Leslie

It really is quite astounding to see the negative comments being posted here. Is there no place any more for human achievment in this world. Have you got your heads so far up your own ***** that you cannot see what an outstanding record this girl has set?

Surely its not so difficult to afford her the congratulations she deserves so highly for taking this on and getting the record despite all the difficulties she had to overcome. Are you jealous of what she did, or is it because she is a woman?

There was a lot od carping going on when this was mentioned a while ago and now she has beaten the record we still see it. Dba had a very good description of those who are so mean they will not give her the praise and acknowledgement that she well deserves.

There is a lot more to life than sitting on your backside moaning at those who have got the guts to go out and do something really difficult and with full success too. Who cares how many boats it might sell, or how many cars get sold through F1 racing. That is of no importance compared to the human achievement involved. This sort of effort is what makes the world go round!

History is full of people who have put their necks on the line in order to do something difficult, some have failed as well of course but they were prepared to try. If you can't say that you have done the same then at least give those who have some credit.

Les

Flatcapdriver

Hard to say really. There are literally dozens each year from the UK but generally these are not going to break any records but in the main I'd guestimate that around two or three "genuine" attempts are now being made annually. The problem is that not many people are prepared to take the challenge on either because it's so difficult or logistically/commercially they can't get a package together.

If you take the Vendee as an example, which runs every four years and has just finished, you can get up to 15 monohulls attempting this feat in one go whilst racing against each other.

unclebuck

Just like the land speed record, or any other speed record. Throw enough money at it and it *will* be achieved.

I can't really see the merits of this sort of thing in our day and age. I'd admire the sponsers more if they put the same kind of resources into something of benefit to society as a whole and not just for the aggrandisement of some worthy's ego.

unclebuck

Flatcapdriver clearly has shares in B & Q

or perhaps he comes from a land where sporting achievement is the pinnicle of human endeavour

OllyK

Yeah I agree - let's ban all sports as none of them are of any value, let's put the money in to cancer research and such like. Just think how much money there would be if you considered the weekly salary of just one permeriership / champions league team.

Flatcapdriver

Nope. I just place greater importance on someone who gets off their **** and achieves something rather than sitting behind a computer all day whingeing about the Government and generally bleating about how unfair life is - a characteristic that is endemic in the British population.

Leslie

UB,

Are you saying then that we should all stop any sort of competition, car racing, athletics, football, rugby, rallying, scrambling or moto cross if you prefer, bike racing, and any other form of competition you like to mention , and devote all our lives to benefitting society.

Maybe you should become a monk!

Les

TelBoy

Precisely. Which makes this achievement hard to quantify, in my opinion. If she's raised a lot of money then great, but i just can't grasp whether she's done something extraordinary, or just something that a well sponsored professional sailor could beat on their first attempt, if they had the time and/or inclination to do it. As i say - dunno.

InvisibleMan

another british person in the world record books - what a loser...

OllyK

You need skill, determination and luck! You can plan for almost everything but the oceans (and perhaps more importantly the winds) are somewhat unpredictable, look at the Tsunami over xmas.

It isn't just about sailing it's about following the winds to make the best time you can and with wind variations being a mile or so more to the E/W etc could make a big difference. The tides can be a killer if you loose some time and then hit them wrong - just ask anybody who has got it wrong through the Alderney race!

Leslie

Telboy,

Does it help if I tell you that she has beaten the record set by a frenchman who beat the previous record by such a big margin that they said his record would stand for ten years or more. Maybe that will put it into perspective for you.

Les

Dream Weaver

There are a few camps on this, and its impossible to answer.

Firstly well done to Ellen for doing something amazing, and that not many people will ever attempt, it must have been difficult but rewarding.

But, i'm in 2 minds with the whole thing. In these times of war, poverty and human disasters such as the Tsunami one part of me thinks "big deal", someone who enjoys sailing has sailed around the world, just like I enjoy cars so I could drive round the world only benefitting myself in the most part.

Then on the other hand, where do we draw the line? Do we all stop having fun, and doing things to test ourselves, and enjoying expensive sports such as F1, and drive performance cars just because there are other people less fortunate.

Its easy to say, "what a waste of money, which could go to a good cause", but that can apply to anything and anyone. All those who think its a waste of money, should we all sell our cars and luxuries and give the money to the needy, and stop enjoying our hobbies and pastimes?

If we do this, when do the needy become the wealthy and the wealthy become the needy (wealthy as in a home and some food/money)?

Although i'm not interested in the sailing thing, Ellen McArthur has done an astounding journey and record attempt, and I think we need some perspective on it it wont all have been for pleasure, there will be some good somewhere if only to keep in work all the people involved.

It's a difficult thing to comprehend though and I struggle with it

unclebuck

Yea, but in supporting the 'Lady Di' of achievers you are ignoring those who are just as courageous an are far more worthy of praise who never get any recognition at all because what they do would never be deemed glamorous enough to be worthy of the mass media's attentions.

TelBoy

Thank you for the sermon, Les, but that's STILL a tiny percentage of the world's population who have, or ever will attempt it. If it was a mainstream event, i'd bet good money that this time could be made to look quite ordinary. But it isn't, so it probably won't for a long time. Doesn't mean i have to be impressed by it though.

Iain Young

Sounds like a good idea to me

Might be an amazing achievement, but it was done in the most technologically advanced boat in the world, with rather a lot of money having been thrown at it. Michael Schumacher does this frequently (breaking world speed records etc), but whenever he does it, everyone moans as says it's boring, but when it's in a boat, it's an amazing achievement. Can't work that one out myself.

As with all sports, (and indeed all professions), it takes a great deal of talent and dedication to succeed at the highest level, but it also requires a lot of money and support and is very reliant on the underlying technology. I bet she wouldn't have beaten the record if she'd been in a boat that I could afford, no matter how good a sailor she is...

Now if she'd done it in a rowing bow, then I'd have been impressed...

InvisibleMan

jeez lets all give up now everything we do is just a waste of time because we're all going to die anyway...

Flatcapdriver

If we assume a level playing field in terms of budget, then what she has done is amazing - you can take that from someone who has sailed across the Atlantic in perfect conditions as part of a crew of six.

To motivate yourself to exist on a series of catnaps mapped out by your circadian rhythms totalling around a couple of hours per day is difficult enough - we did a four on, four off watch system which after a couple of days knackered me out. If the main needed easing, or the kite needed adjusting during a meal break then we let it wait until after the chow had been downed but she had to constantly change sails when she was wet, cold and tired.

Try motivating yourself in the South Atlantic when you've done six sail changes in a row when you haven't slept for twenty hours or so - it would be easy to just put your head down for a while to recover rather than push yourself to go topsides.

Try fixing a broken bilge pump in a Force 9, when the boat's throwing you all over the place and all you want to do is chuck up or the autohelm has thrown a wobbly for the tenth time that day.

You're still wet and tired after all this and you then have to interpret local meteorological conditions and match those with what Commanders weather are coming up with and make tactical decisions based on those.

It's relentless mental and physical pressure that has gone on for over two months in some of the most inhospitable areas of the world and you can't just pull into a marina and take a break - it just goes on and on.

Perhaps you need to have some sailing experience to appreciate what she's done particularly when you consider how difficult it is to get sponsorship from UK companies if it's not football that you're competing in.

The woman has ***** which is a lot more than could be said for some people on here.

OllyK

Very few people have clibmed Everest, walked un-aided to the poles etc. So few people do it because it is so tough and it will never be mainstream. That's why these people get such recognition. Look how much publicity David Beckam gets if he so much as farts and how many footballers are there? Not exactly a tough sport is it? Add to that the Ellen MacArthur trust and the work that does and it becomes even more of an achievement.

Iain Young

That's just silly.

What I object to is the amount of fuss made over something that is at the end of the day unimportant, (and not that great an achievement IMHO). And if we dare to say we are not interested or impressed, then we are shot down in flames...

InvisibleMan

lots of money has been put into yeah sure, ok you try to sail it/drive f1 car - you wont be able to, its the talent behind it which can - its the talent that is congratulated...the human acheivement...our natural instints to push back the boundary of 'it cant be done'

Iain Young

Actually, a few hundred do it every year these days

Not many people sit in a bath of baked beans for six months to break a record either. Doesn't mean I have to be impressed that they've done it...

TelBoy

Ah, but herein lies the difference. Climbing Everest is a hell of an achievement in itself, as is sailing round the world single-handed. But a lot of the accolades for Ellen seem to be based on what a great time she's set. All i'm saying is that though this might be the case, so few people attempt it that we don't really know if it is or not. It just seems such an absurd event about which to be talking "world records". Just my view.

OllyK

What solo, to the sumit without breathing equipment?? That's news to me. Care to list the ones that did it last year??

InvisibleMan

you like some things you dont others, im not into sailing either but as its a world record & by a british person its quite good - but we british dont like congratulating our own winners do we....

unclebuck

Exactly. Come across like a righteous bunch of fascistic bully boys.

"Get with the programme weeds..."

Iain Young

What was congratulated was the breaking of the record. This was done in a more technologically advanced and ultimately faster boat then which previously held the record.

Sure, it was a good achievment, and required talent to pilot it, but it was the technology and good fortune with the weather (i.e. strong / fast winds) that broke the record, not the sailor. Hypothetical I know, but I bet that if she did the event in the old boat, I bet she wouldn't have beaten it...

I'm sure that there are any number of sailors out there which when given the same boat, would have done exactly the same thing...

Iain Young

Around 1300 climbed it last year. Changed it to hundred because on re-reading the post it sounded exagerated...