[Ken Bracewell]

I haven't had the opportunity to read the article or view the pictures however, by reading between the lines, I think I understand the question at hand. Correct me if I'm wrong- NYCAP is asking if yacht captains are becoming too close to the guests/owners, thus blurring the lines of professionalism and safety. The answer is a simple NO.

One often overlooked fact is that we yacht captains are in the business of pleasure-boating (the key word being pleasure, not boating), so if our guests aren't getting the utmost joy from their boats, we aren't doing our jobs well. Let's face it- a great part of a yacht captain's job is hospitality management.

A wise older captain and I were discussing what advice we could offer to up-and-coming yacht crew geared toward becoming captains. I recall him stating that a young crewman should first go to engineering school for 3 years before learning hotel management for 2 years. After such time, the candidate should spend 2 or 3 weeks learning to drive a boat!

While this is certainly an exaggeration, the qualification to job ratios are certainly in-line with real world applications. I'm not suggesting that we can take any engineer or hotel manager and turn them into a great captain. I am pointing out the fact that you can't take any captain and turn him into a yacht captain (have you seen the Deadliest Catch?). There is a fine balance in order for success.

I should also acknowledge that this balance will be different for every yacht and owner. When I was a young captain I had one owner on a 160 footer repeatedly tell me that I should be more stand-offish with the charter guests and not be so social with them. It took me a year to figure out that this isn't the way in which I operate at my best and his wasn't the right job for me (nor for the other 6 captain he went through in a few years). I've since learned that the interview process is a two way street and I have subsequently found jobs that have allowed me to utilize all of my strengths.

I have retained the respect and friendship of several past employers and charter guests (some are amongst my best friendships). The key is knowing how to draw the line between friendship and professionalism. This could accurately be described as similar to the balance when I take my friends out on my own boat; there is time for fun and time for safety (always time for both). I think much of it is demeanor and how authority (term used loosely) is presented.

Just my 2 cents...