WHETHER YOU’RE STEPPING ABOARD SOMEONE ELSE’S YACHT, OR WANT A CO-SKIPPER’S SUPPORT ON YOURS, ELAINE BUNTING HAS KEY ADVICE ON HOW TO BE A VALUABLE FIRST MATE
Our image of the lone sailor as the hero of the high seas, battling the elements in isolation, does all the second-in-commands of the world a disservice. Every skipper needs a dependable first mate.
Even solo sailors rely on someone ashore, somewhere, and those professional solo racing skippers that make the front covers usually have a whole technical team on call 24/7 to support and help them when equipment malfunctions or things go wrong.
With a full crew, a first mate or second in command (call them what you will) may run the watch system, share in the decision making process, and help with repairs or problem solving. They can act as a co-skipper, making independent decisions on their watch, or have a specialised role such as navigation or weather routing. There is no template for this position. Ideally, a first mate brings complementary skills, but most importantly they are someone competent to take over should something happen to the skipper. A good first mate allows the skipper to sleep properly and be fully rested should something unforeseen happen. They have the skipper’s back. If that’s to be your role, what’s the best way to play it? If you are a couple sailing two-handed, how do you divide up the tasks, and who should be in charge of what? And if you are a skipper in your own right, perhaps with a yacht you are used to running your way, what is the most effective way of working cooperatively with another owner-skipper?
AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY
German skipper Torsten Jonas is a very experienced offshore sailor. He has lived on his Hanse 575 Seaside on and off since 2013. He crossed the Atlantic in 2015, sailed back to Europe via the Azores in 2016, took part in the ARC in 2018 and crossed most of the Pacific with the World ARC in 2019. His intention was to sail as far as Fiji and stay there for a year.
Then the pandemic happened. Eventually, Jonas managed to get to New Zealand but the boat was stuck in Whangarei for over two years until he was able to ship Seaside back to Palma in July 2022.
This January, he’ll leave St Lucia with the intention of sailing all the way round the world, helped by a rota of family and friends. After over 100,000 miles on Seaside, he knows the boat inside out. So what he is looking for as a second in command, he says: “is one crew who is fit enough to do the foredeck, who can be competent on the night watches and w
