Captain Sandy Yawn made major waves when she climbed aboard the Below Deck spin-off series
Below Deck: Mediterranean. Best known as "Captain Sandy," she has often been compared to Below
Deck's legendary Captain Lee. But it turns out, this woman's style is all her own. This
is Captain Sandy's untold truth.
It might be difficult to figure out exactly how to refer to Captain Sandy Yawn. Is it
Captain Yawn? Just Captain? Or, maybe, just Sandy? The folks over at Decider were similarly
curious, so they asked the Below Deck Mediterranean fan favorite how she prefers to be addressed.
She says,
"Anyone can call me Sandy. What happens in the yachting industry is people think we're
all friends because we live together. And then they start losing that, 'Oh my gosh,
she's actually in charge of me.'"
"You call me Captain."
"Okay."
"Captain Sandy."
"Captain Sandy?"
"We're not friends."
"Okay."
"Okay?"
"Yes Captain Sandy."
Captain Sandy ensures her team knows who's the boss right off the bat, even though she
considers herself to be a kind person by nature. She added,
"I always want people to feel I'm approachable. Having said that, I also need them to remember
that I am in charge, and if you don't set that precedent in the beginning, then they
get confused because I play a lot."
"I have a reputation in the industry as a very successful professional charter captain.
And you'll find that I'm not an a--hole unless you don't follow the rules."
Considering how beloved she is among staff, both past and present, whatever Captain Sandy
is doing is clearly working.
Anybody who's had even a fleeting glimpse of Captain Sandy in action knows she's a total
boss babe. But her strength goes beyond successfully leading a crew on the high seas. As she revealed
in an interview with Women's Health, a near-death experience actually ended up saving her life.
Yawn recounted how, in 2015, when she was 49, she crashed her motorcycle into a car,
which left her with fractured bones in most of her limbs.
"As I'm flipping in the air, I felt really peaceful. I thought, I'm going to die and
I'm gonna go see my mother in heaven."
After having full reconstructive surgery, a chance meeting with a doctor friend-of-a-friend
led to a cancerous tumor being discovered on Sandy's kidney. She had surgery less than
a month later to remove it. She told the outlet,
"Who would have ever thought they would be grateful for being in a motorcycle crash?
But I was. As the doctor explained, it might have been years until that tumor was found.
At that point, the cancer would have progressed, and it would have been too late."
The casts of Below Deck and Below Deck Mediterranean might not be as rowdy as, say, those of other
reality shows, but spending so much time in isolation together can bring out a certain
element in people, particularly young, hot crew-members looking to quash their boredom
between shifts. Thankfully, Yawn couldn't care less what her charges get up to on-board,
just as long as they keep things kosher when they're on the clock. She told People magazine,
"How I handle it is, I don't care who you sleep with or if you all sleep together, but
the minute you come up on deck you better be professional. I don't want to see that
behavior on deck and do your job. And they do. Most of the time they do their jobs."
"Whatever happens in this cabin, should stay in this cabin. No spooning on deck."
Although Yawn has had to intervene a few times, she makes it clear that she's not anyone's
mother, she's their boss. And, as their leader, the star understands that her crew needs to
blow off some steam sometimes. She said,
"You can't demand what we demand from these crews and not let them have these outlets."
After years of working in a male-dominated industry, wondering whether she'd ever find
someone who could gel with her insanely busy life, Yawn found love in the unlikeliest of
places: on Facebook, where gospel singer Leah Shafer sent her a sweet message about Below
Deck Mediterranean. It stood out among a multitude of DMs because of the quote "many blessings"
at the end, which struck a chord with the faith-focused captain. After researching Shafer,
Yawn realized she'd be ideal for her "I Believe" speaking tour. When the two finally met in
person, they clicked immediately.
"When you meet someone and you know, that's exactly how it happened. I love her."
Yawn told Too Fab,
"It was meant to be because I wasn't really looking for it. I wrote a list of the person
I wanted, and she's the list."
The captain had previously told Bravo's Daily Dish,
"I want someone who wakes up happy, just is happy to be alive. Like, that's how I wake
up every day of my life."
For Yawn, it looks like Shafer certainly fits the bill.
Considering she beat cancer and came back from a devastating injury to be one of an
elite group of women helming a yacht, it's no wonder Yawn is taken as something of a
trailblazer in the industry. More than that, though, she's a major badass. Quite literally,
as noted in an interview with Boats.com, the Below Deck Mediterranean star is known casually
as the quote, "Badass Captain." And it's something she leans into one hundred percent. Her daily
mantra just happens to be:
"Wake up. Show up. Kick ass. Repeat."
"How was it?"
"You want to really know the truth?"
"The only way we improve is if the client tells us the truth."
With Captain Sandy working consistently in a male-dominated industry, running some yachts
well above 100 feet, fronting a reality TV show about the industry itself, and frequently
battling daunting professional and personal circumstances, the nickname is totally fitting.
At its core, the title showcases her focus on inspiring everyone to follow her lead and
push themselves to be the best they can be.
Watching her work, it's impossible to envision any other place that Captain Sandy could possibly
be more at home. And yet, being a yacht captain wasn't her end goal. In fact, it wasn't even
a goal, period. As she reminisced with Boats.com, she says it's something she kind of fell into,
admitting,
"It's not like I said, 'I have to be a yacht captain.'"
Growing up in Florida, she was always on the water, even cleaning boats as an early job.
The captain of the yacht on which she landed her very first crew position wasn't the best
example of a leader, which helped her realize she could do the job better. After being hired
by the owner of a 67-footer, who paid for Yawn to earn her captain's license, she stayed
and worked with him for almost ten years.
"I've had meltdowns, I've had fires, I've had pirates chase me, any scenario you can
think of has happened in my 27 years"
Below Deck came calling in 2015, looking for her to be a part of their new Mediterranean
spin-off. She remembered,
"I thought, 'Why not?' This show reaches the middle of America and people who knew nothing
about charter."
One of the show's most shocking moments saw chef Mila, the first female to helm the galley
on the hit Bravo franchise, making prejudiced comments to other members of Captain Sandy's
crew. Mila's issue surrounded her young son seeing quote, "two men kissing each other,"
which was a behavior she felt was inappropriate.
"I don't want my son to be growing up, and seeing two men kissing each other."
"It's normal!"
"This is not f---ing normal."
When questioned about the incident by Too Fab, Yawn said she heard it through the grapevine,
rather than being told directly.
"Her opinion of me doesn't matter. 'Cause I, I would have to care about that person
for me to care."
As for how she feels about Mila's outwardly biased stance, the no-nonsense leader explained
of Mila's Russian upbringing,
"People grow up in different countries and are programmed a certain way to think. That's
her opinion. That doesn't reflect [me]. She can have her opinion. I don't really care.
Doesn't reflect on me. It reflects on her."
Aside from a devastating motorcycle accident, which in turn led to a cancer scare, Yawn
also nearly lost her life to addiction. Although it's difficult to imagine the inspirational
female captain as being anything other than level-headed and in control, she explained
to The Cheat Sheet that, particularly as a teenager, she was a, quote, "mess." Yawn elaborated
on her struggle, admitting,
"No matter how much money you have, it's not going to save your life if you are an addict
or an alcoholic. And I was a major addict and alcoholic."
"Sometimes I wish I could have a glass of wine. But it's like, I can't stop with one.
I would have the whole bottle. And then another one, then another one."
In fact, she said she was frequently in and out of jail for drunk-driving. These days,
Yawn mines those past difficult experiences to teach others how to stay on the right path.
She said,
"The only way I can help is to share my story."
Adding that school was a nightmare for her and that self-medicating may even have been
a response to her burgeoning same-gender attraction, Yawn revealed that her mother was an alcoholic,
making her childhood home life difficult, too. Thankfully, by 25, she had turned her
life around.
Watching her confidently steer the ship on Below Deck Mediterranean, it seems there's
nothing Yawn can't do. And yet, something as relatively simple as going vegan beat the
tough-as-nails ship boss. As she explained to The Feast, driving a vessel for the Sea
Shepherd Conservation Society made her more conscious of how and what she eats, in particular,
fish. It turns out Yawn has toyed with the idea of going vegan, but unfortunately, it
didn't exactly work out for her. She said,
"Honestly, I try, but I didn't feel well to be honest. I didn't have the energy. Some
bodies just aren't cut [out] to go vegan. I tried."
These days, it's actually her partner, Leah Shafer, who decides what's for dinner, mainly
because Yawn is so laid-back about it. She told the outlet,
"I'm not that person [who has to decide]: As a captain, we constantly make decisions.
When I'm with someone else, I don't want to make a decision. I don't want to choose."
Most people watching Real Housewives couldn't imagine tussling with any of the ladies in
the ever-expanding franchise, but Yawn would welcome some of the mouthiest broads on-board.
In fact, she'd relish having them as guests. When Decider asked which show in particular
she'd like to see stars from, Captain Sandy chose New York City. Yawn explained to the
outlet,
"New Yorkers have an edge. I love to be challenged by clients. When clients are yes-ing you to
death, I know that it's not perfect because that's impossible. I need the client to tell
me the truth. They'll tell the truth."
"I don't like to complain."
"The fact that you're not saying anything is making it worse."
As for who her real-life Bravo favorites are, Captain Sandy says,
"I have to admit that I didn't watch The Real Housewives of Potomac, but after meeting Gizelle
Bryant…her vibe. I love NeNe, Dorinda, I love them all. But after spending
time with Gizelle, we didn't even really talk a lot, but she was so gracious. She's cool.
She's cool on the show, she's real…So I have to say, she's probably won me over."
The so-called "stud of the sea" Captain Lee Rosbach is a Below Deck mainstay but if there
was anyone who was going to not just follow in his footsteps but blow him out of the water,
it would be Captain Sandy. Even so, she's not terribly impressed with the comparisons.
She told Decider,
"When people compare me to Captain Lee on Twitter, that makes me realize they have no
idea who I am, or who he is. It's just what they watch. We have two very different career
paths. I was a busy charter captain in the Mediterranean. That wasn't Captain Lee."
Even so, Yawn tips her hat to the original Below Deck boss. She was also quick to note,
"I have respect for him. We get along. He's great, he refers to me as kiddo. He's a great
guy. As a woman in this industry, I worked hard to get to where I am. When you're a guy
it's an easier climb, right?"
As she tells it, everything has to be 100 percent by the book on Yawn's yacht, because
mistakes aren't as forgivable for a female captain.
As much as simply being a woman created more of a challenge for Yawn as she worked her
way up, she doesn't see her gender as a limiting trait in any capacity. In fact, it's provided
her the fire to really go for, and crush, her goals.
She told Bravo,
"Being a female captain in this industry is challenging and inspiring because I thrive
on problem solving. Being a woman in the male dominated yachting world is an advantage due
to my ability to multitask while managing the emotions of the crew. I choose not to
come from a place of power and control and it really, really works."
"As a human being, I have all the compassion in the world. But as a captain, I have to
let you go."
Explaining that she uses her warm personality to compliment her management style, she added,
"I prefer to be hands-on, firm, and compassionate. That's how I navigate my leadership."
It turns out, Yawn sees her role as inspirational too, telling The Little White Lie that her
aspirations are larger than simply serving clients the charter cruise of their lives.
She says,
"[I want to] to inspire other young ladies to jump in and say YES to taking a risk. It's
so worth it! If you fall short don't give up, just pick yourself up, brush yourself
off and go for it again."
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