Hi, I’m josh, a Kenyan-American who is about to embark on an arduous journey. A journey riddled with danger and hardship. A journey requiring physical strength, and mental stamina working long hours aboard a ship. A journey ultimately leading to discovery. I’m sixteen and leaving school at Easter to compete in a transatlantic sailing race. The Tall Ships Atlantic Challenge 2009.
Me!
Before i captivate you with the amazingly interesting details of this expedition let me first tell you a little about myself. As you already know i am a sixteen year old Kenyan-American who plans on leaving school after the current term and plunge into 5100 nautical miles of sailing. That does look like a bad idea but it is not the full picture; In august this year, about 30 days after i arrive in boston and the race officially ends, i plan on enlisting in the US NAVY for both a career and further education. After finishing college in the military i plan on becoming a pilot for the NAVY.
Flying is my dream but i am almost as equally passionate about sailing. When i used to live on the Kenyan coast i regularly sailed Toppers and catamarans, renting them out with my friends from the nearby hotels. My first voyage was on a 60 foot yacht christened Jambo as a volunteer crew member. My responsibility was coordinating the loading and offloading of two “Deep-Freeze” refrigerators.
Tall Ships
According to Wikipedia “a tallship is a traditionally rigged sailing vessel.” A modern rigged sailing vessel uses modern materials and techniques to produce efficient and reliable boats. Traditionally rigged boats use designs and techniques that may be hundreds of years old but have ultimately stood the test of time.
An example of a Tall Ship
STI (Sail Training International) has classified Tall Ships into 4 classes to categorize the vessels competing in it’s Tall Ships Races:
- CLASS A: All square-rigged vessels and all other vessels over 40m (131 feet) length overall (LOA)
- CLASS B: Traditional-rigged vessels with a LOA of less than 40m (131 feet) and with a waterline length (LWL) of at least 9.14m (30 feet).
- CLASS C: Modern-rigged vessels with a LOA of less than 40m (131 feet) and with a LWL of at least 9.14m (30 feet), not carrying spinnaker-like sails.
- CLASS D: Modern-rigged vessels with a LOA of less than 40m (131 feet) and with a LWL of at least 9.14m (30 feet), carrying spinnaker-like sails.
The Tall Ships Atlantic Challenge
The race is 7000 nautical miles in total (over 8000 miles) and takes 133 days of sailing to complete. Starting in Vigo, Spain, on may 3rd the Tall Ships Atlantic Challenge will begin and the ships competing will race to Tenerife, the capital of the Canary Islands. From here is where the ships will race across the atlantic heading for the white beaches and unclouded waters of Bermuda. After a short stay the ships will then head to Charleston, USA. The ships will slowly cruise up the east coast of America first to Boston and then to Halifax before racing eastwards across the atlantic to Belfast in the UK where they should arrive on the 16th of august.
Tall Ships Atlantic Challenge course map
The Atlantic Challenge is not only about racing – the most sought after prize is the Tall Ships Atlantic Challenge Friendship Trophy which is awarded to the vessel which has done the most to promote international understanding and friendship. The ships will stay at each port for 3 or 4 days while the port hosts a number of events, like parades and fairs, to both welcome and see off the fleet.
Why would anyone want to do this?
There are countless reasons why i should do this, and many more why i should not. For me this journey across the atlantic, i hope, will help me discover myself and help me deicide what i want to do with my life. I will be at sea for more than two months, and during those two months i will find out if the seaman’s life is the life for me. I can not imagine myself working in a office and i want to travel and see the world. I have to have this adventure so i can know for sure that i am an adventurer. I’m 16, adolescent, but during the past year and a half i have noticed myself growing up and becoming more mature. The main reason why i should not do this is that i could die… You only have one life and its fleeting, and delicate, but when your lying old and weathered in your deathbed all you have are your stories. I just want to have good ones.
