Although the harbor in Shanghai, China, is considered the busiest harbor in the world in terms of navigational challenges, it may not hold a candle to Newport Harbor during the city’s 117th annual Christmas Boat Parade (which launches this year Dec. 17-25).
More than 100 yachts of varying lengths and elegance are registered to colorfully convoy along the parade’s 14-mile course. Specific viewing locations are listed on the Visit Newport Beach website: visitnewportbeach.com.
After five nights of skippering the 80-foot-long, multi-Grand Prize winner “The Last Hurrah” around the Bay’s main channels during the official parade — with 40 to 60 celebrating friends and corporate clients of the owners, Morrow-Meadows Corporation, aboard — Capt. Shaun Crossman admits to being “absolutely exhausted” by New Year’s.
On parade nights, the bay is a confusion of decorative lights from all the boats and ships underway, as well as from their shimmering reflections off the water — a visual double whammy. Compound this with the lights from non-parade vessels that are darting in and out and around the official parade entrants — many of those small crafts’ skippers (and most likely passengers) possibly being fueled by a variety of beverages definitely not endorsed by the Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol.
“Piloting our boat definitely is a challenge,” Crossman said with a slight smile, perhaps projecting what is approaching on the horizon.
Beyond the visual confusion, many watercraft feature live and amplified bands that entertain well beyond a ship’s gunwales, which can confuse the auditory senses of boat operators.
Many smaller craft bring their boom-boxes, set to Boom. Oh, yes, there’s more: A number of bay-front homes also share the air with their own up-volume party bands, whose various rhythms and styles compete with ship horns, and celebratory shoreside noise makers along the route.
And then there’s the weather. Windy nights can inch the boats off their courses, so with its follow-the-leader format, a parade line can look like a sea serpent whose compass has temporarily mutinied.
Additionally, “The Last Hurrah’s” decorations and supportive armatures act like sails above the flying bridge, sometimes causing the boat to noticeably list (if one is paying attention).
Rainy, shivery and foggy nights increase pressure on everyone, especially amateur skippers with minimal knowledge of the “Rules of the Road,” some of whom have been rumored to grog-up for warmth.
During a moment of thought, Crossman said, “Overall, I think that too many spectator boats is the major safety issue.”
As on any cruise, few wining-and-dining passengers stop to think about what a captain and their crew must consider. To most passengers, a port is a wine choice. But to Skipper Crossman, port is where the cruise starts and terminates with the safety of passengers and crew always foremost on his mind, even if it’s just for a short holiday “voyage.”
Upon earning a Bachelor of Science Degree in Aquatic Biology from UC Santa Barbara, Crossman returned home to Maitland, FL, with his college girlfriend (now wife, Karen) to begin his career as a yacht captain; his US Coast Guard license qualifies him to helm yachts up to 1,600 tons, both sail and motor.
However, with his wife’s staying at home during Crossman’s “too-frequent cruises” from Florida to the Bahamas, and her desire to be closer to friends in California, the couple decided 17 years ago to return to California, which launched his command career aboard “The Last Hurrah.”
“Even as a kid, I wanted to be a boat captain,” Crossman recounts. “I started working on boats as soon as I could just to make some side money. It just grew from there — from deck mate to captain. As the skipper on ‘The Last Hurrah,’ I do everything from maintenance to safety assurance, all pertinent paperwork, and keep up with marine regulations.”
He also helps arrange travel if guests are arriving from somewhere else, as well as “make dockage arrangements, manage all food and catering requirements, clean and keep ‘the toys’ going.” Toys include a couple of jet skis and a tender.
As to how Crossman’s Aquatics Biology degree has better prepared him for his yacht career, he chuckles that “I’m probably a better judge than most to know when to scrape the growth off the yacht’s bottom.”
At least a week before the official parade, “The Last Hurrah” usually can be seen plying the harbor on its evening shake-down cruises. With her artful animated designs in full, lighted bloom along her 80-foot-long hull, viewing “The Last Hurrah” before the start of the official parade is akin to having exclusive tickets to a blockbuster Hollywood preview in a truly magnificent outdoor theater.
