A true story about poor judgment, safety, and responsibility at sea

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What happens when safety becomes entertainment?

In charter sailing, we see a bit of everything — inexperience, accidents, unexpected weather. But sometimes, what we see is more than just a mistake. It’s a complete misunderstanding of responsibility at sea.

This is one of those stories.

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The call from base

Last summer, on a Monday, one of our boats returned to base.
The guests reported a problem: “The gennaker halyard is tangled around the mast.”

My son met them at the dock and sent me a photo.
Looking closely, I noticed something unusual — at the end of the halyard, there was a piece of wood tied to it.

Something was wrong.

I opened our AIS tracking system and checked their route.
I was right. In the bay of Luka, just a few dozen meters from shore, the boat had been doing figure-eights.

They had lifted someone on the halyard — and spun the boat in circles while motoring.

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“But we saw people do it on YouTube”

When I arrived at the marina, I spoke with the skipper. He wasn’t a beginner — he had years of experience.

He explained that the guests asked to be lifted, and that he’d seen others doing it on YouTube.
Then he added:

“It’s a new generation. You have to follow the trends.”

I told him clearly:

“Playing with someone’s life is never a trend.
You’re responsible first for their safety — not their entertainment.”

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What they didn’t understand

• The person on the halyard was in real danger — if it snapped or failed, they’d fall into the water, or worse.
• The engine and rudder were under stress, towing a swinging human in motion.
• They used the same halyard we use to climb the mast — compromising safety for future use.
• They risked their lives, the boat, and ours — all for a moment of fun.

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Our response

We didn’t shout.
We didn’t argue.
We didn’t fix the problem right away.

Instead, we left the boat in port for two full days before touching the tangled halyard.
Not to punish — but to let them think.

And even then, they didn’t truly understand what they had done.

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Final thought

Just because you’ve seen something online, doesn’t mean it’s smart — or safe — to copy.
As a guest, you trust the skipper.
As a skipper, your first job is safety. Always.

This isn’t a game.
It’s the sea.
And mistakes at sea can cost more than just money.