We stayed on one of the three moorings in June of last year after permission from the owner - which we obtained through a friend. The owner shared with our friend that the moorings are privately owned (by at least two people who own homes in Sugarcane) and were installed for boats larger than our 43 PC. By the way, the one we stayed on was solid at the time (it's not the one he was on), but it did have more growth than the national park and BoatyBall moorings. It was also a calm night in June with no swell.

Regarding Alan Carter - the Wandering Hillbilly - we met him last year, and he seemed like a genuinely good person. I have also enjoyed his videos. I'm sure he gets something financial out of his YouTube prominence (likely peanuts compared to his real job), but it seems like his main motivation is helping others by sharing knowledge and providing a unique experience for his family and friends.

I really hate that this happened to him, and I humbly admit that I've made numerous mistakes that (fortunately) have not resulted in a similar fate - but could have.
True cruisers state that grounding a boat is inevitable if you go out enough, and every year that we go on our two week adventure in the BVI, I learn ways to reduce the odds of this happening - but I'm still learning. I'll be curious what others says about backing down on mooring balls - especially with a PC. We put the motors in reverse to add pressure to test the ball, but we have heard that you aren't supposed to back down too hard with a PC. I like to see the ball sink and hold, but we don't add additional throttle - is this correct?

Anyway, I hope Alan bounces back from this. I know that I have gained some additional perspective from his ordeal.