Age 40
Place of birth Lima, Peru
Current yacht Sofia 3
Number of crew 9
Previous yachts Sofia S, Rubia
What was your first taste of the sea?
My uncle Jaime Guzman worked at the Benetti yard on the quality control side when it was still building chemical carrier ships. I learned from him all the tricks you need to know to build a proper strong ship.
Which destinations do you most look forward to visiting?
I would love to visit French Polynesia again, and especially Rangiroa atoll for the lovely sunsets, Hinano beers and feeding the sharks in the blue lagoon.
What are your favourite onshore hangouts?
While in the Caribbean it’s Soggy Dollar on St Maarten. As I am in Monte Carlo for the winter the Monaco Yacht Club is not bad for a couple of drinks.
What’s the one place in the world you’d like to cruise to that you haven’t already?
I would lie if I say that I want to cruise Alaska or the Antarctic (too cold for this warm-blooded Latino), but I wouldn’t mind going with the yacht to the Seychelles or Mauritius.
Photo: Mike Edwardson
What are the biggest changes you’ve seen in the industry?
The hours of rest are sometimes a bit complicated to deal with if you want to give great service. Taxes on charters are making charterers select different routes.
What do you like most about your current yacht?
The amount of fuel you can put in this baby! I fill up the fuel tanks and forget about it for the rest of the season.
Which is your favourite on-board toy?
I should say the diving gear, though not at the moment as I just use it to scrape the props and shafts!
What would you change about the superyachting industry?
Not much, to be honest – the industry is good at adopting new technology, while crew are getting more professional and treating this job as a true career.
What’s the most curious request you’ve ever had from a guest?
Inside St Tropez I got us in the perfect, prime spot in the centre of the port. “Captain, I don’t like it here, I want to change,” said a charter guest. We didn’t, needless to say.
What’s the worst weather you have encountered on board?
On this boat I was five miles away from Venice when a big waterspout appeared in the horizon and suddenly more than 60 knots of wind hit us and we had 50 metres visibility. We were fine but there was plenty of damage in Venice.
Who is the most eccentric/strangest/funniest member of your crew?
I have a crew member who is a mixture of strange, funny and trouble-magnet. King Midas turns in to gold anything he touches; in this case, anything that he touches, he breaks.
Who was the most troublesome crew member you’ve worked with?
There haven’t been any, and I have to express my respect for those crew members in the industry who have to suffer bullying from bad deck officers or engineers who do not know how to deal with crew of lower rank.
What’s the next big thing in yachting?
Hybrid propulsion, which will just get bigger and bigger.
Any advice for an aspiring captain?
Save money and do your courses. Go commercial, and most important be good to your crew. A respectful and professional captain will make life on board so much easier for everyone.
Who would be your top five fantasy charter guests?
You know the Hollywood actor Jason Statham? Well, I am not inviting him but his girlfriend Rosie Huntington-Whiteley is welcome. Four other Victoria’s Secret girls would make up the numbers fine.
What’s the biggest cock-up you’ve ever seen another captain make?
It happened a long time ago in Nice, two yachts away from where I was working. A captain gave the order for departure and the officer at the stern started to cast off the lines. In a few seconds the yacht was ten metres away from the berth when it suddenly started to go full speed astern. This was an old yacht with throttles with four levers – two for the revs and two for the transmission. I guess he moved the levers in the wrong direction.
The 42.7-metre Baglietto Sofia 3 charters through Edmiston from €135,000pw (low season) to €150,000pw (high). www.edmiston.com