So, Ken is the guy who opted out of his sailboat “Maestro” remodeling life, to take on Fazisi. Meet Maestro:

Ok, Ken has owned and sailed quite a few boats in is lifetime. He has never sailed around the world (yet), but there is still time!

Anyway, everything in his life took a backseat when he received a call from Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, where they explained that Fazisi had been abandoned and was a derelict vessel. As they explained to Ken over the first phone call, Fazisi was stuck in Jack Channel, with only 8 feet of water under her belly.

They stated “She was taking on water. The fiberglass is all cracking apart and the deck is rusting.”

Ok, let’s all just think this through… FWC could not tell Ken how deep the water was inside of Fazisi, because the boat was locked and they could not see is the engine was swimming or still above water. The only visible “Taking on Water” was in one cockpit. The bird poop and feathers had clogged the drains and there were a few inches of water in the PORT cockpit, along with an abundance of green algae.

The Port cockpit is very dark, even from this image from outer space! Algae in The Cockpit!!! Fazisi was built from an aluminum alloy, not fiberglass. What appeared to be broken fiberglass was really the fairing compound at the edge of the deck and hull, which had been severely damaged back in 2017, when a huge crane lifted her up and placed her on a barge to be hauled off and turned into scrap. Then, the crane picked her back up a few months later and placed her back in the water. The deck used to house 16 winches, which were removed after the hurricane of ’17 and the holes in the deck were temporarily covered over with steel pizza pans to keep the rain out. These pizza pans, even though they were painted, did not hold up to the salt spray and the elements. So, they began rusting out and leaking a bit.

Fast forward a bit: Fazisi was in the hands of a very capable man, but this project is huge and has always been a full-time baby-sitting job. It leaves no time for other things, such as a personal life. I know this to be true on my own account! On March 22, 2024, when the FWC called and told me of the condition of Fazisi, they were looking to arrest the owner for several charges, Anyway, within a few days, they changed their minds. I had promised them that I was going to work with the current owner, remotely, and assure the FWC that Fazisi was not really a derelict vessel, that it was not in danger of sinking and, above all, was not going to “Damage The Florida Environment”. A deal was made. Fazisi changed ownership. The vessel was removed from the shallow channel and anchored in 24 feet of water and all systems were verified to be working properly, with a bit of work. FWC returned to Fazisi and did a thorough inspection. Fazisi passed with flying colors! It was a proud moment for me, knowing that Fazisi has always been in the crosshairs of several law enforcement agencies in the Florida Keys since Hurricane Irma.