Captain Keith Colburn of “Deadliest Catch” talks reality show drama, fights with rival boats
For seven years, “Deadliest Catch” has kept viewers on the edge of their seats. The reality show, which features Alaskan crab fisherman on the Bering Sea, has become one of cable’s most popular shows, even beating out NBA and NHL playoff games earlier this year. Keith Colburn, captain of the Wizard, has been featured since the third season and has had quite a successful run in his 25 years as a fishermen.
We had a chance to sit down with Keith to talk about a wide variety of issues including his work with Crown Royal, safety on the water, reality show drama, and even an incident between rival Time Bandit captain Andy Hillstrand hitting his brother over the head with a guitar. Yes, these guys work hard and apparently, they fight hard too.
Guyism: Talk to us about boating safety, especially because you’re out there on the Bering Sea. Specifically talk to us about having alcohol on board a ship.
Keith: The Wizard is teaming up with Crown Royal to get the message out to boaters. Enjoy that cocktail at the end of the day when you’re on dry land. But before you even leave the dock, file a float plan. It can be as simple as telling your friend, your neighbor, or a guy at the marina how many passengers you have and what time you think you’re coming back. Make sure your passengers are aware of where all the safety gear is and they know how to operate a radio should you have an issue as a captain. And for kids, they gotta wear their lifejackets. Adults, I can’t stress enough, the odds of you surviving an incident while wearing your life jacket go way up. So wear your life jackets, file a float plan, and check the weather. Know if you’re going to be out all day there is going to be inclimate weather, thunder shower. If you put all things into practice before you leave the dock, you’re going to have a memorable day….then you can have that Crown Royal cocktail.
Guyism: What about drinking on the boat? Do you allow your crew members in a down time to enjoy a beer or a cocktail knowing full well they are wiped out.
Keith: You know on the Wizard, we do not. We save it when we’re in town. Guys are either sleeping or working until we get into port. So until the boat is safely secure in the dock, you’re still working, you’re still doing the job. That goes for a commercial crab fisherman or just a guy out on his sports boat. Save that Crown Royal for later.
Guyism: Switching gears, as far as “Deadliest Catch” is concerned, there’s been a bit of a battle between you and the Hillstrand brothers on the Time Bandit. There was an insinuation on an earlier episode that before the season began there was a fight/altercation. Can you tell us about that? Did the producers play it up?
(video from the episode below)
Keith: The producers DID NOT play that up, that was an actual occurrence. That was a good ol fashion Dutch Harbor, after the bar closed, dust-up and it was, you know what, I think at the end of the day everybody had a good time, nobody got hurt, nobody went to jail. That’s a good night out in Dutch for the boys.
One of the producers was outside and they didn’t have any cameras and they literally went back to the room crying. To watch Andy shatter a guitar over my brothers head was a site to behold.
Guyism: Do you think, because it’s a reality show that things get played up for drama though? Maybe the producers are making something big when it’s not necessarily there.
Keith: More times than not, the really sensational footage they get is less than what occurred. And that’s because the still cameras are covered in water and they aren’t getting the moment and the camera guy on deck is cowering and is in a position where he’s in a safe location. Or the camera guy in the wheelhouse has to shut down because I don’t have time to talk or answer a simple, stupid or even a real question. Most of the biggest events that happen, multiply that by 3 or 4 and that’s what really happened. And remember we’re dealing with a pitching and rolling boat and even though it looks gnarly on TV, it’s much worse in real life. It’s something that’s impossible to capture.
Guyism: Talk about some of the other reality shows that spawned pretty much because of “Deadliest Catch”. The “Swamp Loggers”, the “Gold Rush Alaska”, etc…They aren’t in the same ballpark as far as danger is concerned. Do you and some of the other captains sometimes laugh about these, what I like to call, imitators? Because, really, nothing compares to being a crab fishermen.
Keith: Well, I think the one thing that’s different is that we’re out on the water and we’re hundred of miles from land. And you know, sometimes you have to wait for the storm to blow over and you’re at the whim of Mother Nature. And I think that’s the one big difference between what we do and what other guys do. I don’t want to minimize what the loggers, the truckers, the miners…I don’t want to minimize how hard that job is with the various shows that they’re making. It’s a difficult job. It’s just that it’s a little different because, at the end of the day, they don’t have 40-foot waves coming at them.