David Crosby's Boat Crash: What Happened?

David Crosby, of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, was a passionate sailor and owned the Mayan, a 1947 59-foot Alden schooner. In 2014, while tied to the Customs Dock in San Diego, another boat crashed into the Mayan, damaging its bowsprit. This incident, however, pales in comparison to the rich sailing history that Crosby shared with the Mayan, which he considered his sanctuary and a source of inspiration for many of his songs.

David Crosby's love of sailing and boats

Crosby was an avid and skilled sailor, and took his boat on many voyages, including to the Caribbean, Tahiti, and Hawaii. He was a careful yachtsman, always taking spare parts with him when he went out to sea, and he was respected by other sailors for his knowledge and skill.

Crosby's boat, the Mayan, was a 59-foot Alden schooner built in 1947. He bought it with money borrowed from his friend Peter Tork, the lead guitarist of The Monkees. The Mayan was built from Honduran mahogany and could sleep eight people in her lower deck cabins. Crosby lived on the boat for a time, and it was his sanctuary from the pressures of his career. He was an avid diver, and the Mayan's shallow draft of 4 feet, 5 inches allowed him to access reefs that deeper-draft boats couldn't reach.

In addition to being a place of refuge, the Mayan was also a source of inspiration for Crosby. He wrote many of his hits while aboard, including "Wooden Ships", "The Lee Shore", "Page 43", and "Carry Me". The boat also served as his muse for the song "Wooden Ships", which includes the lyrics "wooden ships on the water, very free and easy".

Crosby's love of sailing and boats was so strong that he even threatened to sell the Mayan at one point to fund his music career. However, he ultimately decided to keep the boat and continue his sailing adventures.

The damage caused to the boat in the crash

The damage caused to David Crosby's boat, Mayan, in the crash was significant. The collision occurred when an 8-metre sailing boat lost control and crashed into the bowsprit of Mayan while she was tied to the Customs Dock in San Diego. The impact left the smaller boat badly damaged, and Mayan's bowsprit was broken and dangling from the jib and whisker stays.

The bowsprit is a crucial part of a sailing vessel like Mayan, and its damage would have impacted the boat's performance and handling. The bowsprit is a spar that extends forward from the vessel's bow, providing an anchor point for sails and helping to stabilise the boat. A broken bowsprit would have affected Mayan's ability to sail effectively, particularly upwind, and likely impacted the boat's aesthetics as well.

David Crosby's initial reaction to the damage was one of anger and frustration. He shouted at the crew of the other boat, expressing his displeasure at their negligence in breaking his bowsprit. However, the crew of the other boat was awestruck to be meeting David Crosby and readily agreed to pay for the repair of the bowsprit.

The incident provided an opportunity for Crosby to make a desired modification to Mayan. He took the chance to extend the bowsprit by two feet, addressing his previous concerns about the boat's weather helm. This alteration was the only change he ever made to the original design of the Alden schooner.

The cost of repairs

Crosby made numerous partial repairs to Mayan during the four decades he owned her. However, by 1999, the boat was in dire need of more extensive work. Master shipwright Wayne Ettel was brought in to assess the damage and determined that the frames, planking, and deck were in desperate need of repair.

Ettel and his team replaced 90% of the frames with purpleheart wood, installed stainless-steel floor frames, and double-planked the hull with sapele and cedar. They also replaced the galvanized nails with bronze screws and set the planks in epoxy. These extensive repairs ensured that Mayan was "bomb-proof" and gave her a new lease on life.

The cost of these extensive repairs is not publicly known, but it is safe to assume that they were costly, given the scope of work and the specialized nature of wooden boat restoration. Crosby himself acknowledged the financial pressures of maintaining Mayan, eventually putting her up for sale in 2009 and again in 2014.

In addition to the major restoration work, Mayan also required regular maintenance and smaller repairs throughout her life. Crosby was a careful sailor and yacht owner, always ensuring that Mayan and her crew were safe. He kept spare parts on board for all occasions and was diligent about maintenance and upkeep.

Overall, the cost of repairs and maintenance for Mayan was likely a significant expense for Crosby, but one that he deemed worthwhile to keep his beloved boat in top condition.

The boat's history and previous owners

The Mayan, a 59-foot John Alden schooner, was built in Belize in 1947. The boat was designed by the great American yacht architect John G. Alden and built by Paul Allen, using Honduran mahogany for the frames, yellow pine for the planking, and teak for the decks.

The Mayan was first owned by a WWII Navy captain named Charles Allen. In 1967, David Crosby, who had recently left the music band The Byrds, bought the boat for <$22,500, with money borrowed from his friend Peter Tork of The Monkees. Crosby owned the Mayan for 45 years, from 1969 to 2014.

Crosby sailed the Mayan from Fort Lauderdale to San Francisco with Graham Nash and others in 1970, and then several times back and forth to Hawaii. He also sailed her to Tahiti and to Hawaii at least twice. In the 1980s, the Mayan was berthed at Pelican Harbor in Sausalito, California, for many years. Crosby later moved the boat to Santa Barbara, where he kept her for the last 20 years of his ownership.

In 2014, Crosby sold the Mayan to Beau Vrolyk of Santa Cruz. Vrolyk has since sailed the Mayan extensively and has introduced young people to the boat and the good things that sailing can bring to life.

David Crosby's career and life

David Crosby was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He was born in Los Angeles, California, on August 14, 1941, and died on January 18, 2023, at the age of 81. Crosby's career spanned several decades and included stints in multiple bands, as well as a successful solo career.

Crosby's musical career began in the early 1960s when he performed in the folk music scene and co-founded the band The Byrds in 1964. They scored their first number-one hit in 1965 with a cover of Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man". Crosby appeared on the band's first five albums and was known for his soaring harmonies and unusual phrasing. However, he was fired from the band in 1967 due to his domineering personality and political beliefs.

In 1968, Crosby formed the supergroup Crosby, Stills & Nash (CSN) with Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, later occasionally including Neil Young to form Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (CSNY). Their self-titled debut album spawned two Top 40 hit singles and received widespread critical acclaim. CSNY's music explored themes of drugs, politics, and free love, reflecting the counterculture of the 1960s.

Crosby was also a prolific songwriter, contributing to many of his bands' hits and releasing eight solo albums throughout his career. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice: once for his work with The Byrds and again for his contributions to CSN.

In addition to his musical pursuits, Crosby was known for his outspoken personality and political activism. He publicly questioned the Warren Commission's report on the assassination of John F. Kennedy and was an opponent of the Vietnam War. He also struggled with drug and alcohol abuse, spending time in prison in the 1980s on related charges.

Crosby was also an avid sailor and owned the 59-foot schooner Mayan from 1969 to 2014. He credited the boat as a source of inspiration for many of his songs. In his later years, Crosby continued to record and perform, even as his health declined. He was working on new music up until his death.

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