When Below Deck Down Under deckhand Harry van Vliet received his promotion to lead deckhead, he was initially very excited. “Finally, I can prove to myself, to [Captain] Jason [Chambers], that I’ve got what it takes,” Harry gushed in his confessional.
“Harry’s worked very hard to be a Lead Deckhand, but the work is not over,” Jason agreed. “Up until now, he’s only had to worry about himself. Now he’s got to worry about a whole team. I’m excited to see where this is going.”
But all that excitement turned to panic when Harry made a huge mistake his very first day on the job.
Captain Jason and Harry van Vliet had a laugh in confessional after the Below Deck Down Under incident
In his new leadership role, Harry was teaching newbie deckhand Nicolas Cattelan how to properly drop the anchor.
While Harry supervised the new hire, Nicolas successfully lowered and secured the anchor. But Harry forgot one of the most important steps: always keep in touch with your captain while dealing with the anchor.
“Whoever’s up forward should be telling me where the anchor is and how much it’s out,” Jason radioed. But even worse, when Harry and Nic turned their backs, the anchor broke loose and the heavy chain began to plunge toward the bottom. It wouldn’t be the first time a Below Deck crew lost the anchor.
Fortunately, the two deckhands acted quickly, preventing a potentially costly (and embarrassing) crisis. As we learned previously on Below Deck, a new anchor and chain can cost upwards of $65,000.
Following the scary incident, Bravo treated viewers to a BDDU first: a side-by-side confessional starring both the captain and the lead deckhand.
“My hands are full on-deck,” Harry explained. “I’m not just worrying about myself; I’m worrying about other people, making sure the whole thing is operational and working.”
“Is that why you didn’t have the radio in your hand, ’cause it’s full?” Jason teased.
“’Cause my hands are full, yeah,” Harry responded.
Though the pair had a good laugh over the incident, there’s no doubt it could have been a lot worse. Jason reminded Harry that he really needs to step up in his new role.
Below Deck Down Under airs Mondays at 8/7c on Bravo.
TELL US – HOW DO YOU THINK HARRY’S DOING SO FAR AS LEAD DECKHAND?
