Long Distant Voyaging

Discussion in 'Stability' started by Sean K, Aug 22, 2015.

  1. Sean K
    Joined: Aug 2015
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    Location: Santa Barbara CA

    Sean K New Member

    On or around 20000 I mat a sailor from Vancouver who had sailed from Vancouver BC TO Oxnard CA in a 21 ft sailboat. He left and then returned to Oxnard the following spring and sailed from Oxnard to CA to Greece.

    He had added foam flotation internally so the boat would float even full of water.

    He had posted a web site later.

    I am not sure of the make of the boat or his name. He was a Canadian of Greek origin.
    I would love to get any information on this man and his boat.

    My sailing experience was mostly coastal in the Santa Barbara Channel and an 18 dat trip to Maui HI.
     
    Last edited: Aug 22, 2015
  2. PAR
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    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    Welcome to the forum.

    Anyone crossing the Pacific in a 21' sailboat is partly nuts, enjoys vomiting a lot and has nothing better to do in life, as this is a long *** (technical term) trip at less than 7 MPH.

    Simply put, sailing from Oxnard, CA to Greece is a career, not a pleasure trip and you have to be a special kind of fruitloop to consider it in a 21' boat. This trip at best would take several months and a 21' boat just doesn't have the storage capacity, to carry all the things you need, like water and food. Of course, he could have stopped along the way (he would have had to). There are also several places in route, you just simply wouldn't want to be in a small, slow boat.

    If you do find this fellow, pass along the web site, so we can look and see what his adventure was like.
     
  3. Sean K
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    Sean K New Member

    Here is what I remember about the fellow.
    I saw him dock his boat in Channel Islands Harbor and put up a Canadian flag. I was living on my boat at the time so as a expatriate Canadian. I went over to talk with him. I took him out for breakfast and listened to his story.
    He had prepared himself and his boat for a couple of years before leaving Vancouver.
    He was stopping here as a break before setting out the next spring to go through the Panama Canal and then through the Caribbean across the Atlantic and then on to Greece.

    He had filled some of the spaces on his boat with plastic foam and tested it to ensure it would no sink even full of water.
    His sleeping area and sitting area was small with barely enough room to sit up. The rest was full of supplies, food and chars and nav equipment.

    he returned to Vancouver and shwed up the next spring. More breakfasts and then he took off for Greece.

    Months later I got some email pictures from his trip.

    My experience with long distant voyaging was from Santa Barbara to Hawaii in 1990 which five of us went in a 32' Westsail. We got thrashed and the owner nearly died from from seasickness dehydration. Other problems with heavy weather, broken equipment and the loss of our mainsail turned the trip into a survival event. I learned more about sailing in those 18 days than I ever learned about anything else. That was why I was so interested in what this guy was doing.

    I have moved a number of time since and have lost contact and information.

    I recently read "The Happiness of Pursuit" by Chris Guillebeau and I have wondered what happened to this guy after his adventure.

    I think boats and sailing require a bit of insanity and a sense of adventure to get involved in and that's what makes life interesting.

    Sean K
     
  4. Rurudyne
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    Rurudyne Senior Member

    Par, "partly nuts" and boats go together quite well, don't'ca think? :)
     
  5. PAR
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    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    I don't think so, though many of my sailing buddies have been neutered.
     
  6. Petros
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    Petros Senior Member

    lots of people have traveled very long distances in small sailboats. The Pardees are particularly well known for traveling around the world in a 24' (length on deck) purpose built all wood sloop, and than later a 27' cutter. Stephen Ladd spent 3 years in a 12' wood, purpose designed all wood sailing boat (though he never went very far off shore in the larger bodies of water, he almost circumnavigated North America.

    There are many others, though I agree that small boats are not the most comfortable, but like those that hike the pacific crest or Appalachian trails, or ride bikes from coast to coast, the accomplishment, rather than comfort, are the main motivation.

    PAR, you have just become soft in your old age.
     
  7. ImaginaryNumber
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    ImaginaryNumber Imaginary Member

    Here is a list of remarkable small-boat voyages, put together by Dave Bolduc. I doubt that the person you're looking for is in this list.

    Famous Small Boats
     
  8. PAR
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    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    Only my joints are getting soft, more like gooey actually . . .

    Yes, a very small percentage of sailors (the nut jobs) do make seemingly remarkable passages, but these folks also enjoy hemorrhoids, constipation and eating canned meats for months too. When I was younger, I dreamed of a passage like some of them, but fortunately I had enough sense to realize, taking a month long ride in an industrial washing machine, wasn't as fun sounding as it was on first blush.
     
  9. JSL
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    JSL Senior Member

    I think PAR has it right......sort of a personal challenge rather than an adventure. A good read is john guzzwell in trekka. He went on to crew with the Smeetons on the Tzu Hang which you can read in ' once is enough'
    Foam flotation will use a lot of valuable space so you will be 'really' challenged.
     
  10. PAR
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    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    When I'm approached by a serious attempt at these sorts of things, my first advice is to borrow, rent or otherwise get a small jon boat and take it to any place you can find a modest surf. Launch and try to keep the boat in the surf's breakers for as long as you can. I also recommend not to have eaten lunch within a few hours of this "adventure". When they come ashore, typically quite green gilled, I remind them this is just a very small sampling of what you'll need to endure. I've done it and it's a valuable life lesson, they all need to experience before "heading out".
     
  11. ImaginaryNumber
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    ImaginaryNumber Imaginary Member

  12. Mikthestik
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    Mikthestik Junior Member

    I have enjoyed reading this thread. Any of you who have read any of my posts will know that I have learned a bit about being a naval architect. I used to think Beebes passagemaker was about the smallest sensible sized boat for an atlantic crossing. Then I found R. Woods had went to the Baltic with 3 24fft strider catamarans, foolhardy I thought, and a Tiki 21 cat went around the world. From an engineering point of view I have tried to work out what might be safe for an atlantic crossing, my wife would not chance it on a calm day in the QE2. Looking at the pics on famous small boats most of these men must have had very little appreciation of Naval architecture.
    The men on the famous small boats definitely are/were courageous, but I've heard it said courage is just a lack of imagination. I also agree with PAR, but fruitloop doesn't quite cover it. mik:)
     
  13. tane
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    tane Senior Member

    ...yeah PAR & JSL, anybody with more spunk, courage & daring than you has to be nuts, sure...
     
  14. PAR
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    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    Tane, you've obviously not spent days in a small boat, on a big sea without any letup, in the gale that's kicking your butt, well past the point of physical exhaustion.

    Do as I suggested and ride a small boat, in shoreside breakers for a couple of days and see how long you can take it. I'm sure you'll be like everyone else and re-enjoying what you had for lunch within a couple of hours. Most people talk about doing this, but literally haven't any idea of what it takes and once they get a taste (the breakers along the shore thing) they quickly start brushing up on the short game at the local links.
     

  15. tane
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    tane Senior Member

    "... in shoreside breakers..."
    you are correct: in all >100.000 miles of three circumnavigations we haven't spent any time sailing there...
     
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