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Abottleofrum · 12-04-2017, 10:33

Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul; whenever I find myself involuntarily pausing before coffin warehouses, and bringing up the rear of every funeral I meet; and especially whenever my hypos get such an upper hand of me, that it requires a strong moral principle to prevent me from deliberately stepping into the street, and methodically knocking people's hats off - then, I account it high time to get to sea as soon as I can. This is my substitute for pistol and ball.

Yo ho, yo ho.

Afternoon ladies and gents. I have this insane idea. Madcap, ludicrous, and laughable. But I need to see it happen. Deny me here, and I shall go elsewhere, and further still.

I'm 25 years old, college educated, watchmaker by trade, and I want to sail around the world in an attempt to raise awareness and research funding for Type 2 Diabetes, something that effects 29 million people in the US alone. I intend to do this solo.

Or, y'know, with a dozen cute girls in bikinis. But lets focus on the preliminary portion.

I'll have about 20k, including a little extra I might have saved here or there. in the bank come september. The intention is not to half-ass this (looking at you Panama Canal) which means I'll be sailing for the Horn... from the East.

Actually, let's ignore that balls crazy idea of that for a moment. Let's just talk about boats here. I know I need a displacement vessel of some sort for trans-Pacific/Atlantic voyages. But I have no idea what would be the best bang for my buck, or what type I should really be honing in on. So, I humbly place myself at the feet of those far more knowledgeable than myself.

What do I need and how do I do it?

Don't say experience. I need to do this for reasons more than Im straight up stating.

Sea Dreaming · 12-04-2017, 11:21

Is 20k your entire budget to buy the boat, provision and maintain your boat? Do you have sponsors to offset costs? Do you have friends and sorters in far flung places?

I will never discourage anyone from living their dream. However you may need much more planning and support than you may currently have.

How much risk are you willing to take for this adventure?

Scot McPherson · 12-04-2017, 11:27

If you got yourself properly sorted as a cause, I would support you. You might want to do a little fund raising first to boost the kitty to buy and outfit a boat. Fund raising is tough...You need to legitimize yourself first, and that's probably the hardest part of your whole idea. Been going through that phase myself for the last 3 years.

Shrew · 12-04-2017, 11:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by Abottleofrum

I have this insane idea. Madcap, ludicrous, and laughable.

I'm 25 years old....... and I want to sail around the world........

Honestly, this isn't even an original idea. This forum and You Tube are packed with dozens upon dozens with relatively the same notion. In fact, I'd say you're late to the party.

Abottleofrum · 12-04-2017, 12:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sea Dreaming

Is 20k your entire budget to buy the boat, provision and maintain your boat? Do you have sponsors to offset costs? Do you have friends and sorters in far flung places?

I will never discourage anyone from living their dream. However you may need much more planning and support than you may currently have.

How much risk are you willing to take for this adventure?

Unfortunately, that is all that I will have by the end of the summer. And while viewing various sailing websites, its clear many are available for under that amount... this can't and should not be approached with the same notion as buying a car to drive to work. Just because somethings in my budget, doesn't mean its what I NEED. But Im hoping you can all point me in the right direction.

As far as sponsors, and this is something that Scot McPherson also brought up... none. Im in this awkward position of being unable to stand and say "YES, I have a boat to do this so I could do this with or without you," and would instead resort too "I don't have a boat and I NEED your sponsorship to get one." And, unfortunately, Im unfamiliar with how to net more serious ones.

I am willing to risk all that I am, for that is all that I have. My life is inconsequential at this point.

Shrew: Yeah,I know. The party is more or less over, and Im just riding on other people's wakes at this point. Doesn't mean its something I want to do any less though.

Scot McPherson · 12-04-2017, 12:21

stop with the your life is inconsequential bit...I don't know what you went thru, but to be quite frank, you need to get over it...you won't get anywhere and won't get anything done with a nihilistic, self-disgust, self-destructive attitude.

Pick yourself up by the bootstraps and get something done. You'll do yourself a huge favor and will be more effective for your cause.

I mean that with caring honesty and sincerity.

Abottleofrum · 12-04-2017, 12:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scot McPherson

stop with the your life is inconsequential bit...I don't know what you went thru, but to be quite frank, you need to get over it...you won't get anywhere and won't get anything done with a nihilistic, self-disgust, self-destructive attitude.

Pick yourself up by the bootstraps and get something done. You'll do yourself a huge favor and will be more effective for your cause.

I mean that with caring honesty and sincerity.

Whole-heartedly agreed, though I see this as my attempt to do so. You asked me what am I willing to risk, and my answer is myself. I can't approach this sort of venture without anything less on the table. It would be insulting to the rest of you to come here and pretend this is nothing but perfectly sunny days and good breezes ahead of me.

Rest assured, this isn't "Millenial got bored with life, wants to go on sailing instagram trip." I have logged too many hours with online research, nose in as many books, and at my local shipyard picking brains to consider this a passing fancy. Consider it my single minded-obsession that's kept me driven these past five months. But, my town specializes in the fishing/motorboat industry, so a rather poor place to get any info, and any chance of making my way to Annapolis or the Chesapeake for solely knowledge gathering is slim.

Hence why Im here, really. If Im going to pull the trigger, it needs to be as close to "right" as I can get it.

Sea Dreaming · 12-04-2017, 12:38

I think you need to do a lot more research into the idea of sailing around the world. Only because you need a firm understanding of what you are asking of yourself and what kind of money it will really take. I'm not saying "give up" but doing your trip will require much more than a forum post. I'm sure you know that. 20,000 is probably the very bottom of buying a boa that will take you round and is just to buy the boat. You will need money for food and repairs too. Some repairs can get very expensive.
I'm a firm believer that the universe will answer your call but it might not be in the way you envision. It just might take more time and money than you currently allot for.
Keep in mind too every country has entrance fees. It will be very difficult to get around that and YOU will need to reprovision as you go. So you will need money for customs, food, repairs, clothing and possibly an emergency fund if everything goes south.
You will also need a way to get weather reports and you will need a way to communicate off shore.
Have you considered these things?
And sorry, there really isn't a way to work your way around. Local economies want to give locals the jobs. However you might be able to teach English if you have a degree that you can use.
I'm just saying flesh out your idea with more details and then see where you stand.

Abottleofrum · 12-04-2017, 12:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sea Dreaming

I think you need to do a lot more research into the idea of sailing around the world. Only because you need a firm understanding of what you are asking of yourself and what kind of money it will really take. I'm not saying "give up" but doing your trip will require much more than a forum post. I'm sure you know that. 20,000 is probably the very bottom of buying a boa that will take you round and is just to buy the boat. You will need money for food and repairs too. Some repairs can get very expensive.
I'm a firm believer that the universe will answer your call but it might not be in the way you envision. It just might take more time and money than you currently allot for.
Keep in mind too every country has entrance fees. It will be very difficult to get around that and YOU will need to reprovision as you go. So you will need money for customs, food, repairs, clothing and possibly an emergency fund if everything goes south.
You will also need a way to get weather reports and you will need a way to communicate off shore.
Have you considered these things?
And sorry, there really isn't a way to work your way around. Local economies want to give locals the jobs. However you might be able to teach English if you have a degree that you can use.
I'm just saying flesh out your idea with more details and then see where you stand.

Slight hope that my skill as a watchmaker would help offset some of the day to day expenses and living, if only a bit. But yes, I do understand that $20,000 is the very bottom, but its what I can reasonably have unless there's an uncle I don't know about ready to die and will me everything. I genuinely don't need much, but I DO need a seaworthy vessel. Other notable skills: machine shop work, financial accounting degree, metallurgy, horology, and micro engineering degrees.

Since part of my goal is to raise awareness (and by extension, sponsors) for my given cause. However, this is a touch difficult since people want to see feasibility first before they hand over their checks. Im the first one to agree; I'd like to get a boat that's more than $20,000 dollars. If anyone would like to offer feasible ideas to garner this instead of assuming nothing was taken into consideration on my end and I have all the answers (If I did, I wouldn't be asking!), I'm totally on board. Also, consider, that simply what Ill have. Im not getting the boat and setting sail the next day. But IF I am working towards something, I need to know what.

Otherwise, we'd be chatting about what color sails I'd be using.

Scot McPherson · 12-04-2017, 13:19

Feasability aint it....feasibility is for investments...you are looking for donors. That's not the same thing.

You need to look into legitimizing yourself and your cause. You need a website that describes your cause and what you are trying to accomplish, you need to partner with a legitimate 501c3 organization that will sponsor your cause as a project. you need to develop a network of people who are familiar with you, and your cause and who will be willing to help you spread the word. etc etc

Do a lot of research on not for profit fundraising. There is a lot of good free material out there. The crowdsourcing sites also have a lot of material they are will to share to help you succeed, but you MUST get all of your ducks in a row, and legitimize your cause before you pull the trigger and try to start raising money. It's going to take some dedication to get prepared, and that dedication is part of the legitimacy process.

Start with generosity.com...not to start raising funds, but to learn what you really need to do first before you start asking for money.

Abottleofrum · 12-04-2017, 13:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scot McPherson

Feasability aint it....feasibility is for investments...you are looking for donors. That's not the same thing.

You need to look into legitimizing yourself and your cause. You need a website that describes your cause and what you are trying to accomplish, you need to partner with a legitimate 501c3 organization that will sponsor your cause as a project. you need to develop a network of people who are familiar with you, and your cause and who will be willing to help you spread the word. etc etc

Do a lot of research on not for profit fundraising. There is a lot of good free material out there. The crowdsourcing sites also have a lot of material they are will to share to help you succeed, but you MUST get all of your ducks in a row, and legitimize your cause before you pull the trigger and try to start raising money. It's going to take some dedication to get prepared, and that dedication is part of the legitimacy process.

Start with generosity.com...not to start raising funds, but to learn what you really need to do first before you start asking for money.

Scot,

Thanks for the nod in the right direction with regards to legitimizing this venture. Appreciated more than you know.

Anything I should keep in mind for a ship for this? Even if its just buzzwords, so I can do further research.

Sea Dreaming · 12-04-2017, 13:56

Check out the boats less than 30k thread. There us a Yankee 30 that might work for you. It may need additional repairs and equipment. But it's looking in the right direction.

Stumble · 12-04-2017, 14:17

Honestly, no this is not realistic nor is it even approaching safe. I know guys who do this, and pretty much live off the sponsorships and fundraising they can draw in. No one wants to sponsor a guy who sails of foils and gets killed the first week out of port.

So what does your sailing resume look like, how many distance crossing have you done, how many solo trips have you made and of what distance? Do you even have the expertise to know what you need to buy to be safe let alone successful?

You are considering putting yourself intentionally in a situation where any slight mis-step could litterly kill you, and you don't know enough to know where not to put your feet.

Compound this with not having close to enough money to buy a reasonableness boat let alone all the gear you will need... no this won't work and I would be shocked if you could get corporate buy ins for it.

Suijin · 12-04-2017, 14:22

Honestly the best thing for you to do is give Matt Rutherford a call. He sailed non-stop around the Americas on an Albin Vega 27 and made several other interesting voyages. He did it for charity and on a shoestring.

He now works as boat broker at Rogue Wave Yacht Sales in Annapolis, so he can help you find your boat, help you with advice on the fund raising part, and lots of general seamanship/preparation advice. If you're really lucky, he might even talk you out of it.