See a Complete List of All the Below Deck Captains Over the Years

Since it premiered on Bravo in 2013, the Below Deck franchise has showcased a number of talented captains doing what they do best: Helming super yachts while making sure their crews stay shipshape.

While these captains have an obvious love for the sea, their work has offered more than a great personal career move. According to the OG Below Deck captain, Lee Rosbach, the franchise has “changed the face” of the yachting industry.

“We were struggling to find people to get into the industry, because people in Iowa had no clue that [there are] jobs on yachts,” the captain said during a March 2023 appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen. “They had no clue that these jobs existed and that they could get great-paying jobs if they came out of college or whatever, they could get a good job, they could go see the world, they could have a hell of a lot of fun.”

Meet all the captains who have graced the Below Deck, Below Deck Mediterranean, Below Deck Sailing Yacht, Below Deck Down Under, and Below Deck Adventure decks — inspiring a host of future yachties along the way.

Below Deck Captains
Seasons 1-10: Captain Lee Rosbach

Captain Lee Rosbach joined the Below Deck family during Season 1 of the franchise’s original series in 2013. “Deciding to become a yacht captain has been the best decision I’ve ever made in my life,” Lee said during the Below Deck Season 10 finale.

Captain Lee has more than three decades of yachting experience and has even written a book — 2018’s Running Against the Tide — on the subject. Born and raised in Michigan, Captain Lee fell in love with the sea while managing restaurants in Turks & Caicos. After a stint as a mate on a sailboat, he was fully sold and obtained his captain’s license at age 35.

Outside of work, Captain Lee has been happily married for about five decades. When asked for his favorite Below Deck memory during his March 2023 WWHL appearance, he mentioned a moment that had to do with both of his loves: His wife Mary Anne and the water. During Season 5, Mary Anne (with whom he shares five children) made a guest appearance on the show. “It was when I got to see my bride walking down the dock,” he said. “To have Mary Anne come out and give me just a little bit of a respite from the grind, is really a pleasure.”

Season 9: Captain Sean Meagher

Captain Sean Meagher and his “hands-on” management style stepped in for Captain Lee for the first two episodes of Season 9 when he was unexpectedly delayed on land.

Season 10: Captain Sandy Yawn

When Lee had to exit a charter early in Season 10, Below Deck Mediterranean’s Captain Sandy Yawn took his place. You’ll read more about Captain Sandy below.

Season 11-12: Captain Kerry Titheradge

After making his Bravo debut on Below Deck Adventure, Captain Kerry Titheradge was announced as the incoming captain for Below Deck Season 11 at BravoCon 2023. He returned to the franchise for Below Deck Season 12.

Below Deck Mediterranean Captains
Season 1: Mark Howard

Before there was Captain Sandy, there was Captain Mark Howard. Captain Mark led the very first season of Below Deck Med, which aired in 2016.

Another Michigan-born yachtie, Captain Mark, had racked up nearly 30 years of experience on both private and charter boats before he passed away in late 2021. “Our thoughts and sincerest sympathies are with the family and friends of the respected Captain Mark Howard,” Bravo said in a statement at the time. “As the captain of the first season of Below Deck Med, he will always be remembered for his many contributions and mentorship and will forever remain part of the Bravo family.”

Seasons 2-10: Captain Sandy Yawn

Captain Sandy joined the Bravo ranks during the second season of Below Deck Mediterranean and has been a stalwart ever since. During her tenure on Below Deck Med, the captain has sailed her charters through the waters all over the stunning area of the world.

Captain Sandy has over three decades of yachting experience under her belt. A Florida native, she knew she wanted her career to revolve around the ocean from an early age. When she learned yachting was a male-dominated field, she simply pushed forward. And she hasn’t stopped: In March 2023, she launched her own organization, Captain Sandy’s Charities, to support women’s maritime and environmental education and employment opportunities.

Off the water and outside of her charity work, Sandy is married to gospel singer Leah Shafer. The pair wed after meeting in 2018.

Below Deck Sailing Yacht Captains
Seasons 1-5: Glenn Shephard

Long before Below Deck Sailing Yacht premiered in 2020, Captain Glenn was captaining the elegant Parsifal III. The Montreal, Canada native caught the yachting bug while he was traveling in Rome and saw an advertisement in the hostel he was staying at, looking for a deckhand on the vessel as it sailed the islands around Sicily.

“I thought when I saw it, ‘This sounds too good to be true.’ I thought somebody was playing a prank on someone to get their phone to ring off the hook all weekend. But I took the number and called the guy and met him,” Captain Glenn recalled. “And a couple days later, I was living on this boat near Fiumicino, near Rome Airport. I ended up staying on that boat until Christmastime.”

“I think the rest of my life I’ve kind of been trying to recreate that summer because it was magical,” he said. “I just fell in love with the idea of cruising on a little boat in the Mediterranean.”

Below Deck Down Under Captains
Seasons 1-4: Jason Chambers

With over two decades of yachting experience behind him, Captain Jason Chambers is an expert at transporting charter guests around his home country of Australia — no matter what vessel he finds himself on. During the second season of Below Deck Down Under, Captain Jason and his crew found themselves on a boat built in the ’70s. “I walked onto the boat, said ‘What the hell is going on?’ and then the season ended,” Jason joked in a July 2023 conversation with The Daily Dish.

The Aussie captain has a daughter, Saskia, whom he loves to spend time with when he’s not working. “Being away from her hurts every day,” he said in a Season 1 Episode 1 interview. “There’s no words for how much I love my daughter. Everything’s about her.”

Below Deck Adventure Captains
Season 1: Kerry Titheradge

Captain Kerry Titheradge is a father of two who has worked on boats for 30 years and has spent almost two decades yachting, with experience in the Mediterranean, Caribbean, Pacific Northwest, and more. According to Captain Kerry, he made the decision to join the Below Deck family after reaching out to longtime friend Captain Lee to see if he had any regrets about the show.

“When it came, the opportunity to do this, I gave Lee a call and asked him would he do it again if he had to redo his time?” Kerry said during BravoCon 2022. “He said, ‘One hundred percent.’”