Child of the Year

[OsmundL]

Anybody have a suitable 10-year old to sacrifice?

Today, Jessica Watson was named Australian of the Year for sailing solo, unassisted, non-stop around the world at the age of 16.

Don't misunderstand, I am totally in awe of Jessica Watson, she is one tough cookie, but as we have seen in some less fortunate attempts, circumnavigation is not quite in the league of winning a dancing contest or topping a math competition.

It should not be a goal to be "youngest" in this kind of endeavour, methinks. Jessica Watson deserves recognition, but it ought not spark a round into child territory?

[rikhall]

Originally Posted by OsmundL

circumnavigation is not quite in the league of winning a dancing contest or topping a math competition.

I totally agree, thousands and thousands of kids can win a math competition, a music festival or a dance competion. All of those take brains or memory or some speciallized skill.

Almost 500 people have gone into space whereas those who have circumnavigated solo are less than half of that. And to be a young female sailor in that group, Well done Jessica Watson!

Rik

[sailingdog]

Congrats to Jessica.

[SlowButSteady]

Sooner or later some young kid (teenager, maybe younger) is going to die attempting one of these stunts.

[rikhall]

Originally Posted by SlowButSteady

attempting one of these stunts.

Wow, I would hardly call circumnavigating the world a stunt.

And I doubt that Joshua Slocum, Francis Chichester, Robin Lee Graham or the others who did it would think it a stunt either.

Credit where credit is due!

Rik

[Glen53]

This has become one of my favorite quotes “low visibility means that you can see very little of the bad weather” Jessica Watson Jan 7, 2010

[sailingdog]

I'd point out that one of the major differences between Jessica and some others who did not succeed is that Jessica was responsible for choosing and outfitting her boat and knew the boat incredibly well as a result. When she had problems, she had a good idea of what broke and how to fix it or do without it—which was clearly not the case with her nearest competitor....

[pdqaltair]

When my daughter was 4 she called an ambulance for my wife (diabetic). That is all I can ever ask.

[SlowButSteady]

Originally Posted by rikhall

Wow, I would hardly call circumnavigating the world a stunt.

And I doubt that Joshua Slocum, Francis Chichester, Robin Lee Graham or the others who did it would think it a stunt either.

Those gentlemen were experienced mariners. They all had many, many miles of bluewater under their keels. They also didn't need a small army of paid and unpaid advisors, consultants, and hangers-on to get their boats ready, plan their voyages, and constantly keep them from disaster once they left the harbor. In short, they all knew what they were doing and what they were getting into.

Edit:
Oops. When I saw Robin Lee Graham's name I thought "Robin Knox-Johnson". I suppose he didn't have much, if any, bluewater sailing experience. However, he didn't attempt a non-stop circumnavigation, either.

[sailingdog]

I'd point out that Jessica had more experience than Robin Lee Graham, was intimately involved in all aspects of fitting out Ella's Pink Lady for the voyage, and had thousands of miles, including captaining a 35' sailboat on a Tasman Sea crossing before she left. For you to dismiss her voyage as a stunt because she was sixteen at the time of her setting out on her circumnavigation clearly shows you don't have a damn clue about what you're saying.

Unlike Abby Sunderland, Jessica was pretty clearly in charge of her voyage and making her own decisions. You probably should read her blog's entries that were made during her voyage, before saying anything else...

Originally Posted by SlowButSteady

Those gentlemen were experienced mariners. They all had many, many miles of bluewater under their keels. They also didn't need a small army of paid and unpaid advisors, consultants, and hangers-on to get their boats ready, plan their voyages, and constantly keep them from disaster once they left the harbor. In short, they all knew what they were doing and what they were getting into.

Edit:
Oops. When I saw Robin Lee Graham's name I thought "Robin Knox-Johnson". I suppose he didn't have much, if any, bluewater sailing experience. However, he didn't attempt a non-stop circumnavigation, either.