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The Daily Dish Below Deck

Ashton Pienaar Addresses Rhylee Gerber's "Boys' Club" Accusations About the Deck Crew

"We did not get along with Rhylee because she’s Rhylee, and she has the attitude that she has," the Below Deck bosun said.

By Laura Rosenfeld

Ashton Pienaar has some things he'd like to clarify about this season of Below Deck

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The Daily Dish recently caught up with Ashton during a phone interview in which he reflected on the conflicts of Season 7. "Anything negative, whether it was socially on the boat or a little joke or something like that, was really magnified," Ashton said when asked if there's anything his fellow crew members or fans have gotten wrong about him this season.

Ashton went on to address two of the biggest accusations that have been made against him. "The whole misogynistic thing and the whole boys-verse-girls thing, that’s kind of the theme of the way the season has gone. And, you know, I don’t look at it as another boys' thing, as this female-against-male thing," he said. "If the guys had issues with Kate [Chastain] and Rhylee [Gerber] throughout the season — that’s what it [is]." 

For instance, Ashton said that everyone in the deck crew had been "bumping heads with Rhylee." "We didn’t not get along with Rhylee because she’s female," Ashton said. "We did not get along with Rhylee because she’s Rhylee, and she has the attitude that she has."

Ashton said he wasn't alone in having drama with Kate either, citing Brian de Saint Pern's argument with her over the use of the word "yachtie" earlier this season. "Everybody has their fair share of run-ins with Kate," Ashton said. "Brian had the [moment] where he called her a 'bitch,' which obviously blew up. And I’ve had my issues with Kate."

The bosun said that he always tries "to see both sides" and "to understand the whole situation in its entirety," which he thinks others should do as well while looking at this season of Below Deck. "I think it’s very easy for people to kind of throw the 'misogynistic' word out there and say it’s the boys thing and the girls thing," Ashton said. "But I think people need to just take responsibility for what kind of led up to those things — as I should as well."

However, Ashton said that he also recognizes that comments like the ones he made while expressing his sexual frustration to Kevin Dobson do come off this way. "I don’t think it was right, and I don’t think I should have said it," he shared. "After thinking about it long and hard, I can see how that is misogynistic to a woman, and that’s just a pity that I said that type of thing.”

Ashton took a break from social media for about a month at the end of 2019 and the beginning of the new year in order to take a step back from the negativity he was receiving and take some "time to self-reflect on everything that has taken place."

"I think part of the big reason why I’m taking all the social media hate to heart is I know who I am and all my close friends and family know who I am. And it’s not me. I’m not that person," Ashton said. "That’s what really gets to me." 

At the same time, Ashton said he understands where fans are coming from this season. "I need to take responsibility for that, which I’m trying to do," he said.

Ashton added, "I think my efforts to explain my perspective in many of the situations that transpired is taken as a defense to my actions; it most certainly is not. I am not proud of some of the comments I have made throughout this season and most certainly not of my behavior in the van, and I apologize for this."

By looking back at the events of this season of Below Deck, Ashton hopes to be able to change for the better. "It is important for me to analyze situations including everything and everyone involved. This allows me a better understanding of how and why things took place," he shared. "I believe this is how we learn and grow from the experiences in our lives."

Ashton opens up more about this season in the Below Deck Season 7 After Show, above.

See what's coming up on Below Deck, below. Catch up on this season through the Bravo app.

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