed captain with U.S. and Caribbean

charter experience,” said a captain on charter yachts less than 80 feet who doesn’t find shows valuable. “I was surprised that the show consisted of mainly vessels larger than 120 feet with only two yachts in my size category exhibited. Although I wouldn’t have expected to see the smaller, U.S.-flagged vessels over there, I was surprised that there was no representation from European charter yachts in the smaller category.”

Only one charter vessel said boat shows are the most important marketing tool it has.

“We have superb food, great service and a great boat, but as a relatively small boat (less than 100 feet) have to be careful not to oversell,” said the captain of a charter vessel that does not attend charter shows. “Some guests have come aboard expecting cruise ship service and amenities.

With those marketing numbers sort of mid-range, we were surprised at the response to this question: Do you feel there is much competition in your sector of the charter industry?

Overwhelmingly, charter captains said

yes (84.8 percent).We crunched these numbers further

to see if size played a factor here, but they didn’t. Pretty much everyone agrees there’s a lot of competition in the charter market.

“It is a hugely competitive market out there with so many yachts now reducing prices,” said a charter captain on a vessel of 141-160 feet. “It was so bad last year we lost most of the season to rock-bottom pricing and also newer yachts new to the market wanting a chunk. This year (for the upcoming summer Med season) I have booked already a week and a half, but also lost a week from my repeat clients who chartered for the past seven years. We’re getting some good enquiries coming through, though. Let’s hope they come off.”

Lucy Chabot Reed is editor of The Triton. Lawrence Hollyfield is an associate editor. Comments on this survey are welcome at lucy@the-triton.com. We conduct our monthly surveys online. All captains and crew members are welcome to participate. If you haven’t been invited to take our surveys and would like to be, register for our e-mails online at www.the-triton.com.

SURVEY, from page C1

No, I leave that to brokers – 22.7%

Do you contact previous guests?

Yes, I contact them and invite them to return – 77.3%

Yes, the boss gives me a bonus – 47.7%

If you land a charter, are you compensated for it?

No, it’s part of my job – 50.0%

Does the yacht have a web site?

Yes, it has a page with the charter company – 47.7%

No – 20.5%

Yes, it has its own page – 31.8%

If the yacht has a web site, who updates it?

Someone with charter company – 50.0%

Captain or crew – 17.6%

Company we hired to create

and maintain site – 32.4%

We asked respondents to share their thoughts on the best way to market a charter yacht:

l l l

Word of mouth and flyers.

l l l

Broker open houses, charter shows, Web sites and bend-over backwards for the guests.

l l l

A combination of word-of-mouth, charter brokers and captain lead marketing.

l l l

Decide first what type of clients you want to cater to and focus marketing dollars and crew services there.

l l l

Service and reputation. A happy guest means happy brokers and more business for the yacht. It’s easy mathematics.

l l l

Brokers are necessary, but the

captain and crew are what make it happen and are responsible for the yacht’s reputation.

l l l

It should be a collective effort, involving a central agent with the charter brokerage and cooperation from the owner to allow for it properly in the schedule.

The owner should also allow the captain and crew the proper budget to maintain the yacht to the standard necessary to at least be competitive in the market, without having to severely discount the rate.

l l l

Use www.superyachts.com. It eliminates the middleman.

l l l

With professional charter agencies.l l l

Have a yacht people want.

l l l

Via charter brokers. Get ’em onboard, get ’em familiar with the crew,

show ’em the boat, but make sure that there are drinks and nibbles for them.

l l l

Hotel employees, TV, magazines, and direct mail to former charter guests.

l l l

Roll up your sleeves and contact past clients. Keep in touch with them year after year. Contact other brokers often. Offer incentives.

Have regular broker showings and shmooze them a little, maybe a little cruise, appetizers, music, a little fun. You must try to keep the boat on the front lines so the brokers think of your yacht first. Maybe additional incentives for the brokers.

l l l

Crew, Crew, Crew. Have the right attitude with the guests at all times, and if one crew doesn’t perform, push him behind scenes and keep smiling. Work to please the guests as a challenge and not only for the tip. And finally, don’t undersell your charter rate. The guests get what they pay for.

‘The captain and crew are what make it happen’

C10 March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton CAREER NEWS: E-mail scams / resumes

By Bob Howie

Don’t people want jobs? From pouring over resumes while trying to decide who to turn loose with a $30 million jet and a few billion in my company’s liability, I’m not so sure.

They say pilot logbooks and resumes rank as some of the best fiction ever written and I’m beginning to believe it. Poor spelling and bad grammar are often combined with “There I was…” stories, all of which is certainly not what is being sought.

Job markets are tight. For every flying job, there are at least 100 (or more) applicants. But, like the recent article in The Triton about freelancers and honestly representing their availability, there’s something to be said, too, about honestly representing your resume.

In aviation – and, of course, yachting – where safety- and security-sensitive issues are commonplace, we are taking

ever-increasing care in the hiring of flight crews … even those we know (or, once-upon-a-time knew.) Backgrounds checks including credit reports, criminal histories, chats with former employers, friends and references are common.

Driving offenses involving drugs or alcohol, misdemeanors other than Class C (speeding, parking tickets), felony convictions, dings on a pilot’s certificate resulting in a suspension, all instantly disqualify a candidate. A prospective new-hire was surprised a domestic violence arrest kicked him off the list, another claimed college degrees he didn’t have and then there was that

guy who claimed to be a former Navy SEAL … but, wasn’t.

Social networking sites can doom a prospective new-hire’s chances, too. Ill-conceived postings can be revealed despite a site’s so-called settings because a 12-year-old chewing on a banana can hack privacy settings, revealing a person’s entire party history.

Having a good time isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but being recognized by high-net worth, affluent and typically well-educated clients as the pilot

wearing the grass skirt, coconut bra and lamp shade with a rum punch in each hand at the Bahamian bikini beach

party doesn’t instill confidence.It’s not obvious things that can trip

people up. Neither is it unusual for prospective new-hires to put the very best spin on their resumes because, after all, the product they are trying to sell is themselves, so a reasonably varnished resume is to be expected.

It’s the little things, though, that pile up to become insurmountable obstacles.

For instance, someone who began flying 10 years ago isn’t going to have 15,000 hours; nobody flies, on average, 1,500 hours a year for a decade. Airline pilots are limited to 1,200 hours annually and another 300 tacked on top means someone isn’t eating or sleeping.

People who have acquired expertise over time instantly can recognize those who claim to possess the same, but actually don’t. The giveaways are subtle.

Don’t fall into the trap of claiming something that’s clearly not true.

In the interview, a prospective new-hire who explains how nothing bad is ever their fault suggests an inability to accept responsibility and to hold themselves accountable; fatal flaws, to be sure, especially if a captain’s post is being sought.

Job seekers need to be honest; just be themselves. An interview board knows the candidate can be nervous and no one discounts the stress in trying to put a best foot forward in leaving that all-important good first impression.

A relaxed, honest prospective new-hire who convinces the interview board he or she would seamlessly fit in well within the company and easily contribute to its success will walk away with the job every time.

Bob Howie is assistant chief pilot with Wing Aviation Charter Services in Houston, Texas. He spent 13 years as a writer with the Houston Chronicle, and is a lifelong boat owner. Comments on this essay are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com.

Having a resume reviewed by peers or a mentor might catch little things that can trip you up in an interview. FILE PHOTO

Want to lose a job opportunity? Turn your resume into a piece of fiction

By Dorie Cox

E-mail-based employment scams have been teasing yacht crew in a variety of forms the past few months as Internet spammers continue to learn about the industry, using the names of reputable and well-known companies as their latest method of operation.

Crew reported questionable job offer e-mails in three recent scams.

1. A short e-mail simply requesting a CV. The e-mail has no salutation and includes several irregular features. The names of the e-mail sender (michaelkent) and letter author (Jenny Ward) are different.

The sender’s e-mail address ends in www.egginternational.com, which does

not appear to be an authentic domain name or company in the industry and the job offer does not include a company name or address.

2. An e-mail that appears to be sent from Edmiston and Company, the Monaco- and London-based yacht brokerage, management and placement company. Scammers get money by visa processing fees, for a nonexistent job.

3. An e-mail inviting the recipient to work on a new year-round U.K.-flagged passenger ship using the subject line “Yacht Employment Available On Greenwich Yacht Club”.

This fraudulent offer included inconsistent and irregular names and language. For example, the subject line mentions Greenwich Yacht Club,

a legitimate organization, but uses Greenwich Yacht Group and Greenwich Yacht Hotel in the body.

The e-mail contained multiple misspellings, improper punctuation and capitalization, and incorrect grammar, which are always clues that tell crew to investigate further.

With the prevalance of predatory and illegal scams, crew can guard against financial loss and personal information violations by watching for a few tell-tale signs frauds may contain:l no salutationl mismatched names of the e-mail

sender and letter authorsl no letterhead or searchable

company name or addressl unsolicited offers (usually frauds)

l inconsistent and irregular names and languagel multiple misspellings, improper

punctuation and capitalization, and incorrect grammarl being sent from seemingly

personal e-mail addresses instead of company e-mail addressesl a request for money or personal

information, including a CV or resumeCrew can report issues and seek help

on several resources including www.spamhelp.org, spam.abuse.net and www.411phonesearch.co.uk

Dorie Cox is a staff reporter and associate editor with The Triton. Comments on this story are welcome at dorie@the-triton.com.

E-mail employment scams continue to invade inboxes

The Triton www.the-triton.com March 2011 C11

The following workout incorporates the use of a BOSU, a balance trainer of molded plastic with a weighted rubber base and a stability ball. This provides

an unstable surface, challenging your balance while performing the strength exercises. It is best to choose dumbbells of a lighter weight when first starting to work on an unstable surface. Complete three sets of 15-20 repetitions

Circuit 1: Up and over

Stand with your right leg on the BOSU, left leg on the side. Push off of your right leg, bringing your body “up and over” as you land on the other side with your left leg on the BOSU, right leg on the ground. Push off of your left leg to land back where you started to complete one repetition. As you advance, try to make the transition from side to side as quickly as possible.

Balancing bicep curls

Stand on the BOSU, feet shoulder width apart, arms at your sides, holding a dumbbell in each hand. Turn your palms forward and curl the dumbbells up to shoulder height, keeping a neutral wrist throughout the motion. Slowly lower the dumbbells back to starting position to complete one repetition.

Balancing tricep extensionsStand on the BOSU, feet shoulder

width apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand. Slightly hinge forward at the waist, keeping the neck and spine aligned, bend your elbows to a 90-degree angle and keep them as high as

you can. Simultaneously extend both arms behind you, making sure not to move your upper arms. Slowly return to starting position for one repetition.

Unstable squatsStand on the BOSU, arms at your

sides, feet shoulder width apart with a slight bend in your knees. Slow and controlled, lower your body as if to sit in a chair, not letting the knees cross over the toes. Raise your arms to shoulder height. Push through your heels to raise to starting position for one repetition.

Plank to push-up

Place both hands on the BOSU, extend your legs behind you, and tighten your abdominals as you hold your beginning push-up position. Lift your right hand off the BOSU, and lower to place your right elbow on the BOSU, repeating this movement with the left arm. Tighten your abdominals as you hold your plank position. Reverse the movement, bringing your body from the elbows back to your hands for one repetition.

Step touchFace the BOSU and place your right

foot on it, left foot on the ground. Quickly switch feet. Do this for one minute and speed up your movement as you advance.

Circuit 2:Oblique twists

Sit on the BOSU, bend your knees, keep your legs together and your heels on the ground. Hold a dumbbell at chest level and balance. Twist from the waist to the left and right for 15-30 seconds.

Side-lying balance

Lie on your side so your left hip is

in the middle of the BOSU. Bend your left elbow and place your arm on the ground (elbow directly below your shoulder). Lift your legs, keeping the right on top of the left and at the same height as your hips. Your body should be completely straight. Hold this position for as long as you can. Repeat on the other side.

High plank

Flip the BOSU over, keeping the blue side on the ground. Place your hands on each side where the handles are, extend both legs behind you, abdominals strong, hips up. Hold this plank position as long as you can. For an added challenge, move the BOSU from one side to another while holding your plank position. Repeat three times

Beth Greenwald received her master’s degree in exercise physiology from Florida Atlantic University and is a certified personal trainer. She conducts both private and small group training sessions in the Fort Lauderdale area. Contact her at +1 716-908-9836 or bethgreenwald@hotmail.com. Comments on this column are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com.

FITNESS: Keep It Up

Challenge your balance while performing strength exercises

keep It up

Beth Greenwald

C1� March 2011 www.the-triton.com The Triton PERSONAL FINANCE: Yachting Capital

Does this happen all the time on yachts where the captain hires seemingly unknown crew to fill a void for a short time? Not always. This crew really impressed me.

If you haven’t tried it yet, all yacht chefs should try the freelance charter route at least once.

Perhaps in no other setting is your reputation on the line. Granted, lots of short-term jobs don’t look good on a resume, but if you can define yourself then your career is in the right direction and the sky is the limit.

You gain experience this way. If

you are in a sterile environment and the scenery – meaning the taste buds – never changes, then you might not know how it works on other yachts.

I enjoyed my stint on a charter yacht, and I bring back to private yachts a new appreciation for teamwork.

There is a big yachting world out there. Go discover what you have not done.

Mary Beth Lawton Johnson is a certified executive pastry chef and Chef de Cuisine and has worked on yachts for 20 years. (www.themegayachtchef.com) Comments on this column are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com.

WAVES, from page C6

New experiences are enriching

Most have heard the terms stocks and bonds. Let’s agree to a quick definition of these products.

Stocks are, in short, a certificate of ownership in a corporation and are typically the last in line when it comes to liquidation of a company.

Bonds are like a note or a mortgage that is collateralized by an asset of some kind. A

little more information about bonds helps to better understand them as an investment. Companies and governments use bonds as a way to raise money to pay for a project or building. Bonds can be sold individually or institutionally.

Most people invest in bonds through mutual funds but some are sold individually. I want to walk you through a process that shows how a church bond comes to life.

A church is a commercial building similar to any other commercial building and can be used as collateral on a loan. Most banks will not make a loan on a church because having to foreclose on a church would be terrible publicity. And some of the bank’s customers may be members of that church. You can see how easily a revolt against the bank could happen, especially in a small town.

There are a few companies that specialize in developing church bonds. Just like any bank, these companies must do their due diligence to make sure the church can pay back the loan.

These types of bonds typically require that at least a quarter of the money comes from church parishioners. In other words, the bond

requires that church members loan money to their church through these bonds. This helps ensure that at least the church members believe in their church’s survival. This makes it a more comfortable investment.

Bonds are not a high-yield investment. All bonds are different, but church bonds typically yield anywhere from 5 to 8 percent, depending on whether you purchase a six-month bond or a 20-year bond.

This is the time of year that most people receive their investment statements. It is a good time to review them with a financial adviser. Don’t procrastinate on this important part of planning your retirement.

Business owners and captains are aware that you have a better chance of reaching a goal or destination that is planned.

Information in this column is not intended to be specific advice for anyone. You should use the information to help you work with a professional regarding your specific financial goals.

Capt. Mark A. Cline is a chartered senior financial planner. He is a partner in Capital Marine Alliance in Ft. Lauderdale. Comments on this column are welcome at +1-954-764-2929 or through www.capitalmarinealliance.net.

YaChtIng CapItal

MArK A. Cline

Church bonds: unique way to broaden your portfolio

Bonds are not a high-yield investment. All bonds are different, but church bonds typically yield anywhere from � to � percent, depending on whether you purchase a six-month bond or a �0-year bond.

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