Date: 06/08/2011
Latitude: 37* 51'.4 N
Longitude: 049* 54'.8 W
Distance to Go: 1157 miles
Weather: Fresh Breeze, Overcast
Title: Wednesday, day 7 at sea.

Another nice day of sailing. The sky is partly cloudy. We have 1 reef in the main and the Genoa about 25%. The boat is handling very well.

I was giving some thought to the dynamics of the relationship between crew and captains today. In the old days, when all sailing was commercial, the captain of a ship was the ultimate authority and discipline was very harsh.

In today's recreational environment, the skipper is legally responsible for his crew but has no legal authority over them. If a crew member doesn't want to do something the skipper wants him to do, the skipper has no leverage other then to throw the offender off the boat at first opportunity. I've talked to other skippers and they have taken on crew who were just trying to get a free ride. Once you are on passage, what can you do?

So today's skipper must be a real people person in order to get his crew to do his bidding. A heavy handed approach will just not work.