I've just returned from crewing on a 45 foot sloop across the Pacific from San Diego to Hawaii. The trip was mostly uneventful, with varied weather from sailing close hauled through cold cloudy weather to running through the trade winds closer to the end of the trip. There were some huge storms to the North of us, so we rode some impressive swells during part of the trip.
The boat was skippered by BJ Caldwell who, in 1995, had the record for the youngest person to sail around the world alone. He has since done deliveries and races all over the globe, including 23 deliveries between Hawaii and the mainland. Training with someone who has gone through much of what I am right now has been a great experience, and I have learned a lot.
I am still working away at securing the financing for the trip, and at the same time training hard for my round the world odyssey. It has been interesting to follow Michael Perham who is two stops into his proposed nonstop voyage around the world aboard his Open 50, Totallymoney.com. It was unfortunate for him to have to stop, which was due to problems with his Autopilot. An Open 50 is designed exclusively for speed over safety, and they are known to be difficult to sail, so it wouldn't be my first choice of vessel for the youngest record.
There is a short article in Cruising World magazine featuring Zac Sunderland and myself about our voyages which can be found at cruisingworld.com. Thats all for now.
Mahalo,
Ryan
Hi Everybody,
It is great to have people from all over following my progress and to hear some are planning expeditions of their own. The past year, not to mention the past week, has been extremely tough for businesses in the US, and it isn't the easiest time to get sponsorship. Due to the challenge of raising the necessary funds, and the approaching austral winter, I will have to put off departure until next fall. It is disappointing to not be able to head out when I originally planned, but I am still totally focused on making the trip happen. I certainly have no regrets with attempting the voyage and will spend the next year focused on the coming attempt.
Having more time to get everything together will give me the opportunity to put some serious sea miles under the keel before leaving on my world trip. One of the best places to train for the Southern Ocean would be the North Pacific, and I plan on preparing for my voyage with a crossing of the great North Pacific. For those wondering about the record status with sailing around the world, the current youngest nonstop circumnavigator is 18 years and 41 days by David Dicks of Australia, which means I have almost two years to complete my world sail. This voyage is about seeing whats possible and having young people go for their dreams, and the record is simply a goal to aim for, not the reason for the trip.
I've been talking with some filmmakers who think the voyage will make the ultimate documentary on adventure, youth, and environment. I will certainly will have plenty of time to shoot some good footage with nine or so months at sea. As far as films go about offshore sailing, one of the best is Lionheart by Jesse Martin. Another great one would be Jean du Sud around the world filmed in the 80's by Yves Gelinas. Making a film will be another great part of the voyage and will definitely be a lot of fun to film.
So, the voyage won't start this year, but it will still take total focus and a lot of work to get it on the water. I thank everyone who has so kindly become involved, and have helped in so many ways. Without the help of everyone, the voyage would not be possible. I am determined to complete this voyage, and look forward to heading out in style next fall.
Now, if you'll excuse me, there are oceans to cross.
A lot of progress has been made and I will head out soon for an attempt at sailing around Vancouver Island. We have had a tough time working out the insurance for the boat, but Dad finally got through and that detail is worked out. There has been lots to do from fixing the depth sounder to figuring out the route. although I am not usually a fan of relying on tempormental technology, the depth sounder will be necessary to navigate through the narrow channels and fjords of British Columbia. As always, there is still several things needing attention such as provisioning and re registering the VHF.
From Port Angeles, I will make coastal hops up the inside passage, about 250 miles to Cape Scott, where I head for the open Pacific. The other half of the trip will be sailing down the exposed coast where I will have to watch out for fog and rough weather brought by low pressure systems tearing across the north pacific ocean. The most challenging part, I think will be coming up the inside where there will be all kinds of navigational challenges.
We have had exceptional weather for the Pacific Northwest this past week, and I hope it will continue to be great for my upcoming trip. September typically has less fog than September, and is before the Autumn storms that make the coast a nightmare to sail later in the season. One of the greatest benefits in doing the trip in September is the crowded anchorages of summer are pleasantly empty, and you can cruise for ages without seeing many other boats.
Thanks again for all the encouragement from everybody, it is fabulous to have so many people inspired by my venture, and has certainly given me more reason to keep at it.
Yours for the Oceans,
Ryan
Hi Everybody,
It’s been a busy time still trying to work everything out and get a lead sponsor for the upcoming journey. Fortunately, many people have been interested in the trip and it’s been wonderful to receive advice and encouragement from everybody.
In today’s world, it seems almost everything is accomplished trough some type of machine or electronic device, and one of the great things at sea on a sailboat is you travel using nothing but the winds and currents. To harness the wind and use it to propel you across oceans and around the world is a wonderful thing. With the world’s cities clogged with polluting cars and little accommodations for those who walk or bike, sailing is one of the best ways to get from one place to another without polluting or spending all your money on gas.
For those who wonder how I will navigate while at sea, I will be bringing a couple GPS units as well as a good old sextant. The main GPS will be connected to the boats electrical system, and will show my position as well as speed, distance, and other great information. The other GPS's will be back up for my main unit.
Since I don't want to rely on electronic equipment that can easily fail in the saltwater environment, I will use a traditional sextant as much as possible to find my position. This handy device measures the angle between the horizon and the sun or stars, which after some calculations can determine your position. That won't always be possible because of visibility or rough conditions, but whenever possible I will use the sextant to find my position.
When I head out, this site will be set up with a map that will show my hourly position. This will allow people to know where I am at any given time, and to gauge my progress as I sail into oblivion.
Yours for the Oceans,
Ryan
The search for sponsorship for my voyage is still moving along, and there are a million other details to attend to from ordering food to studying the pilot charts. I had a great chat with Andrew Burton from Cruising World today about my trip and all of the preparations going on.
The trip around Vancouver Island was put of because my focus right now is finances, but getting some sea trials off the coast will be a must for before departure. A test run will show many of the weaknesses in the boat and allow me to fix them before it is too late. A few days of sailing to windward will reveal a whole lot about how a boat handles and what kind of improvements she needs.
As I am beginning to accumulate some piles of sailing the difficulty of fitting all the supplies for nine months is becoming more apparent. It will be a challenge, but I am sure it can be done. Since I will be living quite simply at sea, my most of the space will be taken up with freeze dried and non perishable food. That doesn't mean that a fair amount of room won't be sacrificed for sails, water, communication equipment, tools, safety gear... The problem will having some space left for myself!
There is a whole lot to do, and about seven weeks until blast off. I cant wait!
Fair Winds,
Ryan
One of the more common questions I get is "why would you want to do the voyage nonstop?" What kind of a person would want to leave the comfort and safety of home to sail around the world and not stop to enjoy the sights? There are many reasons I am planning the voyage nonstop, and I will try to briefly explain some of them here.
To complete any passage from one port to another gives the sailor a great satisfaction in knowing their vessel and themselves were up to the task. The ultimate passage would be one that goes all the way around the world. Instead of going from one port to another, you leave from one point and go all the way around the world to get back. In between, there are hundreds of days at sea, calms and gales, albatross, and a wake that is 27,000 miles long. What could be simpler;
One Boat
One Sailor
Three Oceans
27,000 Miles
You head south until it's freezing cold and keep the Great Capes to Port. Of course, what sounds so great now probably will lose some of its appeal in a force ten storm!
When I initially imagined sailing around the world, it wasn't
the Roaring Forties that I thought of, but the exotic landfalls and and coral atolls of paradise. But, to sail around the world at my age one usually does not have thousands of dollars to invest in a boat and equipment. This situation lead me to one of the more difficult parts of being a modern day adventurer; the quest for sponsorship. So many people have sailed around via the trade wind route that the solo sailing society has lost count. However, only 100 or so have sailed solo, nonstop, and unassisted around the world. This voyage presents one of the greatest challenges today. For me to make a voyage worthy of sponsorship, it needs to be something a bit different from the norm. As they say, if you're not living on the edge you are taking up too much space. I think this trip will qualify for living on the edge!
Cheers,
Ryan
I appreciate all of the opinions out there about my upcoming voyage, and realize that most who question my attempt do so out of concern for my safety. I would like to make it clear that I am taking all the necessary safety precautions, and will not leave until I am fully prepared for the upcoming challenges. Sailing offshore is in many ways safer than life ashore, and in many ways less so. I am acknowledging the dangers, and finding ways to minimize unnecessary risk.
On another note, I have two new important supporters:
Remote Medical International has agreed to provide a custom medical kit for my needs at sea. This will be really important in case of emergency, and could very well save my life when I am weeks away from the nearest port.
Beam Communications has signed on to provide my communication and tracking system at sea. This includes a sat phone and free call time to keep in touch with friends, family, supporters, media, etc. The racking system will send my position from the boat hourly, and will be set up to this site so you can see exactly where I am at any given time. They also will give me a back up battery so if all other electronics fail, I can still call and let everyone know I'm alright.
I had been hoping to leave in early September, but it looks like a more likely date will be early October. This will allow more time for careful preparation and to do more sea trials off the Washington, British Columbia coast. Although its not quite the roaring forties, the 'graveyard coast' offers challenges of its own like rocks and fog.
Cheers,
Ryan
I won't be the only sailor leaving the northern hemisphere on a round the world trip through the Southern Ocean this fall. Every four years, the Vendee Globe yacht race sailors zoom around the world in a few months aboard the fastest monohulls in the racing world. The vessel of choice for the Vendee Globe is the Open 60, a long, wide, flat boat with a huge sail area and a tiny keel, designed exclusively for speed. Unfortunately, the characteristics that make Open 60's so fast also make them less seaworthy, and there are disasters of some kind every year. Nevertheless, the Vendee Globe is an exciting adrenaline rush for both the sailors and those following it ashore. The website for the race said:
In theory, the Vendée Globe is an utterly simple affair. Its fundamental principles come down to a few sentences, compared to which even the roughest logbook would seem sophisticated. A sailing race around the world, for singlehanders, without any stopover. That’s it. In theory at least, because beyond these words start great stories.
Official supplier of legends since 1989, this race has impressed the maritime world and the public in general, to the point where even the strongest superlatives seem unable to define it. The sea also has its mythical summit, created 15 years ago by a sailor, two times winner around the world (BOC Challenge, with stopovers), who refused to rest on his laurels. Philippe Jeantot wished to go further, to give a new dimension to the world of maritime adventure…
“Time, he wrote, is a necessary factor to attain perfect harmony with one’s sailboat. We had to forget about stopping. A round-the-world race, without stopovers or assistance, such were the conditions to reach the desired communion. For the first edition, we set off towards the unknown. None of the 13 sailors who crossed the starting line in 1989 had the experience of a solo journey exceeding 100 days”
On November 9th 2008, 20 navigators will set sails aboard their monohulls, heading towards the three great capes, marking the southern tips of the African continent, Australia and America. The Vendée Globe will start, for the 6th time, from the harbor of Les Sables d’Olonne, where it was born. And as far as the rest of the story is concerned… well, it’s up to the sailors themselves now.
My voyagewill be similar to the Vendee globe in many ways, but I will be at sea much longer in a considerably smaller boat. My voyage is one of length, not speed. Not to mention, a typical campaign for a round the world race costs millions of dollars, while my budget will not exceed $100,000.I want to show that anyone with some perseverance, and a great dream, not millions of dollars, can do amazing things.
Yours for the Oceans,
Ryan
My father and I, accompanied by my brother Sam and friend Michael, finally moved the boat from Port Townsend to Port Angeles yesterday. Despite the fact that the wind was in our face the entire time, it was a great trip. We started with motoring because the wind was completely gone, but after we rounded Point Wilson a west wind filled in. It got up to 25 knots by the time we got into Port Angeles. Anyway, it was absolutely fabulous to be on the water and the boat took everything with a very solid motion through the water.
I'm still working at adding structural support for the cabintop for when she is knocked down in the roaring forties. I have built a laminated arch that will be bolted through the fiberglass in the least supported part of the cabin. Now that the boat is much closer, I will be able to spend less time commuting and more time on getting the tasks done. We are also figuring out ways to secure all of the stuff that will be onboard, as well as work out power generation. Everything will be environmentally friendly, so we will install solar panels, and either a wind generator or a towed generator.
We still haven't chosen an exact departure date, but I plan on leaving some time in September or October to avoid the Hurricane Season in the tropics and arrive in the Roaring Forties in the Austral Summer.
Fair Winds,
Ryan
As the fall nears, I have to make an increasing number of important decisions regarding the rig, equipment, hull, supplies, etc with the boat. The offshore sailboat has many different systems, and everything has to be examined, and all weaknesses fixed before heading offshore. This is extremely important because since I don't plan on stopping for repairs everything has to be in working order even after months at sea.
More people have become involved, and I would like to thank Best Marine Imports for the great sailing equipment, as well as 48 North Sailing Magazine. 48 North has agreed to publish articles I send articles while on the voyage, which will be another fun thing to do. As I sail into the high latitudes, I should have some exciting stuff to write about. Also, Cruising World will feature an article about my voyage soon.
I have tried to do as much sailing as possible while preparing for the voyage. This has recently been day sails around the Peninsula, but I look forward to doing some sea trials offshore when the boat is ready. We are working on the engine, and then I will move the boat to Port Angeles to be more convenient for working on.
The website is undergoing some work, and it should be improved with some more pictures and other improvements soon. This will include coming up with a good logo to represent the sailing voyage. Well, that's all for today.
Fair Winds,
Ryan
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