‘Below Deck’: These Yachties Were Fired Because They Were Too Green for the Show
Below Deck can be sink or swim for yachties who are new to the industry. And while some newbies were quick to learn on the job, others simply didn’t have enough experience or drive to make it work.
A handful of crew members were fired on the show simply because they weren’t able to cut it. They tried their best but the captain, unfortunately, had to replace them with someone who could perform to a higher standard. So who went home because they needed more experience?
Andrew Sturby lied on his resume
Captain Lee Rosbach and bosun Eddie Lucas from Below Deck Season 2 could tell something was off with deckhand Andrew Sturby. “Andrew was not really equipped to handle his position on Ohana,” Rosbach blogged about having to fire Sturby.
“Although he means well, this is not a learning format, it’s not train as you go or an apprenticeship program. We have an obligation to the guests and to each other to perform to certain standards. Neither the standards nor obligations were met, and even though he committed the mortal sin of lying to the Captain, he still got a second chance.” Sturby fudged his resume to make it look like he had more experience than he actually had.
Shane Coopersmith admitted he didn’t join the show because he was interested in yachting
Deckhand Shane Coopersmith went home on Below Deck Season 8 because he wasn’t experienced in yachting and was more concerned about sharing his message of sustainability.
Coopersmith recently shared that producers told him the job was grueling, but then he blamed them for portraying him in a poor light.
“I did not understand the archetype that I was going to be while I was on the boat,” he said on the Behind the Velvet Rope with David Yontef podcast. “And then basically by the second episode of the season, I saw the archetype that they’re putting me in.”
“I was a little disappointed,” he continued. “You know, they like kind of, they did a little bit of the sustainability, at the first episode. Then they kind of ditched that. Then they just decided to put me as the lazy kid that doesn’t work hard, which is so incredibly false.”
Chef Kiko needed more superyacht chef experience
Chef Hindrigo “Kiko” Lorran from Below Deck Mediterranean Season 5 quickly became a fan favorite but left the boat after a disastrous “Vegas night” dinner. Captain Sandy Yawn said in an Instagram live that she supported him, but he needed more experience.
“He was in way over his head,” she said. “He tried. We all supported him. I had to bring the deck team in. They work all day they’re in the sun. They do their very, very best. And they come in because we’re a team. And they always say, yes, captain. They know because why? Because I’m always going to have their back.”
For his part, Lorran said Yawn put doubt in his mind. “And actually when I came to the flybridge, all the cameras were already there, and she was there,” he said on an Instagram Live. “And she was like, ‘You don’t know [how to] plate. You don’t know how to do this. I came from a small boat and you’re here.’”
“That’s not nice,” he added. “And I was already freaking out with the cameras. Am I good enough? So that was the reason that I was already f**ked up. That moment, that exact moment, f**ked my mind.”
Chef Mila Kolomeitseva wasn’t ready for a superyacht
Chef Mila Kolomeitseva from Below Deck Med Season 4 was also cut loose after continuous fails on charter. She created meals using prepackaged ingredients and the guests complained. Chef stew Hannah Ferrier refused to bring one of Kolomeitseva’s dishes (nachos) to the guests because it looked so bad.
“I wouldn’t say I was hopeful, because I kind of think you know what you know,” Ferrier told Bravo’s The Daily Dish. “Watching Mila’s food for the first few charters, I didn’t really have a whole heap of hope that it was gonna go from that to Michelin, you know?”
