South Florida Sun-Sentinel Palm Beach (Sunday)
Captain Rosbach sails again into ‘ Below Deck’
Fort Lauderdale captain Lee Rosbach has traveled thebahamas, the Caribbean and even to Tahiti.
But six weeks in Thailandwas a first for the “stud of the sea” and star of Bravo’s “Below Deck” yachting series.
The show, which debuted Oct . 7 and airs 9 p. m. Mondays on Bravo, filmed its seventh season throughout Thailand. And the South Florida heat prepared him well for the country’s humid and hot weather, something his crew has already complained about in the new season.
“It’s a different kind of heat,” recalled Rosbach to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, now that he’s back in Fort Lauderdalewherehe is based and lives with his wife Mary Anne. “The sun is tough.”
But the beauty of Thailand made up for it.
“It’s hard to put challenging and exotic in the same sentence. You are just so amazed by everything.”
In a trailer for the show, he also said “Thailand is really unique. There’s so much to take in. It’s almost sensory overload.”
This season, viewers will catch Rosbach reuniting with his chief steward, Kate Chastain, who has been by his side since the show’s second season.
“She is my right hand. She is my go- to person,” said Rosbach. “She is the one I depend on to get the jobdonewithout being concerned.”
Also back is Ashton Pienaar, whostepsupas bosun, a ship’s officer in charge of the crew and the boat’s equipment. He was a deckhand last season when he fell overboard and got dangerously tangled up in an anchor line behind the super yacht.
“He fit in quite nicely. He did a great job last year,” said Rosbach. “There was no reason not to have him back. I needed somebody for that location.” He added that having someone who already knows how he operates “makes things a lot easier.”
The other cast members are newcomers to the show. Second steward is Simone Mashile and third stew is Courtney Skippon. The lead deckhand is Brian de Saint Pern and the deckhands are Tanner Sterback and Abbimurphy. There’s a new chef aboard: Kevin Dobson.
Viewers and cast members have remarked on how attractive the crew is compared to other seasons.
“They are probably the best looking crew we ever had overall,” said Rosbach. “Their experience is right up there with the best of them especially the deck crew. The interior crew can probably use more experience. They can get that soon.”
Since 2013, the show has followed Rosbach and his shipmates as they cater to wealthy and sometimes high maintenance and high drama charter clients aboard amegaluxury yacht. This season, the crew was filmed aboard the Valor, the 150- foot yacht that was featured in 2017.
As the crew head into town for provisions and tours, they also get to interact with the locals and showcase the country’s culture totvviewers. Rosbach said he was impressed with the people of Thailand.
“The people there are so gracious and so kind. It’s amazing,” he said.
He noted that despite traffic being a big problem there, people aren’t likely to cut others off as they might on Interstate 95 in South Florida.
“You have these horrendous traffic jams. Millions of scooters all over the place,” recalled Rosbach. “In Thailand, people back off and slow down and let people in. It’s very kind and gracious. Nothing at nothing at all like ( Interstate) 95. If there is somebody who had the turn signal and wanted to turn over, they would let me in, not speed up.”
Also this season, Bravo has promised that deckhands and stews “all find themselves in and out of love on the boat, resulting in love triangles and heartbreak.”
Rosbach couldn’t speak to specifics but cryptically said, “I just have this feeling there is a lot more this season than Ihadknowledge of and I think I amgoing to be surprised and shocked.”
Also back this season is Rosbach’s trademark gruff demeanor and the colorful in- your- face things he has told his crew over the years.
After publishing his memoir “Running Against The Tide” in 2018, he has started working on a coffee book based on his Lee- isms and when andwhen it’s not appropriate to use them.
One of the more popular phrases viewers have heard him say is, “you really screwed the pooch on that one” which is military talk for messing something up.
“I think on your birthday, you are allowed to screw the pooch all day long,” said Rosbach. “You want to screw up all day, go right ahead. First day on the job, you probably don’t want to screw the pooch.”
Whenhe’s not filming for weeks at a time for the show, Rosbach keeps busy with private yachtwork and promotional appearances in South Florida related to his book and the show. He said he welcomes the opportunity of being on the show for future seasons, wherever the show takes him and viewers.
“If they have me, I will,” he said. “I am not a big fan of retirement.”