Article by Capt. Mark Sampson
If it's true that the trials and tribulations of life are opportunities to learn and grow - last week I did some serious growing! It all started at the end of a successful fishing trip on a beautiful day when my engine suddenly quit just outside the mouth of the inlet. The current was running in hard and since I was just outside the two entrance buoys I decided to drop anchor to keep from possibly drifting up on one of the jetties. With all the boat traffic at the time it wasn't exactly where I wanted to go on the hook, but I couldn't risk drifting into a catastrophe.
With the anchor set I was able to make a quick assessment of what the malfunction was. A check of my fuel valves showed that instead of running on the "full" tank - we were drawing from the tank that was low and the engine had just sucked a big slug of air which was enough to make her shut-off as quickly as if I had turned off the key. Anyone who knows diesel engines is aware that running out of fuel is not remedied simply by filling the tank and starting back up. Even though I switched over to the full tank, the engine would not start until I could purge the air from the lines and get fuel to the injectors.
Grabbing some tools, I jumped down into the engine room to try and get things working as fast as possible, but it's not exactly a quick process, and with what seemed to be every boat in Ocean City trying to get in the Inlet just then, I figured I'd better do something to at least alert the incoming fleet of my predicament so I wouldn't get run over or swamped. I made a "security" call on channel 16 announcing my location and dilemma and was immediately answered by the Coast Guard who asked for more details. I answered their questions and even though I told them that I thought I'd have the engine running soon they said they'd be sending out their 47-footer to standby and assist if needed.
Before I knew it we had two Coast Guard vessels, two Towboat US boats, and my friends on the charter boat "Last Call" hovering around us. It may have been a lot of "hoopla" over one little 40-foot charter boat with an air-bound engine, but I'll admit that it sure was comforting to suddenly have so much professional assistance standing by to keep us out of further trouble.
Of course, from the time the Coast Guard arrived on the scene THEY were in charge and my role in the process was pretty much reduced to taking orders from them. In fact, about the only thing I had to say in the matter was where I wanted them to tow us. Through it all, the thought crossed my mind that the fellow running the Coast Guard boat and most of his crew probably weren't even alive when I first started running charters from this very boat, and now here they are telling ME what to do!
I expect that some skippers would be inclined to cop an attitude when forced to go from being captain-and-commander of their own vessel to suddenly being told what to do by some guy who's probably half their age. But you know what? After countless times watching the Coast Guard doing training runs by towing their own boats in and out of the Inlet, working alongside of them on various projects, and having a couple ex-Coast Guardsmen work with me as first mates aboard my own boat, I've seen them in action enough to have 100% confidence in their abilities and I had no problem sitting back and letting them call the shots! It sure took the immediate burden off my back knowing that my vessel and crew were now in such good hands.
And what professionals they were! From the time they pulled up and took over they were direct but always courteous, and they made the effort to explain ahead of time the process and procedures and then carried out their plan just as described. I couldn't help but consider how nice it would be if all businesses operated so precisely.
So they towed us through the Inlet, and once we got inside they switched from a "stern" to a "hip" (on the side) tow to get us into the harbor. Towing on the hip requires that the boats be tied together precisely with bumpers placed between the two so that neither one damages the other. With the Coast Guard vessel constructed of heavy-duty aluminum and mine of soft juniper (wood) you can imagine which boat would be damaged if we banged together. But thanks to the conscientious effort of the Coast Guard to tie us up so that neither boat touched the other we arrived back at the dock without a scratch! And you can bet that after going through all that I was relieved to get my crew and my vessel back to the dock in one piece.
I know that for the crew of the Coast Guard vessel it was probably just another "Saturday afternoon assistance run," but for me it was about as good a conclusion as I could have asked for considering the mess I had gotten myself into. I've always known that the servicemen and women who dress in blue are always ready to put their own lives on the line whether to protect our coastline or save our butts. But this was the first time I was not just an observer of the outstanding duties they carry out each day but actually a beneficiary of the extensive training and abilities of the U.S. Coast Guard. Whether they get the call to rescue the crew of a sinking ship in the middle of a hurricane or just to drag in a bumbling captain who couldn't keep track of what fuel tank he was running on, the U.S Coast Guard is up to the task, and I thank God we mariners have those young men and women there when we need them.
Mark Sampson is an outdoor writer and Captain of the charter boat “Fish Finder”, docked at the Ocean City Fishing Center.
