Held the record as the youngest person to sail solo around the world (with stops and assistance); first person under the age of 18 to complete a solo circumnavigation
Zachary Tristan Sunderland (born November 29, 1991) is an American former sailor who was the first person under the age of 18 to sail solo around the world.[2] Sunderland completed his trip after 13 months and 2 days at sea on July 16, 2009 at age 17. The record was previously held by Australian David Dicks, and was surpassed on August 27, 2009 by Michael Perham of England. Sunderland is the youngest American to complete a circumnavigation, surpassing Brian Caldwell, who finished in 1996 at age 20. However, Sunderland's record was not recognized by Guinness World Records,[3] or by the World Sailing Speed Record Council.
In 2010, one of Sunderland's younger sisters, Abby Sunderland, attempted the feat. She was forced to call off her attempt after her boat was damaged in a storm in the Indian Ocean.
The oldest of Marianne and Laurence Sunderland's eight children, Sunderland's first home was a 17-metre (56ft) Tradewind sailboat. His family sailed in Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Mexico. His shipwright father bought a 51 feet (16m) Aleutian and the family made a three-year cruise of California's Channel Islands, Baja California and mainland Mexico.[5][6]
Voyage
When Sunderland decided to attempt the circumnavigation, he purchased a 36-foot (11m)Islander 36 named Intrepid for $6,000, using all of his savings. With his father's assistance, he retrofitted the boat for the trip.[7][8] Sunderland planned to complete his voyage in April 2009 with a maximum time of 18 months.[9] He continued his schooling while sailing, saying, "I have all my books with me. I have one more year to finish at high school and I have to send back my tests (via e-mail) to my mom. She's going to grade them and make sure I am doing well."[10][failed verification][11][failed verification]
Sunderland departed from Marina del Rey on June 14, 2008. The Intrepid featured the company logos of Shuman’s RealSweet, Mastronardi’s Sunset Produce, and his sponsor Produce for Kids, promoting healthy eating and produce consumption for children.[12]
Sunderland initially planned to make 15 to 30 stops around the world, the first of which was to be the Marshall Islands, Micronesia. Due to some minor work needed to be done on the boat, and the desire to reprovision, he re-routed to Hawaii. On July 11, Zac made his first stop at Emerald Bay, Catalina Island before heading on to Ala Wai Boat Harbor, Waikiki, off Diamond Head.[13] He then headed towards the Marshall Islands (about 2,500 miles), on July 16, 2008.[14]
On August 4, 2008, Marshall Islands President Litokwa Tomeing (a sailor in his youth) formally welcomed and congratulated Sunderland in the President's Office on Majuro: "And how is your boat? I remember one time I went with my parents on a 26- or 27-foot canoe and we sailed from Wotje to Arno."[15] The U.S. Ambassador to the Marshall Islands, Clyde Bishop, welcomed Sunderland to Majuro U.S. Embassy on August 7.[16]
Sailing from Majuro, Sunderland reached Darwin, Australia on September 18, 2008, with a faulty bilge pump and fuel problems forcing him a stop in Papua New Guinea. Sunderland had his first encounter with pirates on October 7 after leaving Darwin. 250km off the Indonesiancoast, in the Indian Ocean near Cocos Islands, he encountered a large 60–70-foot wooden fishing boat without flags. The pirates, after shadowing the Intrepid for some time, eventually lost interest and sped off, but not before Sunderland, as a precaution, had loaded his revolver and locked himself in his cabin.[17][18]
Sunderland endured 25-knot winds and 10-foot seas for more than 24 hours on October 13. Amid continuing engine and fuel problems, a snapped boom, and a broken tiller needing repairs, Sunderland reached Cocos Islands (a.k.a. Keeling Islands) in the eastern Indian Ocean on October 14. He proceeded to Mauritius, thereby completing half of his expedition. Sunderland turned 17 on November 29, 2008, while at sea.[19][20][21][22][23] Sunderland arrived in Durban, South Africa on December 14, after 10 days becalmed. He flew home on December 22 for Christmas and returned to South Africa afterward to resume his journey.[24]
Sunderland took short hops to East London, Port Elizabeth, Mossel Bay, and finally got to Cape Town, where he had a chance meeting with Mike Perham, who was competing for the record as the world's youngest solo-circumnavigator, and Minoru Saito who, at 75, was making his eighth trip and held the record as the oldest solo, non-stop circumnavigator. After departing Cape Town, Sunderland continued to St. Helena and then across the Atlantic to Grenada. His next stop was Panama, where he crossed the canal into the Pacific. After stops in Mexico to dodge bad weather and repair a bulkhead, Sunderland tacked back up the coast to home, arriving July 16, 2009.[25][26][27][28][29][30]
The World Sailing Speed Record Council (WSSRC), the world sailing authority, complimented Sunderland on his achievement but did not ratify it and further stated that the route did not meet the requirements for a circumnavigation voyage. According to John Reed, Secretary to the WSSRC, Sunderland used an engine at various times during the attempt, stopped, had assistance and did not sail around Cape Horn.[31]
However, the American Sailing Association has ratified it, using less strict rules, just "circumnavigating alone".[30]
Circumnavigation is the complete navigation around an entire island, continent, or astronomical body. This article focuses on the circumnavigation of Earth.
Dame Ellen Patricia MacArthur is a retired English sailor, from Whatstandwell near Matlock in Derbyshire, now based in Cowes, Isle of Wight.
Sir William Robert Patrick Knox-Johnston is a British sailor. In 1969, he became the first person to perform a single-handed non-stop circumnavigation of the globe. Along with Sir Peter Blake, he won the second Jules Verne Trophy, for which they were also named the ISAF Yachtsman of the Year award. In 2007, at the age of 67, he set a record as the oldest yachtsman to complete a round the world solo voyage in the Velux 5 Oceans Race.
Jon Sanders is an Australian yachtsman.
David Griffiths Dicks, OAM, CitWA, is an Australian sailor. He became the youngest person to sail non-stop and solo around the world. In February 1996, at the age of 17, he set out from Fremantle, Western Australia in his family's 10m S&S 34 sloop named 'Seaflight'. During his 9-month circumnavigation, he faced many challenges such as numerous knockdowns, bad weather, equipment failure, and food poisoning. Because of accepting a bolt to fix his rig near the Falkland Islands, his circumnavigation was not considered unassisted. He returned safely to Fremantle in November 1996 amid great fanfare, including a ticker-tape parade and being given the 'keys' to Perth City.
Krystyna Chojnowska-Liskiewicz was a Polish naval engineer and sailor as well as the first woman to have sailed single-handed around the world, repeating the accomplishment of Joshua Slocum. She sailed from the Canary Islands on 28 March 1976, and returned there on 21 April 1978, completing a circumnavigation of 31,166 nautical miles (57,719 km) in 401 days.
The sport and practice of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember. The term usually refers to ocean and long-distance sailing and is used in competitive sailing and among cruisers.
Jesse Martin, OAM, is a German-Australian sailor who in 1999, at age 18, became the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe solo, non-stop and unassisted, Martin's journey in the 34-foot (10 m) S&S 34 sloop Lionheart-Mistral took approximately 11 months. He chronicled his adventures in the book Lionheart: A Journey of the Human Spirit, and his story was made into a documentary, Lionheart: The Jesse Martin Story.
Tania Aebi is an American sailor. She completed a solo circumnavigation of the globe in a 26-foot sailboat between the ages of 18 and 21, finishing it in 1987, making her the first American woman and the youngest person to sail around the world. Her record was not recognized by Guinness, because she sailed through the Panama Canal, which required assistance. She also sailed eighty miles with a friend in the South Pacific. Despite many challenges, Aebi accomplished her goal.
Michael Perham is an English sailor and adventurer from Potters Bar. In 2007 at the age of 14 he became the youngest person in the world to successfully sail across the Atlantic Ocean single-handedly, beating the record set in 2003 by British sailor Seb Clover. In 2009 at the age of 17 he became the youngest person to sail around the world solo. Perham's second record surpassed that of Zac Sunderland, an older 17-year-old American, set only six weeks earlier. Following this, Perham's adventures included driving around the world and racing in many offshore races, most notably the Sydney to Hobart yacht race in 2011 where his team placed second in class.
Jessica Watson is an Australian sailor who was awarded the Order of Australia Medal after attempting a solo circumnavigation at the age of 16. Although her voyage did not meet the distance criterion of 21,600 nautical miles (40,000 km) for a circumnavigation, Watson was nevertheless named the 2011 Young Australian of the Year and awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 2012 for "...service to sailing and to youth through the achievement of sailing solo and unassisted around the world [sic], and as a role model for young Australians". She currently resides in Melbourne. Netflix produced a film, True Spirit (2023), about Watson's voyage.
Abigail Jillian Sunderland is an American former sailor who, in 2010, attempted to become the youngest person to sail solo around the world.
The first around the world sailing record for circumnavigation of the world can be attributed to the surviving crew of Ferdinand Magellan's expedition, including the last captain Juan Sebastián Elcano who completed their journey in 1522.
Laura Dekker is a New Zealand-born Dutch sailor. In 2009, she announced her plan to become the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe single-handed. A Dutch court stepped in, owing to the objections of the local authorities, and prevented Laura from departing while under shared custody of both her parents. In July 2010, a Dutch family court ended this custody arrangement, and the record-breaking attempt finally began on 21 August 2010. Dekker successfully completed the solo circumnavigation in a 12.4-metre (40 ft) two-masted ketch named Guppy, arriving in Simpson Bay, Sint Maarten, 518 days later at the age of 16.
INSV Mhadei is a sail training boat of the Indian Navy. On 19 May 2010 as he sailed Mhadei into Mumbai harbour, Commander Dilip Donde became the first Indian national to complete a single-handed circumnavigation under sail, in an Indian-built boat. He sailed from Mumbai on 19 August 2009 and returned to Mumbai after four stops on 19 May 2010. It was later used by Abhilash Tomy for his own single-handed, unassisted, non-stop circumnavigation under sail.
Keith White was a British yachtsman. In October 2015 he set out on a non-stop solo circumnavigation of the world in his yacht, the Marathon, in part to raise funds for charity. White, who was disabled, lost the use of his left arm in 1991 due to a road traffic accident. A sailor since he was 16 years old, he achieved some significant firsts with his circumnavigation of the UK and Ireland, and his circuit of the Atlantic.
The Mhadei class are ocean going sail training boats of the Indian Navy & include INSV Mhadei and INSV Tarini as the 2 sail boats of the class. On 19 May 2010 as he sailed Mhadei into Mumbai harbour, Commander Dilip Donde became the first Indian national to complete a single-handed circumnavigation under sail, in an Indian-built boat. He sailed from Mumbai on 19 August 2009 and returned to Mumbai after four stops on 19 May 2010. It was later used by Abhilash Tomy for his own single-handed, unassisted, non-stop circumnavigation under sail.
Jeanne Socrates is a British yachtswoman. She is from Lymington. She holds the record as the oldest female to have circumnavigated the world single-handed, and she is the only woman to have circumnavigated solo nonstop from North America. She was awarded the Cruising Club of America's Blue Water Medal and the Royal Cruising Club Medal for Seamanship in 2013. In 2013, she was awarded the Ocean Cruising Club's premier award, the Barton Cup, and was elected Honorary Member of the OCC in 2020.
↑ "Zac Sunderland". Latitude 38 – The West's Premier Sailing & Marine Magazine. Archived from the original on February 8, 2009. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
