16-Year-Old Aussie Sailing Solo Around The Globe
Jessica Watson, a sixteen-year-old Australian girl, embarked on a voyage on Sunday which, if completed, will land her in world record books as the youngest person to ever sail around the world without assistance.
Jessica set sail from Sydney Harbor at around nine o’clock Sunday morning as a crowd of supporters wished her “bon voyage” and a train kayaks and small boats ceremoniously escorted her out to sea.
But even as the young skipper’s bright pink yacht prepared to launch, a number of Australian officials continued to urge Watson and her family to abort the mission, fearing that the journey would prove too perilous for so young and inexperienced a seafarer.
And their concerns are not entirely unfounded. In a September test launch, Jessica’s 33-foot yacht collided with a 63,000-ton freight ship not long after leaving the harbor. Though no one was injured, her vessel was badly damaged and the incident sparked concern amongst government officials.
Watson, however, did not appear to be deterred by the incident. Just weeks after the accident, she stated publicly that “there are people out there who I suppose have their doubts, and rightly so because it’s a big, scary and possibly dangerous thing, but I am not here without confidence.”
The planned route will take Jessica from Sydney past northern New Zealand, then on to Fiji, Samoa, South America and South Africa, and then the final, grueling 4,000 nautical mile trek from Africa back to Australia. For roughly eight months, Jessica will sleep only in 20-minute naps for the 23,000 nautical mile adventure.
Australian Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard said that she wishes the best for Watson’s journey but that she also shares the concerns of many Australians for the young girl’s safety.
“The seas are, obviously, a dangerous and lonely place, but I think we’d all be wishing Jessica well,” she said in a television interview.
“Ultimately, people have to make their own decisions. But my words at this stage, given that she’s determined to go, would be to wish her the best of luck and to urge her to keep safe. And if that means that at some point she’s got to abandon the journey, then the most important thing here is a young person’s life.”
After Watson’s September collision with the shipping vessel, Australian authorities from Maritime Safety Queensland reported that the teenager had likely fallen asleep at the wheel and that she did not have an adequate fatigue management plan. In conclusion, the agency stated that Watson lacked the expertise and experience to undertake such a rigorous and dangerous voyage.
The report led to a further statement from Queensland Premier Anna Bligh encouraging the Watson family to reconsider the trip.
“This is a very high-risk venture, frankly it’s one that I would be reconsidering, but ultimately it’s a decision for them,” said Bligh in her official statement.
Before casting off yesterday, Watson had been waiting in Sydney for nearly two weeks for optimal weather conditions.
The official world record is currently held by fellow Aussie Jesse Martin who at age 18 became the youngest person to sail unassisted around the world in 1999. The 17-year-old Mike Perham of England would have beaten Martin’s record in August, but technical problems required him to pull into port for repairs, thus placing his voyage under the “assisted category.”
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