Harbor lights: Sailing around isn’t kids’ play

by Harry MunnsTwo weeks ago, Abby Sunderland, who turned 16 last October, sailed away from the dock at the Del Rey Yacht Club in a bid to become the youngest person to sail around the world non-stop and unassisted.
I can’t figure out whether I feel like she’s exercising her youthful need to make a mark on the world or she’s a victim of parental abuse. That’s a harsh thing to suggest but her parents have been answering similar accusations, most of which have been expressed somewhat more subtly, since announcing her plans to circumnavigate the globe last August.

On April 24, 1895, at the age of 51, adventurer Joshua Slocum departed Boston in his tiny sloop Spray and sailed around the world single-handed, a passage of 46,000 miles, returning to Newport, Rhode Island on June 27, 1898. It was the first recorded passage of its kind.
Today, boats like the ones docked in King Harbor, sail around the world more often than most people realize. At any given moment, there are people in relatively small sailboats (70 feet and under) experiencing some stage of a quest to circumnavigate the world.

There are also races such as the Clipper 09-10 Around the World Yacht Race and the Volvo Ocean Race, that pit seasoned crews of professional, adult sailors (mostly men) against each other to see who can circle the globe first. Competitors in the Velux 5 Oceans Race sail single-handed around the world.

Abby Sunderland won’t experience the onboard intensity of competing against the best sailors in the world. That difference in stress may prove to be insignificant. She’ll face the same fierce winds and huge, ocean waves, the same mechanical failures and the same demands on her internal strength that have overwhelmed more than a few professional competitors.

She’ll sail south, take a left after South America and keep going east through the Southern Ocean. A considerable portion of the Velux course stretches through the same waters.

On November 11, 2006, Velux competitor Mike Golding wrote in his log, “On Ecover we were seeing regular speeds in excess of 30 knots and our averages were around 20 knots. This is the most stressful sailing humanly possible — the speed is electrifying and the Southern Ocean is the most fearful location. Here the wind and waves have been uninterrupted by land for 15,000 miles and this makes it the best place for high speed sailing but also the most terrifying for the sheer hostile and uncontrolled power exerted by the elements.”

Golding’s next log entry was his account of the dramatic, open-ocean rescue of his fellow racer, Alex Thomson, and how they watched Thomson’s 70 foot boat Hugo Boss sink.

The same day Abby Sunderland left Marina del Rey, Australia native Jessica Watson was preparing for a storm in the middle of the Atlantic aboard her 34 foot, Sparkman Stephens sloop, Ella’s Pink Lady. She survived the storm that was described as having, “…hurricane-force wind gusts of up to 70 knots and a swell of 7-10 meters.”

Jessica Watson turned 16 in May. If you haven’t guessed already, she’s also attempting to become the youngest person to sail solo, non-stop and unassisted around the World.

Abby Sunderland wrote in a blog post, “Sixteen seems to be the age now for people to head out on their circumnavigations.” Laura Dekker, a Dutch 14 year old, didn’t want to wait that long. She made headlines in August when legal action was taken to prevent her from departing on a solo circumnavigation. The court has since set out guidelines she must follow in preparation for her ocean voyage. If all goes as planned, she may get to leave as soon as March of this year.

Abby’s brother Zac held the record for youngest person to solo circumnavigate. The voyage lasted 13 months. His record stood for a little more than one month.

Sailing around the world is no joke. Doing it alone borders on recklessness. Sailors who do it at any age face nearly constant fatigue, the risk of collisions, pirates, starvation, dehydration and many other dangers. On the other hand, imagine the overwhelming feeling of accomplishment anyone would experience after overcoming all of that.
Should any parent deny their child such an incredible adventure and achievement at a time in life when he or she is making the transition from childhood into adulthood? I have no idea. I just hope I’m never faced with that choice.

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