Abby Sunderland - The Debate

[Hirophant]

Originally Posted by Eleebana

So the solo sailor has to sleep sometime.

Learning sleep management skills is the thing. In other words how to get by with short naps. In rough weather Jessica Watson reported only taking 5 minutes kip at a time in between checking everything was ok. Sometimes this went on for days before she could catch up with her sleep. There are courses you can take to help learn the skills, you also need to practice on dry land a bit before you depart!

[Mariness]

How to get by on ridiculously low amounts of sleep is a skill people are willing to pay to learn?
I think I may need to get together with my new-Mom friends and start a school!

[slomotion]

Originally Posted by Christian Van H

Mark maybe a little cranky...most old folks are in bed by now It's easy for him to talk! He's doing it right!, and he respects the power of the Sea.

Mark is cranky because the Australian government has advised him that due to hinting at criticism of Jessica Watson, Jesse Martin, and (gasp!) Jon Sanders, he can never return unless he pays for protective custody.

[Hirophant]

Yes I was surprised that this is a skill teenagers don't already have! But maybe Abby and co are not the sort of girls who normally party until dawn?

[Get-a-Life]

Knockdowns are the fault of oversailing! What rubbish.

Obviously said by someone who has not experienced one.

I would say that I am the most overcautious sailor you can ever find. Mainly that I can't swim, therefore I have the best reason in the world to stay onboard.

We were approaching a land fall and had 3 reefs in the main, smallest jib possible hanked on in 20knots of breeze, when we looked out to starboard and saw a rogue wave which looked like a surf break approaching, just had time to release the main and hang on. A knockdown, it was all over in a few seconds. Our friends following in their yacht a hundred or so metres astern saw it all and couldn'r believe it. They were still in a slightly lumpy sea.

No big deal.

And as for the constant military references on this thread, once again I say rubbish.

There are plenty of instances of 16 year olds fighting in the second world war and speaking from experience there are many an 18 year old wondering what the hell they are doing there also. It is only later in life that I and others I associate with realize how many dumb things we did and how little thought we gave to actually being killed. I now wish that when going into battle it could be like in the old days, kings, generals and politicians in the front line leading the troops. Now that would end the majority of wars.

Abbys sin from MHO was the wrong boat, and I agree with the comment that if she had the right boat, she had the skills to complete the journey. This doesn't mean that I agree with dangerous record breaking attempts.

Fine line between "reckless and well thought out and planned."

[Adelie]

Originally Posted by Get-a-Life

And as for the constant military references on this thread, once again I say rubbish.

There are plenty of instances of 16 year olds fighting in the second world war and speaking from experience there are many an 18 year old wondering what the hell they are doing there also. It is only later in life that I and others I associate with realize how many dumb things we did and how little thought we gave to actually being killed. I now wish that when going into battle it could be like in the old days, kings, generals and politicians in the front line leading the troops. Now that would end the majority of wars.

I would like to know what good old days those were. My understanding is that with rare exceptions, going back to the greeks, kings, generals and politicians led from behind . This is not to say they did not come to blows, since periodically they were outflanked or attached themselves to the stategic reserve so they could go in and mop up the wounded, covering themselves with blood and to a certain extent glory. Those that waded into the thick of things generally had their backs to the wall needing every body available but only did so after the front lines had engaged. Maybe I read the wrong history books.

[Christian Van H]

Originally Posted by Adelie

This is not to say they did not come to blows, since periodically they were outflanked or attached themselves to the stategic reserve so they could go in and mop up the wounded, covering themselves with blood and to a certain extent glory.

Anyone who ever saw "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" knows how to spot a king out in a field... Anyone care to remember? As for sleep deprivation, I think that's taught in college. Abby had two more years before she'd take those classes...

[surfingminniwinni]

Three rescued in boat drama Tasmania News - The Mercury - The Voice of Tasmania

Cynical Bastard that I'am, I will repeat this story here, and ponder the questions I asked in the other thread.

What, only 8 posts?

No questions about what they were doing out there?
No questions about why they couldn't sail off a lee shore?
No second guessing their motives?
No quetioning how experienced they were?
So what if the motor stopped it was a sailboat after all.
No talking up how it should of been done?(by desktop sailors)
Or did their parents let them go?
Or should the parents be locked up?


Oh thats right they were men. According to this forum if your a man its ok to stuff up and sink a boat.

Not that I'm condemming the crew of Merlot, its just the sexist agist crap that gets dished up here.

All I can say is thank god they wern't 3 x teengage girls. We would have had 6,352 posts by now. The I told you so gaggle would be frothing at the mouth.

Perhaps if they had Jessica or Abby as crew things would have been different. The boat might be still with us.

[chrome dome]

l think you will find there has been plenty of vigorous finger pointing at men who have done much the same..or worse.
you seem to have forgotten those..

[surfingminniwinni]

Not around here!

[Michael D]

Geraldo? Wasn't he the guy whose boat was taken round the world by a hired crew andhe showed up here and there to film segments including one predictable encounter with pirates? Else how did he manage to not miss a single TV appearance that year?

And these are the 'experts' on whose opinion the world relys?

Bwa Ha Ha HA aha ha ha aha hhhhaaaaaaa hiccup..yeah sure right.

Gonna have to do better than that.

Voo Doo reporting is more like it.

M.

[mikereed100]

Originally Posted by surfingminniwinni

Three rescued in boat drama Tasmania News - The Mercury - The Voice of Tasmania

Anyone who can wreck a 65' yacht and start a brushfire in the same afternoon has my deepest respect.

[Bash]

Originally Posted by slomotion

We still don't know the circumstances of her knockdown, but there is no shame in knockdowns. They are a frequent and commonly unavoidable consequence of sailing remote and dangerous waters regardless of season.

I'd have a hard time calling a knockdown "unavoidable." I say this as someone who has been knocked several times--always during offshore races. In all of those occasions it was clearly avoidable had we not been pushing the boat so hard. Or, admittedly, had we been better sailors in better boats.

While it seems to me that every great once in a while a knockdown might be unavoidable, especially in terms of a rogue wave or equipment breakdown, I suspect that the great majority of knockdowns happen for one of three reasons: (1) the helm wasn't paying attention (or maybe too exhausted to pay the wheel proper attention); (2) the boat was carrying too much sail for the conditions; (3) the skipper/helmsperson didn't have enough experience to deal with the conditions.

I've never been a big proponent of singlehanded passagemaking, but even there I think there are ways to do it without getting knocked. If it's nasty outside, before you hit the rack shorten sail enough so that a knockdown isn't possible. Better yet, heave to.

Of course, it's hard to do that if you're trying to set a record.

[chrome dome]

Originally Posted by mikereed100

Anyone who can wreck a 65' yacht and start a bushfire in the same afternoon has my deepest respect.

fixed it for ya mate..no need to thank me

[Michael D]

One doesn't need to go to college to learn about sleep deprivation. Plenty of information on the internet. REM sleep in cycles and all the rest is not a big mystery. And one can't compare a boat platform with say an UMCA event where the average is two hours every 24 and a liquid carbo diet for sustenance.

The one thing I would question and question hard is the time of year. East about in the roaring 40's in the southern winter? But then two of the five capes had already been passed including Agulhas, home to the 'rogue wave' phenomena. Seemingly she then stood a better than even chance until I think of Steve Way an experienced circumnavigator whose five capes try started and finished in the bight of Australia with a dismasting and that was in their summertime.

Being old and somewhat shopworn I'll stick with west about on the north side of 35S and forget the record books. But there are times when I miss the burning ambitions of my youth....before I grew old enough to learn better.

Yep she only got half way which is not coincidentally just about half way farther than her detractors. No parents, no government, no TV reporters, no do gooders. and no hired crew.

good on ya Abbey...good onya!

M.