Sail-World.com : Portimao Global Ocean Race: A perspective on Nico Budel's rescue
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Portimao Global Ocean Race: A perspective on Nico Budel's rescue |
Portimao Global Ocean Race. The dramatic rescue of Nico Budel is yet one more story of the immense solidarity shared by all sailors who take to the open ocean, be it alone on a small boat or aboard one of the world’s largest freighters.
The moment you cast lines ashore and point your bow toward the open horizon, you inadvertently join a fraternity that has been in existence since man first set sail. There is a common understanding that should you founder, for whatever reason, another sailor will, without question, come to your aid.
The most striking example of this, of course, was the sinking of the Titanic. Within a few hours of the ship going down, the RMS Carpathia was on the scene to pluck survivors from the water. In the intervening years there have been other less well known, yet equally dramatic rescues. Nico was the most recent, but certainly not the last sailor to call for help and receive it thousands of miles from land. Captain Singson, Master of the 170,000 tonne bulk carrier CSK Radiance, the ship that rescued Nico Budel, said he was ‘happy to help.’ Certainly rescuing someone is soul satisfying experience, but all of this begs the larger question. Should fellow sailors be required to divert to rescue someone in distress? And what responsibility do those who set off to sail across oceans bear? Indeed should these kinds of races even be allowed? All good questions worth considering.
My perspective on this is perfectly clear. There will always be those among us that push the boundaries of life, be it aboard a boat sailing the open seas, a jet flying faster than the speed of sound, or something as simple as a child striving to create something extraordinary out of an ordinary existence. These unique individuals need to be cherished for they are the ones that ultimately make us a better people. Where would we be if Yuri Gagarin had not stepped forward to be the first human to orbit the earth? What about Robin Knox-Johnston who was the first to sail solo, non-stop around the world? By today’s standards his boat, Suhaili, was ill equipped and hardly suitable for such an accomplishment but RKJ prevailed through personal tenacity and his love of Queen and Country.
Along with these huge accomplishments there have been equally huge travesty’s. The very same CSK Radiance that picked up Nico was involved in an earlier rescue at sea, that time of a Japanese singlehanded sailor in the middle of the South Indian Ocean. What makes this story absurd was that it was the third rescue of the same sailor in seven months.
Sixty seven year old Japanese sailor Masayuki Kikuchi was first rescued off the west coast of South Africa when his 43-foot sloop foundered. The boat was salvaged, and after repairing the damage, Kikuchi set sail again only to have his keel drop off the boat. This time he was off the east coast of South Africa and was once again rescued by SA Search and Rescue who towed him to dry land. A few months later Kikuchi set off once again to continue his quest of a solo circumnavigation when the boat was capsized at a point, ironically, not far from where Nico abandoned ship last week. In the process Kikuchi broke both his arms and was unable to function, let alone sail the boat. Australian Maritime Safety Authorities were alerted, and with the help of local businessman Richard Pratt, who used his long-range jet to locate the stricken yacht, CSK Radiance was guided toward a safe rendezvous and rescue. The ill fated yacht finally sank and along with it Mr Kikuchi’s long held dream.
While on the subject of Japanese solo sailors let’s look at the accomplishments of our good friend Minoru Saito. As a New Year starts Saito is currently 500 miles west of Australia on his eighth solo circumnavigation. In 2004-2005 Minoru completed a solo, non-stop circumnavigation becoming not only the oldest solo circumnavigator, but he also set a record for the most number of single-handed circumnavigations. His current trip was meant to be solo, non-stop against the prevailing winds, a brutal voyage by any measure, but he was forced to make a temporary stop in Australia. Minoru Saito will be 75 when he completes this voyage.
So let’s take a step back and look at things. Should we hang Saito out to dry if a Southern Ocean gale tears his yacht apart and leaves him bobbing in his life-raft? Should we say, ‘sorry Minoru, you should have been parked in front of a TV just like other people your age instead of trying to sail alone around the world - again!’ What about the myriad people across the globe that have drawn inspiration from this remarkable man. Does the amount of value added to their lives compensate for the expense of a mid-ocean rescue, should it happen?
Same for Nico Budel. At 69, when many people look longingly at retirement, Nico chose to push himself and undertake an extraordinary challenge. He failed, this time, most likely because of hitting a piece of debris that caused his keel bulb to come off. I can personally attest that Nico is an inspiration to many people, and he will continue to be an inspiration. It’s impossible to measure the value of inspiration, but I would have to believe that the collective good done by people who were inspired by others such as Gagarin, Knox-Johnston and Saito, far outweighs the cost to society of rescues of the likes of Masayuki Kikuchi. As a human race our lifeblood is the extraordinary accomplishments of those individuals who pushed the boundaries, and survived. That does not mean that they should not take responsibility for their actions. We all need to take personal responsibility for everything we do, but that should not stop us, or them, from pushing the limits.
As far as the first part of my original question; ‘should sailors be required to divert and rescue a fellow sailor?’ That’s an easy one to answer. For anyone who has stood on deck of a heaving vessel and witnessed the grandeur and power of the open ocean, the call to rescue a fellow sailor becomes academic; and an unequivocal yes. Once you have stood on a ships deck and watched a setting sun slip spluttering and sizzling into the ocean to the west, you are forever a changed person and questions like rescuing a fellow sailor are of little consequence. You know you will turn into the teeth of a howling gale to make a rescue, just as you would rightfully hope and expect someone to do the same for you. If you don’t understand this sentiment, I have only one suggestion. Take up sailing.
http://www.portimaorace.com/
by Brian Hancock
9:22 PM Fri 2 Jan 2009 GMT
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