The "Nautical Accomplishment" Story
It was an ordinary day. Just saw the news that Laura Dekker, the 16 year old Dutch teenager, broke the record that Jessica Watson held for youngest solo world tour. In a sailboat!! She left from Sint Maarten, my favorite vacation destination, on January 20, 2011 on here world tour in her 38-foot-ketch nicknamed "Guppy" and returned home Saturday, January 21, 2012. Quite an accomplishment for any sailor, especially one as young as Laura. Dutch authorities tried to stop her from starting her trek last year, saying that she was too young to risk her life. Her school officials said that she should be in the classroom and not sailing. Unlike others who have crossed the world, Laura stopped at ports along the way to sleep, study and make needed repairs to her sailboat. She was never at sea more than three weeks at at a time. Laura traveled more than 27,000 nautical miles on the trip with stops in places I wish I could see. She made stops at places like the Canary Islands, the Galapagos Islands, Tonga, Fiji, Bora Bora, Australia, South Africa and then back to Sint Maarten. The only place she made a stop where I have been was in Panama. I had heard she was going to land in Sint Maarten soon by reading TravelTalkOnline (TTOL), a travel online board that I follow regularly. This morning I checked and there were comments that she was expected to arrive
today. It has been 41 days in high seas and heavy winds since she had left Cape Town, South Africa. When she arrived she came through the Simpson Bay bridge at 3:00 PM to a waiting crowd of about 500. There were boats to greet her, horns blowing and cheers from the crowd. The Sint Maarten Yacht Club was there to help in the celebration. Many members of the crowd were children and young adults the same age as Laura. I'm sure she must be quite an inspiration to all of them.Dekker's achievement will not be entered in the Guinness Book of World Records, however, as it has refused to recognize records by minors which are considered "unsuitable." Laura's blog can be found at http://lauradekker.nl/English/News.html. I'm positive I could never had completed the journey, since I get motion sick at times. Great job Laura! Only wish I could have been in Sint Maarten to greet you. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy. PS - photos were taken by TTOL member boucharda after Laura had passed through the bridge and when she had docked.
It was an ordinary day. Just saw the news that Laura Dekker, the 16 year old Dutch teenager, broke the record that Jessica Watson held for youngest solo world tour. In a sailboat!! She left from Sint Maarten, my favorite vacation destination, on January 20, 2011 on here world tour in her 38-foot-ketch nicknamed "Guppy" and returned home Saturday, January 21, 2012. Quite an accomplishment for any sailor, especially one as young as Laura. Dutch authorities tried to stop her from starting her trek last year, saying that she was too young to risk her life. Her school officials said that she should be in the classroom and not sailing. Unlike others who have crossed the world, Laura stopped at ports along the way to sleep, study and make needed repairs to her sailboat. She was never at sea more than three weeks at at a time. Laura traveled more than 27,000 nautical miles on the trip with stops in places I wish I could see. She made stops at places like the Canary Islands, the Galapagos Islands, Tonga, Fiji, Bora Bora, Australia, South Africa and then back to Sint Maarten. The only place she made a stop where I have been was in Panama. I had heard she was going to land in Sint Maarten soon by reading TravelTalkOnline (TTOL), a travel online board that I follow regularly. This morning I checked and there were comments that she was expected to arrive 
No comments:
Post a Comment