64 Viking sinks in gulf

That should be a career ender.

How do you "not notice" a giant freakin' oil rig?!?

This was discussed ad nauseum on the web when it happened. Seems the captain and crew didn't notice they were drfting too close while fishing.

I don't fish, so what do I know... Fishing guys brains seem to be wired differently, that I know how else would they spend 100 times per pound what fish cost at the market

Pascal. Is this the same one that got "piggy backed" on to the thread about the 64 Viking that was brought to Fla. with a couple of 250hp O/B bolted on her transom?

I fish around these rigs all the time. The fish are always on the up current side of the rig. The boat comes first. When we hook up I always pull away because you need to get fish away from rig anyway.

Me thinks the "Sauce" referred to in the name might not be the Tabasco type but might be more along the line of the kind referred to in "hitting the sauce."

Well, at least no one killed. Wonder how many tens of thousands of boats there are at the bottom of the seas. Bunches.

How would drifting into an oil rig, puncture the hull on a 64' Viking???? It seems like it would take a lot faster impact to sink a Sportfish. I think they hit the throttles after they hit the sauce.......

It's not. And there is no indication anyone was drunk on board at the time of the incident. And to imply such without cause or knowledge is in poor taste.

Sometimes you just have to make a joke out of a bad situation, and sometimes a boat's name (or the captain's actions) can open that opportunity. I don't think Belle implied anything. Besides, I'd sometimes rather I had the excuse of being drunk rather than have to blame my dumb moves on my own stupidity.

I think Pascal probably nailed it, fishermen are a different breed. The words "fish on" tends to wipe all other thoughts from their brains. My neighbor took his 23' Commander CC out to the canyon fishing with a bunch of his buddies, and spent 3 days tied to a buoy in 6' to 8' seas, came home with a half dozen fish and was happy. To me that's insane. But say "let's go fishing" and he'd be right back out, most likely without even checking the weather.

And sure drifting into a rig could sink a boat, depending on conditions. The first hit could put you in dire straits, and from there you're in a mixing bowl and the rig is the blades. Fiberglass will give long before the rig. Would not want to be the captain having to explain what happened. I've run a few fishing boats (even though I'm not a fisherman). The mates job was to put me on the fish and tell me what he wanted me to do. My job was to do it, and to protect the boat and passengers. Seems to me that the captain may have been paying more attention to the mate's job than his own.

In today's PC society to imply the Captain was drunk, stoned, stupid, lacking common sense, inexperienced or just plain clueless is inappropriate. It is obvious the boat's trolling valves malfunctioned, it was foggy or the waves were too big hiding the platform from view.

With no relation whatsoever to this particular incident, I wonder if "drifting into a rig" and "driving into a rig" make any difference regarding liabilities/insurance claims?

"The laugh is always on the loser"

Your guys are bad !!

Sorry, but everything that happens on or to a boat is the captain's responsibility. He starts guilty and has to work himself out from there.

P.S. Need I tell you what I think of "today's PC society"? People need to grow thicker skins. In my mind this captain screwed up until I hear differently, and those who are familiar with me know that I tend to give captains the benefit of the doubt because of their training. This time I'll wait for more facts before letting him off the hook. And if you want to avoid thoughts, jokes or speculation about "sauce" being involved, be more careful about what you name your boat.

You're overcomplicating matters. Not getting into situations which beg for those speculations > boat's name

I think he was being sarcastic.

The full story is on the web for anybody to read if they take a minute to Google it. The owner of the boat has posted it on THT.

The captain was fighting a fish and lost track of how the current was pulling him into the rig. Not an uncommon thing to happen around structure. The boat was not a local one to the area so no telling how experience the captain was with fighting fish around structure like that on a rough day with current running. That said, no matter how you cut it the captain F-ed up. But he and his crew did manage to get everybody off a sinking boat and into the life raft safely. And based on what the owner posted he is still respected by the owner. Which must say something about what he had accomplished up to that point. Bad situation for all involved no doubt.

See now I recognized the sarcasm in Belle's comment, but not in Sunchaser's. Such is humor.

The owner's relevant comment are:

"The captain got tunnel vision and underestimated the speed the wind/waves were pushing us towards the rig. He had his eyes on the cockpit. He wanted this fish. He backed away from the rig."

"The captain wanted that fish in the boat, and lost track of the surroundings."

"My captain is in a tough position. He is a great guy- honest and hardworking. Very capable and having safely navigated this boat well over a thousand miles in the last two months. Tough."

Very tough position indeed. We don't get to make mistakes like that twice. This could easily have cost lives. His career should be over, and he may well have to answer to the insurance company. Nothing he did before matters. He was careless. It may have only been for a minute, but it was the wrong minute.

Please chill dudes. I'm sorry you felt my joke on the name of the boat was in poor taste. I wasn't meaning to imply that drunkenness or drugs or in any way to know the cause of the accident. Reading the story I still don't know. I hope no alcohol or drugs or tabasco was involved. (Oh God, I shouldn't have put the tabasco or I'll be flaunted for making light of a bad situation again).

Sounds like regardless of the reasons a bad mistake was made. I'm afraid sometimes we don't get second chances but that sure seems harsh. I'd hate to even list all the mistakes I've made in my life including on the roads when I was lucky it didn't have serious consequences.

Ultimately it's like hitting a parked car though. Doesn't matter if you just lost focus, were putting on your makeup, were distracted by the girl in the other car, were drunk, it's your fault and not the cars you hit.

Also, please understand I'd have made no joke over the name or any other aspect had I not known the six passengers were all ok. I quite imagine one day they'll even make jokes about it, if they haven't already. I like humor in all situations and don't mean to offend. In the most serious car accident I've ever been in was with a girlfriend, we were run into and off the road and flipped a couple of times before coming to a stop. I asked if she was ok. We were both shocked we didn't have even a scratch. Then I said, "Bet you can't do that again." When the people got to our car they were shocked that we were both ok, but more shocked that we were giggling and laughing. It didn't really hit me until that night in bed when my hubby held me even tighter than normal. Then I cried.

In no way am I making light of an accident. I'm glad all are ok. However, I do remain on record as thinking the name is very open to humor. Speaking as someone named Belle who has heard the trillion jokes over my name, I get that.