Heavy/NBCUniversal Captain Sandy and Captain Lee
Bravo stars Captain Sandy Yawn and Captain Lee Rosbach have often supported each other throughout the years, however their relationship has not been without its disagreements.
In a December 2022 episode of “Below Deck” viewers saw Captain Sandy take over when Captain Lee had to leave the charter early to look after his health after experiencing pain and numbness associated with a nerve issue. While Captain Lee was able to return for the last few episodes and finish out the season, he revealed in April 2023 that he has not been invited back for the 11th season of the flagship show of the “Below Deck” franchise.
In an interview with Heavy, Captain Sandy shared her reaction to Captain Lee’s dismissal from the show.
Captain Sandy Responds to ‘Below Deck’ Casting Change
When asked her reaction to Captain Lee’s not being asked back to “Below Deck”, Captain Sandy told Heavy, “I think when your health is in question then you take care of that first. I’m not sure how it went down, I don’t know I haven’t talked to him. I’ve heard stories, but the reality is that Captain Lee wasn’t well, and you have to be able to physically do the job. It’s walking upstairs, it’s saving a life, and if you can’t do that. I don’t know, if it was my health or a TV show, I’m going to choose my health every day.”
Although Captain Lee has spoken out and said that he is not the one who chose to end his time on “Below Deck”, Captain Sandy believes it is the right call, and shared where she hopes to be when she (58) is Captain Lee’s age (73), saying, “I think maybe that’s what he did he’s choosing his health over television, and it’s not just about TV, it’s a physical job. And he’s in his 70s, and I don’t know. When I’m in my 70’s I hope I’m chilling on a beach somewhere, having fun, not working so hard.”
In May 2023, Captain Lee corroborated Captain Sandy’s claims that the two hadn’t spoken in the wake of his firing news. “No, we haven’t had the opportunity to have a conversation. It really doesn’t make any difference to me one way or the other [if we were to speak or not],” Captain Lee said at the time.
This all follows a “feud” between the two Captains that began in January 2023 when Captain Lee publicly responded to Captain Sandy’s decision to fire deck/stew Camille Lamb. Lee tweeted at the time, “I would have fired her. but prior to that I would have notified the Captain who I was [replacing] what I was doing and why, not after the fact.” Captain Sandy did call Captain Lee after dismissing Lamb to inform him of the news.
Who is Replacing Captain Lee for ‘Below Deck’ Season 11?
According to Us Weekly, Captain Sandy is not replacing Captain Lee again for “Below Deck” season 11, however the new captain is coming from the “Below Deck” family. Captain Kerry Titheradge is reported to be stepping in for Captain Lee after joining the franchise in 2022 as Captain on the first season of “Below Deck Adventure”. Captain Lee and Captain Kerry have played golf together in the past, and Captain Kerry shared some advice that Captain Lee gave him for being on television, “Be yourself. Be that same guy I was playing golf with.”
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