Cruise leader is probably most demanding role during the scientific cruise.
He is that ONE person that has to know (or guess) everything (at least that’s how it looks like), and keep both small details, and large picture, together. He’s that person people will turn to with questions like "Where are the latex gloves?" "Where are bottles and pipettes?" "Why is there no internet?" “Where can I find some screws, aluminum foil?” “What happens if…” “Why does the vacuum pump not work?” etc.
More importantly, he is that one person everyone will look up to, when something goes wrong or does not work. Although research cruises are carefully planned in advance, nearly never will everything go after the plan, and then the quick thinking and flexibility determines the success of the cruise. It also takes some experience to be able to re-adjust your plans, since the time is limited, and there are no do-overs during the cruise.
I took the liberty to secretly observe our cruise leader “in action”, but despite of how these pictures look like, Kristian has been unbelievably calm and relaxed and non-stressed, actually in all cruises that I have participated.
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