Also, deliveries often are made at the beginning or tail end of sailing seasons, when prevailing weather discourages people from volunteering. In the northeastern United States, for example, deliveries to the Caribbean occur in late October and early November so that boats can complete the northern autumn sailing season and be in warmer climes for either the owners private use or for use in the charter trade. May. In late fall and early spring, winter gales are frequent as fast-moving lows march steadily across the continental U.S. toward the Atlantic. The bottom line is that, when ships complements are small, any warm body aboard is going to work his tail off. Often this means confronting challenges one has little confidence in meeting.
Time is money for delivery skippers.
The more time they spend in port, the more money comes out of their pockets and the fewer deliveries they can fit into a season. For this reason, to crew they may delegate tasks that may be beyond their level of experience. Every time I land in a tropical port to sign on as crew, I savor the tropical scents and sounds. The prevailing stimulus-response pattern has me salivating for the nearest waterfront bar and a rum punch. Drool notwithstanding, before I have stowed my gear I am often unceremoniously deployed over the side with mask and fins to check the bottom, shaft, wheel, impellers, and thru-hulls.