Here we go again!

[OBIO]

Another teenager wanting to sail around the world alone. This time a 14 year old Dutch girl. When is this going to stop? When will someone finally stand up and say....You're a freaking idiot and your parents should be slapped really really hard with a really really large sledgehammer for allowing you to do this?

What's next? A 2 year old from Mozambique being tied to a fallen tree and allowed to sail around the world?

OBIO

[HouseHobbit]

LOL..LOL..
Now that was too Much :icon_lol:
I tend to agree with you..
But some folks will do anything for their 15 minutes of fame..

[Ferry_vO]

This has been in the Dutch media for a long time now... Her parents are divorced; daddy wants her to go, mommy doesn't. Child services were involved and she was placed under supervision for a few months but apparently the judge thinks she is now ready to go.
The way I see it this can only end two ways: In triumph or in tragedy.. :kilroy: The odds for the latter are much bigger IMHO..

Laura herself believes she can do it because she has plenty of experience (At only 14 years old..); she was even 'born on a ship'.

I was born in a hospital, but you do not want me to perform a surgery! LOL.

[Bjoern]

Why not?
They know the risks after all.

[OTTO]

Seems to be a fad doesn't it.
I thought you needed to be an adult to make those kind of decisions.
Daddy gave her permission to lose the boat & possibly kill herself , so which one has made the worst decision ?

OTTO

[Wing_Z]

Simple: there's a need for an international treaty which says:
Port of Departure shall require a bond, equal to the expected cost of the rescue.
Bon Voyage!

[srgalahad]

:a1451:oh why oh why are we so intent on protecting everyone from themselves and everything around them?? The flaw in making the world safe for the 'lowest common denominator' is that we then make that a standard by which to measure.

How many of us had relatives that tried (or DID) sign up to go to war while "underage" in the last 100 years (note: war is inherently a high-risk endeavour with a low rate of survival)?

How many probably had ancestors that ran off to sea or the circus at 14 - without current workplace safety rules- and did quite well in the process of growing up?

How many of us have had friends at 14, or 16, or 25 killed in cars (but they are part of our daily life and therefore 'normal').

Having done some offshore sailing in ugly conditions, I well know it can be very dangerous and incredibly scary and your attention level tends to stay very high - esp. if you have been well-schooled in the concepts and risk (and we have no clear picture of her training). The major concerns I see are her physical skills and strength ( but modern boats can be engineered and equipped to mitigate this) and her psychological strength to undertake a long solo voyage (but what about those of us who get all antsy when our fav. forum is unavailable for 2 days?).

The cost of a rescue?? What is spent rescuing mountain climbers, drunk drivers, lost tourists, skiers, dogs and kids from wells every year? I agree, there are cases where it should be 'cost-recovery' but where to draw the line? After 230 years there is still a desire (and cost) today to recover the crew of ships of exploration - even though they may have been lost due to poor seamanship or planning.

Part of our nature is this care for souls and to have happy endings ( or "closure") but there is also a value to be placed on building character, wisdom and skills that is not going to happen if we make rules for others that keep them contained in soft rooms with padded corners until they reach 'an appropriate age'.

Her maturity and ability to choose? We don't know, but I have known 14 yr olds that were wiser than I was at 18 or 20, and "adults" that shouldn't be allowed out alone at 35 but have families, jobs and a variety of unhealthy habits. Who are we to judge?

One thing I do know about her. With all the legal wrangling, media coverage and interviews she has had to endure, she is probably far more cognizant of the risks than most of the spectators who are so able to pass judgement. Yes, counsel her, advise her, but don't arbitrarily restrain her in a safety net she may not need.

Rob
13831

[Blackbird686]

If YOU wanna let your 14 year old daughter sail around the world by herself, that's YOUR BUSINESS. As stated earlier, in so long as everyone knows the risks involved and are willing to take the responsibility for it, then so be it. It's a Free World.

Now for my 2 bits: I agree with OBIO, this is a really bad idea. On the one hand, kids are 'growing up' too fast and IMO, that 14 year old girl has NO IDEA whatsoever about the hazards and perils of sailing the open ocean, let alone by herself. I don't care how much sailing she has under her belt. Mum and Dad need to be a bit more assertive here, come on now.... is this for real?

A 2 year old from Mozambique?? now that's a bit extreme.

If she is allowed to go through with it, (the 14 year old), may I offer a bit of advice....
STAY OUT OF THE SOUTHERN OCEAN, WITH THE STRONGEST CURRENTS OF ANY OF THE OCEANS, AND SOME OF THE MOST WICKED STORMS ON RECORD... It's not a place for the inexperienced.

BB686:USA-flag:

[mrogers]

She's very determined, and I admire her for her courage to stand up to the intense media pressure that she has had to endure. I don't think she would let anything stand in her way. She may be only 14, but she has been on boats all her life and she has said that she has the experience necessary for sailing. It can be done, a 16-17 y.o. girl just recently completed a round the world trip solo.

A 2 year old? A bit extreme Obio.

[PRB]

I think it's great. No hand wringing here. That's what life is about. Some people have to see what's over the next hill. I rather like that attitude. Rock on. Or sail on. It's a good thing there are still people out there with the heart of explorers.

[Willy]

Should she be allowed to go? I'd say with her parents permission, yes. Would I allow my 14 year old daughter to sail around the world by herself? Heck no. I love my kids and as a parent it's my duty to protect them. There's just too much that can go wrong in this scenario. I've got serious doubts about the father's intelligence.

I just hope her father doesn't end up regretting this.

[redriver6]

i agree with Obio....not a good idea.

and she's trying to leave like right now??? the height of hurricane season in the Atlantic and typhoon season in the Pacific is august and september.....:isadizzy::icon_eek:

[OBIO]

The 2 year old Mozambique scenario was extreme...and purposely so. Tossed that in after remembering the 2 year old chain smoker from Indonesia.

Here's my biggest objects to this:

If something happens to the girl..boat sinks, she falls over board and her body is never found, she is take prisoner by pirates and killed....some one, some where is very likely to file a law suit against somebody....and that somebody will be an entity or business that had no part in the decision making progress that allowed a 14 year old girl to go off on an around the world solo trip.

If something happens to the girl, then the father will suddenly be on the international news bemoaning the courts for allowing his daughter to make the trip, will suddenly be the most out spoken opponent to any future "youngest to sail" trips. He won't take responsibility for allowing..for fighting to allow...his daughter to sail off to her death...he will blame someone else. That is the way of the modern world...no one is responsible for their own actions and everything is a disease, disorder or disfunction that is beyond the control of the person doing the action.

If the girls makes it and the world proclaims her as the youngest person to sail around the world alone, there will be some 13 year old, some 12 year old who will want to break the record. Records, after all, made to be broken. This sort of stuff is why Guinness stopped keeping records like Youngest Mother, Youngest Father, Youngest Wife, Youngest Husband, Youngest Person to Swallow a Spitting Cobra. In the quest to be the youngest, younger and younger children were putting themselves into situations that could be harmful to them...or were being put into situations that could be harmful to them by other people.

OBIO

[redriver6]

Youngest Person to Swallow a Spitting Cobra
:icon_lol::icon_lol:

[Henry]

well as a sailor not no but hill no
look at the last one what does it cost for someone to find her
if one gets lost or mast down in a storm
if i was stupid enough to do it fair enough
would i let my child do it
never
H

[Ken Stallings]

Another teenager wanting to sail around the world alone. This time a 14 year old Dutch girl. When is this going to stop? When will someone finally stand up and say....You're a freaking idiot and your parents should be slapped really really hard with a really really large sledgehammer for allowing you to do this?

What's next? A 2 year old from Mozambique being tied to a fallen tree and allowed to sail around the world?

OBIO

Well, one way it can stop for certain is at age 10. Because younger than that you are not a teenager!

But in all seriousness, it should have stopped a long time ago. And the world sailing authority has tried its best to stop the insanity by no longer recognizing age or gender-based records.

Still, for the mere sake of media publicity, some parents seem perfectly fine with risking the lives of their young children!

I don't get it, don't identify with it, and feel angered and very concerned about it!

Ken

[Z-claudius24]

Hi,

As a old sailor .... I agree with srgalahad (http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforums/member.php?u=35300)

[CG_1976]

What srgalahad posted I can agree with 110%:salute: (http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforums/member.php?u=35300)
His posting is exactly what my grandparents and parents taught to me.

[TARPSBird]

Personally I don't think any responsible parents would allow their 14-year-old daughter to embark on such a dangerous trip, but you can't stop people from making bad decisions. Working in a bookstore, I see a pretty good cross-section of young people, from articulate and intelligent teens to 20-something jackasses I wouldn't trust to find their way home let alone around the world. I wish the girl a safe voyage, unfortunately sooner or later one of these young adventurers will suffer a tragic end and then there'll be local court injunctions to prohibit under-age kids from doing this kind of thing.

[demorier]

I looked at her proposed route in the newspaper today and the first thing that struck me was that at that time of the year she would be tracking down through Typhoon alley around India and the western side of south east asia. I don't think they have put enough planning into seasonal factors.

[Ken Stallings]

I looked at her proposed route in the newspaper today and the first thing that struck me was that at that time of the year she would be tracking down through Typhoon alley around India and the western side of south east asia. I don't think they have put enough planning into seasonal factors.

Similar mistake the previous aborted voyage experienced, and that girl came as close as is practical to dying at sea and still be rescued alive and well.

Any sailor with practical and adequate knowledge of the sea would never let a teen do this solo. So, it stands to reason why so many voyages being done by them suffer from grossly inadequate planning.

Ken

[wombat666]

Simple: there's a need for an international treaty which says:
Port of Departure shall require a bond, equal to the expected cost of the rescue.
Bon Voyage!

Agree 110% and that goes for ALL would be 'Solo World Sailors'.
The amount of $$$$ spent on recovery and tracking alone has become ridiculous, more so when there are repeat offenders, and it really is nothing to do with achieving anything significant, today the object of the exercise is profit via the usual hysterical media outlets.
Let these so-called 'Adventurers' do their thing by all means, and make certain they can pay their way when the inevitable happens.
:banghead:

[Ripcord13]

This is Nuts, absolutly Nuts. What group of adults would allow a 14 year old take on this endevour? She is not going to make it, and hopefully when the "crap hits the fan" she will be rescued instead of being lost at sea.

[huub vink]

I'm convinced law or treaties won't really help to save children from the idiotic ideas from weird parents. I have seen many parents doing odd things to their children, because the parents had the idea "something" would give their children better chances.

Is this any worse than a parent who forces his child to sing or to play football (soccer)?

The only law which would work is a law which forbids weird parents to have children.

However ideas like that bring other problems and tend to end in wars.

Cheers,
Huub

[cheezyflier]

Is this any worse than a parent who forces his child to sing or to play football (soccer)?



are you serious? you really don't see any difference between allowing a child to sail the world's oceans alone vs. music lessons and and team sports?

i firmly believe that there are some things a child should be exposed to in order to help them become more well rounded as individuals. music is one of them. while not every child has the physical tools to enjoy team sports, all children should know some form of prolonged active play. whether it's hiking, running, climbing trees, skateboarding, cycling, etc.
allowing kids to veg out and play video games doesn't cut it for producing healthy, well rounded, right thinking people. i'm all for adventure, and believe that life should contain a certain amount of risk. but there is most certainly a difference, and i have a hard time accepting the notion that it's not clear to any sane person.

[huub vink]

Cheezyflier, my message was in the word force.

Cheers,
Huub