Aren't we discussing parental responsibility? Thats what YOU said we were discussing, not offshore ability.

Alright, I think this event has brought out some interesting debate and may have gotten a little to personal but I think we're all big boys here and can take it. We have 2 camps here with valid points made on both sides.

This is a sailing family we're talking about here that feels they made the right decisions for a kid that obviously is talented and mature beyond her actual age. I support their judgement and in some ways I am envious that they have kids that have drive, intelligence, and the guts to do something with their lives instead of sitting on the sidelines and watching the world go by on the tv or computer.

The other camp seems to be made up of people that don't come from a sailing background or believe that the parents made a mistake and that Abby herself isn't capable or wasn't prepared for this journey. I'm not saying their wrong but it comes from a different angle.

I think we all need to agree to disagree but respect eachothers views without personally attacking someones opinions. There are some interesting perspectives here(on this thread) from people that have real experience on both sides of this issue.

I'm done debating this but man it is a very interesting story and I can't help but become inspired by this girls drive and maturity. I think other kids should take a look at what she and her brother have accomplished and take it as a lesson and dare i say role model of what you can do in life when you put your mind to it. Hard work, dedication, appreciation of our planet, mother nature, and it's inhabitants and how it all is connected are the messages that kids need these days. Too many kids today are lazy, unmotiviated, and unappreciative of what makes this world go round and this girl represents the exact opposite of what our society is turning into.

I'm out but will keep reading the responses. Thanks for the interesting views. Now i think it's time for a :gh:

As someone else put it, I suppose she made it from California around Cape Horn and the Cape of Good Hope on blind f***ing luck?

You could have put the best Volvo ocean race sailors in the boat and the outcome would have been the same.

They said 50-60 ft seas. I watched the documentary on PBS about the last Volvo ocean race and only a handful were able to complete the race with multi-multi-multi million dollar backing. They were in every port doing structural repairs for each leg. The odds are stacked way against you.

I'm in the camp of letting my children find their limits. I did it. I was foolish and lucky more times than I can count. I want to help my children find their limits in a safer method than I did.

Whether it be a youth go kart racing league instead of street racing at 1am, or joining an extreme ski school instead of the nonsense back country chances I took.

Kids will make dangerous choices no matter how hard you try and stop them. It's our job as parents to mitigate the danger. My choice will be through education not prohibition.

Give it up. Likwid's mother is a hotshot sailor and likwid himself fished WH in the dark! Why would you think he could learn anything about responsibility for other's lives from someone as inexperienced as you?

Apparently along side this girl's attempt (and MIGHT or MIGHT NOT have had ANYTHING to do with HER decision to make the attempt) was the father trying to make a buck off this.

Thats directly from the SoCal sailing scene, please be sure to note the stuff in parentheses. I know, its difficult to not just revert to thinking this is politics, but read it all with a grain of salt please.

But most non-coddled 16yo's would tell a parent to go f*** themselves if they weren't prepared to do something.

In which case a responsible parent would take away their $500,000 sailboat for a month.

I like turtles
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I like clams

Darcy clams
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mmmmmmmmm

rescued

French Fishing Boat Rescues Teen Sailor - Boston News Story - WCVB Boston

from the dad's point of view

My .02 is that the parents should have in the least had a safety and support ship trailing her. Not to help her navigate, but for an instance like this. They could have been a slave to her lead, and rescued her in an instant.

I am glad she is safe

So the Australian taxpayers paid to charter the Airbus?
So the fishing boat captain ended up in the water risking his life?
So the fishing boat crew's families will go without their catch shares?
All so a wealthy Calif teenager can play in the Southern Indian Ocean?
Clearly it was worth it from her father's point of view.
Brilliant.

From the rescue article:

Sunderland set out from Los Angeles County's Marina del Rey on Jan. 23, trying to become the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe solo and nonstop.
Soon after starting her trip, Sunderland ran into equipment problems and had to stop for repairs. She gave up the goal of setting the record in April, but continued, hoping to complete the journey.
Zac Sunderland, her brother, held the record for a little more than a month last year until Briton Mike Perham completed his own journey. The record changed hands again last month, when 16-year-old Australian Jessica Watson completed her own around-the-world voyage.

I just can't resist.

According to Eben, the father defended his decision to encourage her to go by saying "in this day and age, we overprotect our children".

No one will ever accuse this horse's ass of overprotecting his children. Low and behold, turns out he was trying to make a profit. Never would have seen that coming...risking your kid's life for money. I remember a video that circulated a few years ago, a guy who operated an alligator sanctuary was dangling his toddler over the open mouth of a gator. The dad was crucified for what he did. To me, that's very similar to what this Dad did. I guess likwid would say that sincde the toddler wasn't screaming "stop", that I can't judge the guy for holding a 2 year old over the mouth of a carnivorous dinosaur.

Telling a 16 year old "you can't sail solo across the world" does not amount to suffocating your children.

I can't help but be impressed by her skill (i'm assuming it takes some skill to get as far as she did in that boat). And I wish her well in life. With her parents, she has 2 strikes sgainst her

OMG.. 64 kids with parents that should be lined up and shot
Canadian ship sinks off of Brazil coast; all 64 aboard rescued - Worldnews.com

Have you booked your plane ticket to go yell at her yet Jim? She intends on trying again.

:rotf2:

I hope they give her a more managable boat.
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http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_1CDZ7Ya8Ni.../0Generali.jpg

:hihi:

Lol
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Daddy......HELP!

http://i438.photobucket.com/albums/q...tt/sinking.jpg

now that she is safe i can say it - just another spoiled rich kid.

She wants to try again. She is 16. What about school, boys, sports?

My youngest daughter is 16 and thinks she is stupid. Do I need to say more?

Please don't.

likwid, if I thought it would get through to her Dad, I would do it. But as he, and you, have proven, you can't cure "stupid".

By the way, my 15 year-old wants to fly for the Air Force (we're a military family). I agreed to let her take some flying lessons, but I insisted that she fly with the most experienced, highly regarded, expert around. She only flies on perfect days, and even though her instructor says she could fly solo, it will not happen on my watch, not for a few years.

I don't keep my kids in a bubble. Nor do I give them a whiskey bottle and keys to the car. There is a wide range of activities that allow kids to live life to the fullest, yet aren't certifiably crazy. This one's not even on the fence.

If you'd agree to thist, what could your 16 year old ask permission for, which you would ever say "no" to?

LMAO numbskull, hope I can buy you a beer one day...

her new boat has been chosen. http://yachtpals.com/files/userimages/hydroptere2.jpg

I've sat back watching this thread from the start. I can appreciate both sides of the arguement. I do lean more towards Numby and Jims side though.

My question; Are her parents going to pay for a rescue if needed on another attempt ? Through her families own admission rescue crews were dispatched from 3 continents..... Wonder what the combined cost was ? 10 million ?

no one has said your a bad parent my friend. :)

Couple hundred grand covered by insurance.

Back to my original response;

I, too, was doing a lot of offshore stuff at 16, some of which my parents could never have known what the real deal was. (Likwid has found out about my younger wild days of running race boats...) But, no way I would have considered, nor been allowed to do a solo beyond a day trip. Despite the sailing resumes on display here, I haven't seen anyone put down any extended solo experiences. Going offshore is no joke, for anyone of any age. Even if I had a kid that had the complete toolset, the experience, the mental toughness as well as the mental health that it would demand..... I'm not letting him/her go and do it. I love my kids too much. They have the rest of their lives to pursue adventures. They can pursue that one when they're truly mature and can also contribute to the necessary banking it would require.

Ok I'll bite. Kids aren't always as stupid as we think. They recognize spoiled rich kids, especilly those who play X games for real like Abby.

Is her daddy going to pay big $$$ for another boat? Why are we supposed to respect this stupid stunt?

I see postings for and against. I am always a non supporter of this Kennedy kind of behavior.

Maybe so, but the response just sounds so cavalier.....I mean, just when have you gotten an Airbus fueled up and told them "don't worry, I have insurance...." Insurance companies are exactly known as the fastest paying outfits around. It's not like they have a regulated "settlement" timeframe like the securities industry does for their transactions. And let's not forget the men and or women who went out there or altered course and missions to assist.


(Damn.... I was doing so well at not getting baited back into this thread, too.....)

History does not remember those who sat on the couch.

DDDDDAAAAAaaaaaaaddddd...........y....yyy......... .......

http://i438.photobucket.com/albums/q...t/drowning.jpg

What's funny is that if she'd made it and that was the first we had heard...

Everyone would be remarking at what an incredible young woman she was and how proud her parents must be.

-spence

I'm wondering if we should remember posts like this if you're found wader boots up...

BTW, there's bass at MTK. :rotf2:

How do we remember Eric Tabarly? As France's record setting solo sailor, who ultimately was lost at sea........while sailing solo. Got to know him in 1982 in Newport.
http://www.sailing.org/halloffame/21218.php

Nobody gives a damn about sailing in the US. You know that.

Most have no clue who Joshua Slocum or Nathanael Herreshoff were.
Nor Dodge Morgan, or Mike Plant.

Terry Hutchinson will never be a household name like John Bertrand once was overseas.

Nor will they ever care.