Off to Sea the Wizard: A Crew Change..

Our crew Mark is leaving us for another!

June 1, 2013
Opportunity knocks!
A lot can happen in 24 hrs! Our crew guy, Mark has decided to “take an opportunity” and deliver another boat to Tahiti! It’s a long story, but worth explaining….
Several weeks ago when we landed here at Taiohae Bay we met many other cruisers who had just finished the passage across the Pacific. One unlucky story was from s/v Compass Rosey, whose owner was seasick the whole way over and had to check into the hospital upon arrival to get re-hydrated. His crew ‘jumped ship” and he has been stranded here looking for another crew or captain to take him through to Tahiti. This is where Mark comes into the picture…

Mark has wanted to find work as an ETO (Electrical Technical Officer) on a large mega-yacht and so with resume ready, he is open to other position opportunities. We knew this from the start of inviting
him as crew on our pacific passage with Wizard. While this is not the mega yacht job he has been searching for, it is a responsible position and worth the time to gather more experience being in charge of the boat. It’s a three-week passage to Tahiti. Then he will “jump ship” for s/v Honu. Susan and Craig have asked for his services to install an autopilot and to help them sail through the South Pacific.

While this decision is being made…we meet up with a young couple, Rob and Bri who are soliciting for crew to Tahiti…and another couple, Ben and Sarah sailing on s/v Kyanos (we met Ben way back in Cat Harbor, Catalina) anyway, we enjoy meeting both…now, we all are sharing “What comes next in your adventure…?” over coffee on Wizard. This is how is goes...
-Rob and Bri are “jumping ship” and asking other boats for crew positions…
-Ben and Sarah just lost their crew, so may be interested…
-Mark is waiting on decision if he will be accepted as delivery crew for Compass Rosey...
-We decide to ask Rob and Bri to be our crew IF Mark goes...
-Ben and Sarah decide to ask Rob and Bri to be THEIR crew...

The plot thickens for a day as all members of the cast play out the “ crew chess” game! Who will be the winners?!
In the end, Mark accepts crew/delivery position for s/v Compass Rosey,
Rob and Bri accept crew positions onboard s/v Kyanos and s/v Wizard is now crew-less and alone!

We will miss Mark as he as been a fantastic, helpful, knowledgeable addition to our sailing adventure, but we know he has to move on for his own good!