Jessica Watson's Round-the-World Voyage

[svtadpole]

A "tradional" cicumnavigation would be to start & finish in a European port ... this involves a long haul down & then back up the N & S Atlantic ... this young lady's circumnavigation started & finished in Sydney, Australia ... it is that which the purists & nit-pickers are griping about .... even if her journey time may not set any "official" records we ought to nevertheless applaud her superhuman effort & carry her shoulder-high as a conquering heroine ...

[Mariness]

I don't understand - why would only a from-Europe route be good? Just because the first ones were? Not that it should matter - she's proved that she could do it, which is probably all that's important to her & her family.
But with the recent spread of sailing technology, now that plenty of sailors come from other places, it seems like this might be an antiquated perspective?

[svtadpole]

Originally Posted by Mariness

I don't understand - why would only a from-Europe route be good? Just because the first ones were?

Perhaps ... just perhaps because ever since Drake, that is how a circumnavigation is judged .... that is how Knox-Johnstone & Chichester did it & that is how all the RTW races do it .... ?

[TaoJones]

Originally Posted by Mariness

I don't understand - why would only a from-Europe route be good? Just because the first ones were? Not that it should matter - she's proved that she could do it, which is probably all that's important to her & her family.
But with the recent spread of sailing technology, now that plenty of sailors come from other places, it seems like this might be an antiquated perspective?

It isn't the start / finish location that is important, Mariness, it's the total distance covered. It must be at least the equivalent of one earth diameter, as calculated under what has come to be the accepted, great circle, waypoint-to-waypoint method.

To geopower's question of whether the arrival and following ceremony will be available online - I still don't know, but Australia's Network 10 is making claims to some exclusivity in the coverage. Here's a link: Full Episodes & Videos | Channel Ten. What is still uncertain is whether they will be live-streaming the event.

TaoJones

[slomotion]

Originally Posted by svtadpole

Perhaps ... just perhaps because ever since Drake, that is how a circumnavigation is judged .... that is how Knox-Johnstone & Chichester did it & that is how all the RTW races do it .... ?

All this is true enough. Yet, the first solo circumnavigator was Joshua Slocum and he sailed from Massachusetts. Robin Lee Graham sailed from southern California. I think Vito Dumas was the first to claim a solo circumnavigation starting in the southern hemisphere - Buenos Aires. Amazingly, he did it in the middle of World War II - that guy deserves a special place in the solo circumnavigators' asylum. I don't think Jon Sanders ever solo sailed much above the equator, but he went around so many times that it is doubtful anyone will even try to challenge his records.

[John A]

As long as we're nit-picking. I thought that Robin Graham had his future wife on board for a brief time, so his wasn't a true solo circumnavigation.

[Hirophant]

Originally Posted by SvenG

Interesting theory about why she didn't do the last 10% needed for the record:

Well the crash delay can't be the reason, because the route was decided in May 2009 (it's in her 3 May 2009 blog entry), before Jess even took delivery of the S&S 34, let alone crashed it kamikaze style into a bulk carrier. The route might still have been chosen for timing the season though (particularly the onset of winter in the southern ocean) since they were originally assuming the trip might take a month longer than it did.

[Wotname]

SHE IS HOME.
J W has crossed the finish line but has not yet disembarked - Bloody well done Jessica!!!!

[sec906]

Go, Jessica!!

Solo sailor Jessica Watson returns to Australia | News.com.au

TEN Video Player: Watch Full Episodes and Exclusive Video Interviews

[sec906]

If you're on right now, there is live video here.

[GeoPowers]

Great links, thanks sec906!!

[ozmike]

Well done Jess, you realised your dream, and what a mature young lady, her speech was great, to disagree with the priminister who called her a "hero" she stated she was not a hero just a young person who had a dream and realised that dream, and all 16 yr olds if giving support and respect can also achieve dreams, so for all the knockers, just think what these young people have done for sailing in whole, yacht sales will increase, sailing schools will see an increase in interest, its all win win for sailing, and if you are selling an S & S 34 increase the price!!!!!

[Stillraining]

Quit the young lady...Heroin?..maybe not...but one of my Heroes non the less.

[SvenG]

Definitely a heroin and a Captain worth our respect.

Never did get to see anything beyond 20 minutes before her arrival. Maybe the video feeds outside Australia had to be curtailed due to bandwidth.



-Sven

[Hirophant]

Saw her "no more heroes" clip on Sky news in the UK, I liked how everyone cheered when she said she disagreed with the prime minister! The BBC meanwhile only had a tiny item and went with the angle "WSSRC won't recognise her as the youngest sailor — because she's too young!"

Overall I was disappointed at the slender coverage, it made me realise how the TV news programmes vastly prefer bad news stories, they seem to have endless time for those and almost none for feelgood stuff like this. The BBC item was about 20 seconds, even the Sky one hardly a minute I think. Mind you, the streets of Bangkok running red with blood is pretty stiff competition I guess....