Beck began his life as a seaman on board his brother's ship Olivia,[REF] and later served on the sealer Harald Hårfager and the schooner and sealer William Barents [REF].
Beck captained the Holmengrå on a research expedition to Svalbard in 1908,[REF] and in 1909 he captained the sailing sloop Marie from Kristiania for Gunnar Holmsen's expedition to Spitsbergen [REF].