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For context, I was a private yacht chef for 7 years. On long legs of a trip I had to hold watch at the helm for 3 or 4 hour shifts while everyone else rested fo

For context, I was a private yacht chef for 7 years. On long legs of a trip I had to hold watch at the helm for 3 or 4 hour shifts while everyone else rested for their watch. Staying awake while using auto pilot was a special type of mental anguish.

taf2 3y ago
I did delivers up and down the Atlantic in 2000s I remember it being awesome. Granted I was 20 and like the time we got too close to a us aircraft carrier and they launched a helicopter that did a fly over to check us out that was pretty great. We also always had lines out to catch fish and let me tell you when that line caught something didn’t matter if it was your shift or not it was “fish on” everyone jumping out of their bunks to help. Best fish tacos ever. I do remember the captain could be pass out drunk and still dock the 70 footer without issue and then stumble below to pass out. But yeah we slept a lot too but underway maybe 6-7 so plenty of time to fix or react big difference from an airplane or even autopilot car
- dataviz1000 3y ago
  We passed an aircraft carrier going up the East Coast while they were doing exercises. They radioed us and made it clear not to come close to the ship. I have video of fighter jets doing low passes over our yacht every 15 minutes or so using us as a practice target. Going South once, as we came towards the inlet at Fernandina Beach on the Florida, Georgia line, a nuclear submarine was leaving port. I was at the helm in the afternoon while everyone else was sleeping. Good thing I was awake because we were met with the Coast Guard helicopter with a mounted machine gun pointed at me and a Coast Guard response (defender class) boat with a .50-caliber machine gun also fixed on me while they sat off our bow. I communicated with them on the radio; they said I should hold my position and not move. The sub came out with two large ships on each side with blast shields on the each ship.
  - tasuki 3y ago
    This is all very interesting and completely foreign to me! > Coast Guard helicopter with a mounted machine gun pointed at me and a Coast Guard response (defender class) boat with a .50-caliber machine gun also fixed on me while they sat off our bow. Why'd they do that? > they said I should hold my position and not move. Why? > The sub came out with two large ships on each side with blast shields on the each ship. ...why?
    - manfre 3y ago
      > why? Safety and security. A small boat can be a threat and cause damage to a larger boat if you let it get close enough. Small boats can easily capsize if they get too close to a larger boat.
    - dataviz1000 3y ago
      I have be boarded by Coast Guard while entering US territorial waters. They will line up all boats moving from Bahamas towards Florida and have them hold speed and direction. Then they push an inflatable boat onto the stern and board with about 6 people all armed with fully automatic rifles. Mostly, they look under the floor boards for drugs and make sure the registration and documents are correct. The Coast Guard does not mess around. When a $2,000,000,000 Ohio class submarine carrying ballistic missiles is most vulnerable leaving port moving towards water deep enough to dive in. The Coast Guard is tasked with keeping all potential threats away. The ships on the side would protect the submarine from RPG and similar attacks while the submarine is surfaced.
- auselen 3y ago
  > captain could be pass out drunk and still dock the 70 footer without issue Brings up memories… This was same with my father, he stopped drinking later but when I was a teenager and stuck somewhere after midnight I would call home and he would say “sure buddy” and come pick me up. On the way back his eyes were almost closed and sometimes we would joke about how the car knows about the roads and can go way back home itself. He is too old now and actually has a 12 meter boat which can’t dock himself alone.
wlesieutre 3y ago
Like the “mostly self driving” car systems where the driver is expected to pay attention well enough to take over if needed
- theoreticalmal 3y ago
  This is the worst of both worlds, I would (and do) rather just drive “manually”
  - dzhiurgis 3y ago
    Having done both, there’s just no going back to boat or car without autopilot. Definitely slept a bit while doing night passage (alcohol). Would be impossible in a car given how much driver monitoring is out there.
  - throwawaaarrgh 3y ago
    Driving cross country in a car is actually the worst when you're in stop and go traffic, or cars keep slowing down and then speeding up. I can't wait to get my hands on adaptive cruise control because I get so aggravated and tired from having to shift and adjust speed. If I can just sit in one position and listen to comedy podcasts and audio books I do so much better
    - Sammi 3y ago
      I finally got a car with adaptive cruise control and lane assist a couple of years ago. It is the best. Driving feels relaxing. I actually feel less fatigued. I can just listen to music /podcasts /audiobooks and not care about how others are driving. Feels like sitting in the passenger seat and watching the road. I wouldn't feel safe if I wasn't listening to something that kept me engaged though. I would totally nod off.
      - wlesieutre 3y ago
        I don’t have good “lane centering” but knowing that it has the lane departure warning and will automatically bounce me back into the lane if I slip up for a moment is enough to make driving less stressful. I was excited to get adaptive cruise control, but I’ve found I don’t like using it very much. It’s too aggressive with hitting the breaks to maintain the following distance instead of being able to ease off the gas to fall back like a human driver would. Assume some brands are better at this than others, but anyway I didn’t buy a Mazda to not drive it. So I use that only intermittently for long drives as a bit of a break for my right foot.

taf2 3y ago

I did delivers up and down the Atlantic in 2000s I remember it being awesome. Granted I was 20 and like the time we got too close to a us aircraft carrier and they launched a helicopter that did a fly over to check us out that was pretty great. We also always had lines out to catch fish and let me tell you when that line caught something didn’t matter if it was your shift or not it was “fish on” everyone jumping out of their bunks to help. Best fish tacos ever. I do remember the captain could be pass out drunk and still dock the 70 footer without issue and then stumble below to pass out. But yeah we slept a lot too but underway maybe 6-7 so plenty of time to fix or react big difference from an airplane or even autopilot car

dataviz1000 3y ago
We passed an aircraft carrier going up the East Coast while they were doing exercises. They radioed us and made it clear not to come close to the ship. I have video of fighter jets doing low passes over our yacht every 15 minutes or so using us as a practice target. Going South once, as we came towards the inlet at Fernandina Beach on the Florida, Georgia line, a nuclear submarine was leaving port. I was at the helm in the afternoon while everyone else was sleeping. Good thing I was awake because we were met with the Coast Guard helicopter with a mounted machine gun pointed at me and a Coast Guard response (defender class) boat with a .50-caliber machine gun also fixed on me while they sat off our bow. I communicated with them on the radio; they said I should hold my position and not move. The sub came out with two large ships on each side with blast shields on the each ship.
- tasuki 3y ago
  This is all very interesting and completely foreign to me! > Coast Guard helicopter with a mounted machine gun pointed at me and a Coast Guard response (defender class) boat with a .50-caliber machine gun also fixed on me while they sat off our bow. Why'd they do that? > they said I should hold my position and not move. Why? > The sub came out with two large ships on each side with blast shields on the each ship. ...why?
  - manfre 3y ago
    > why? Safety and security. A small boat can be a threat and cause damage to a larger boat if you let it get close enough. Small boats can easily capsize if they get too close to a larger boat.
  - dataviz1000 3y ago
    I have be boarded by Coast Guard while entering US territorial waters. They will line up all boats moving from Bahamas towards Florida and have them hold speed and direction. Then they push an inflatable boat onto the stern and board with about 6 people all armed with fully automatic rifles. Mostly, they look under the floor boards for drugs and make sure the registration and documents are correct. The Coast Guard does not mess around. When a $2,000,000,000 Ohio class submarine carrying ballistic missiles is most vulnerable leaving port moving towards water deep enough to dive in. The Coast Guard is tasked with keeping all potential threats away. The ships on the side would protect the submarine from RPG and similar attacks while the submarine is surfaced.
auselen 3y ago
> captain could be pass out drunk and still dock the 70 footer without issue Brings up memories… This was same with my father, he stopped drinking later but when I was a teenager and stuck somewhere after midnight I would call home and he would say “sure buddy” and come pick me up. On the way back his eyes were almost closed and sometimes we would joke about how the car knows about the roads and can go way back home itself. He is too old now and actually has a 12 meter boat which can’t dock himself alone.

wlesieutre 3y ago

Like the “mostly self driving” car systems where the driver is expected to pay attention well enough to take over if needed

theoreticalmal 3y ago
This is the worst of both worlds, I would (and do) rather just drive “manually”
- dzhiurgis 3y ago
  Having done both, there’s just no going back to boat or car without autopilot. Definitely slept a bit while doing night passage (alcohol). Would be impossible in a car given how much driver monitoring is out there.
- throwawaaarrgh 3y ago
  Driving cross country in a car is actually the worst when you're in stop and go traffic, or cars keep slowing down and then speeding up. I can't wait to get my hands on adaptive cruise control because I get so aggravated and tired from having to shift and adjust speed. If I can just sit in one position and listen to comedy podcasts and audio books I do so much better
  - Sammi 3y ago
    I finally got a car with adaptive cruise control and lane assist a couple of years ago. It is the best. Driving feels relaxing. I actually feel less fatigued. I can just listen to music /podcasts /audiobooks and not care about how others are driving. Feels like sitting in the passenger seat and watching the road. I wouldn't feel safe if I wasn't listening to something that kept me engaged though. I would totally nod off.
    - wlesieutre 3y ago
      I don’t have good “lane centering” but knowing that it has the lane departure warning and will automatically bounce me back into the lane if I slip up for a moment is enough to make driving less stressful. I was excited to get adaptive cruise control, but I’ve found I don’t like using it very much. It’s too aggressive with hitting the breaks to maintain the following distance instead of being able to ease off the gas to fall back like a human driver would. Assume some brands are better at this than others, but anyway I didn’t buy a Mazda to not drive it. So I use that only intermittently for long drives as a bit of a break for my right foot.