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Around the World in 71 Days
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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 Around the World in 71 Days Screw 80, a woman in England completed a full circling of the globe in her boat today in 71 days, eclipsing the record by 32 hours.
NYTimes wrote: Englishwoman Sails Globe in 71 Days, a Record
LONDON, Feb. 8 - After a circumnavigation of the globe lasting 71 days, 14 hours, 18 minutes and 33 seconds, Ellen MacArthur, a 28-year-old Englishwoman, cruised in triumph into Falmouth harbor today to claim a new record for sailing nonstop and solo around the world.
She was welcomed with cheers, royal honors, a flotilla of small boats, fire-barge fountains, live television broadcasts, hoopla, exuberance and, in the British tradition of pooh-poohing success, more than the merest hint of disgruntlement.
Ms. MacArthur crossed the imaginary finish line between France and England late last night after a closely followed voyage aboard her 75-foot trimaran B&Q during which she braved storms, 65-mile-per-hour winds and almost hit a whale. The boat is named for its sponsor, a home repair chain.
"I have never ever in my life had to dig as deep as I did on this trip," she said of her response to the challenges. "I don't think I will ever manage to communicate how difficult this has been."
She began her record-breaking bid last Nov. 28, sleeping for just 20 or 30 minutes at a time for an average four hours day and eating freeze-dried meals.
On her arrival today, Ms. MacArthur waved nautical flares and popped champagne. Prime Minister Tony Blair called her achievement stunning and said "the whole country is very proud of Ellen." Queen Elizabeth II approved the title dame - the female equivalent of a knighthood - for what the monarch called the sailor's "courage, skill and stamina." Ms. MacArthur was believed to be the youngest person to receive the honor, Mr. Blair's office said...
The moment at the Cornish port in southwest England recalled other markers in Britain's nautical record-making - the 1967 landfall of Francis Chichester at Plymouth after his 220-day solo circumnavigation (with one stop on the way) and Sir Robin Knox-Johnston's first nonstop round-the-world voyage in 1969...
At the time Chichester's voyage was compared to the exploits of the 16th century navigator and adventurer Sir Francis Drake. (The very first round-the-world solo trip is ascribed to a Bostonian skipper, Joshua Slocum, with many stops between 1895 and 1898.)
Some commentators were quick to draw a disparaging comparison between the sextant-and-compass navigation aids, wooden hulls and small sails of the 1960's and the technologically advanced B&Q with its global positioning system guiding the navigation, computer screens, huge sails and hook-ups through Web cams to the world beyond the lonely seas.
For all Ms. MacArthur's achievement, the British newspaper The Guardian asked today: "What is it about Ellen?" and called her "the world-beater we can't quite come to love."... Let me guess, probably because this sort of adventure no longer either captures the imagination of foreign lands in a world where one can fly around the globe and pick multiple destinations in under a week? I kind of agree, its just not that groundbreaking anymore to sail around the world. I guess people who are sailing enthusiasts still love it, and its probably a great way to test and promote new technologies that assist in navigation through bad weather, etc, but seriously, is it a big deal anymore?
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| Tue Feb 08, 2005 5:31 pm |
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Anonymous
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It's The Guardian, don't pay any attention to them. They're probably busy calculating how this adventure affected the global CO2 emissions.
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| Tue Feb 08, 2005 5:35 pm |
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Samweis Gamdschie
Cream of the Crop
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 2:35 pm
Posts: 2077
Location: At the edge of reality
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Krem wrote: It's The Guardian, don't pay any attention to them. They're probably busy calculating how this adventure affected the global CO2 emissions. LOL 
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| Tue Feb 08, 2005 5:39 pm |
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Tyler
Powered By Hate
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 8:55 pm
Posts: 7578
Location: Torrington, CT
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Sour grapes, Galia. [-X
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| Tue Feb 08, 2005 5:42 pm |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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Krem wrote: It's The Guardian, don't pay any attention to them. They're probably busy calculating how this adventure affected the global CO2 emissions. Haha, ok. I was just surprised it didn't capture my interest as much as something like this could. The thrill is gone. I used to do alot of research on early aviation, etc, and how exciting it was. People used to line up at race-horse tracks to see a plane stay in the air for 3 minutes, then 3 and a half minutes, then 45 minutes. People would just watch a plane for 45 minutes because it opened up such potential. All those early childhood stories about Philias Fogg right? And now its just, meh. I still get excited about space exploration though, but it seems odd to me that these kind of attempts are no longer about anything other than the technology and actual record, since rarely does anyone return with any news of something "new."
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| Tue Feb 08, 2005 5:52 pm |
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Bodrul
All Star Poster
Joined: Fri Oct 22, 2004 11:21 am
Posts: 4694
Location: Cambridge, England.
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i could do that if i wanted  _________________
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| Tue Feb 08, 2005 6:08 pm |
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Algren
now we know
Joined: Tue Oct 19, 2004 9:31 pm
Posts: 68222
Location: Seattle, WA
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She is a brave woman. i was cheering her on..not at her arrival, but in my thoughts. Only a Brit could have dont that.... :razz:
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| Tue Feb 08, 2005 6:33 pm |
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