HI->Tahiti Dingbats found after 5 months

[Tetepare]

Originally Posted by dwedeking2

This "plan" was probably launched around a Maui Wowwie powered drum circle and your search for logic and reality-based decision making is going to really frustrate you.

And yet, they're in a 40' yacht sailing the Pacific. You too have a nice boat. I am in an office, raising kids, have a retirement account and my boat was pulled from the water yesterday. Clearly I am doing something wrong.

[Sojourner]

I've read a lot of folks here refer to these people as "idiots" and such.... I think so too, but not because of how poor of sailors they are. Unless there is some mental illness (a little folie a deux perhaps?), this absolutely was a calculated stunt of some sort, but very poorly calculated. Some of their tales cannot be refuted because we weren't there (fair enough) but the very first one can: Force 11 storm for 3 days off Hawaii. Which of us would set sail into such a storm with a COMPLETE NON-SAILOR like her friend? Not for safety reasons even (which of course is the number 1 reason to stay home that day), but just sit back and imagine taking a newbie into 30 foot seas for their first sail... not to mention the two dogs. That's almost animal abuse. But there was no storm, and this has been easily verified. After getting caught in such a huge, easily disprovable lie right from the start, every other statement should be treated as false until THEY prove otherwise.

Anyone remember the Heeney's? Or, as the media called him, Balloon Boy? Google it if you don't. Same thing here....guaranteed.

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by Tetepare

And yet, they're in a 40' yacht sailing the Pacific. You too have a nice boat. I am in an office, raising kids, have a retirement account and my boat was pulled from the water yesterday. Clearly I am doing something wrong.

Life really isn't fair. However, you won't be some anchor out hobo on a derelict in 20 years time.

Well these two have had their 15 minutes of fame and been on the telly. Hopefully this childrens bedside story should now disappear never to be heard of again.

Pete

[newhaul]

Originally Posted by Tetepare

And yet, they're in a 40' yacht sailing the Pacific. You too have a nice boat. I am in an office, raising kids, have a retirement account and my boat was pulled from the water yesterday. Clearly I am doing something wrong.

the USCG documented their vessel as a 37 footer .
Yep you are doing it wrong let the kids fend for themselves. ( only if over 16 ) they can legally work and drive at that point )

[CatNewBee]

I still think, they were up to something in the east pacific and get caught by the Navy. Then they invent the story of distress and drifting to cover up what they were doing there with their Geiger counters...

Guess they are some self-proclaimed "safe the world" - activists that try to create a story about Fukushima - (what they admit in the interview) - that also fits to the veggy life style and their beliefs on the stories of devil triangle, shark attacks for entering their waters, wreck coast and other seaman tales...

At least one claims to be an experienced sailor. I would bet she is, they got through the former nuclear test atolls near to Japan and are disturbed by the Navy, so they decided to make up a story of two "dingbats" with more brave than brain drifting around.

They were well equipped, they have almost anything on electronics available today on board: SSB, Iridium phone, EPIRB, VHF, AIS, smart phone with GPS (that was thrown over board when the Navy has arrived)... two water makers and provisions for a year. They had a different agenda I guess, they turned away from the fishing vessel but could not get away from the NAVY - so plan B was invoked.

After arrival in Japan they got lost and refused to answer any further questions when the story was questioned.

[Tetepare]

Originally Posted by newhaul

the USCG documented their vessel as a 37 footer .
Yep you are doing it wrong let the kids fend for themselves. ( only if over 16 ) they can legally work and drive at that point )

Yeah, you're right. Now that Boy Scouts of America is admitting females, I was thinking of letting my daughter join and attend camp events. After all, as I read: 16 YO girls and boys around a camp fire out in the middle of nowhere, what could go wrong?

When I was that age, my parents took off for the boat on weekends and for summer cruise, and left me to fend for myself. I'm not going into detail, but let's say that wasn't a good plan.

I think what I will do is follow this example. I'm going to load the boat with months of Heineken, and be found floating around Lake Ontario months later. I'll claim I couldn't get into Toronto because it's too shallow, so headed to Oswego, but they'll find me off Niagara, against the current. I'll claim the motor quit (ahem when I ran out of fuel) and I was afraid to hoist sails because I didn't have a split ring on a turnbuckle and the mast could come down. 20' sturgeon attacked us day and night, surfacing to watch us in the hopes to grab me from the cockpit. We watched the USCG go by multiple times, never having spotted us, and were finally rescued by BoatUS. Despite having (obviously) crossed the freighter alley, we never saw one. I was afraid the boat would sink within 24 hours because the thru-hulls are marelon. I fell off the transom no fewer than a dozen times while peeing, but managed to get back aboard. I am so glad that BoatUS saved us, because we were almost out of Heineken having totally exhausted our fresh water supply.

[newhaul]

Originally Posted by Tetepare

Yeah, you're right. Now that Boy Scouts of America is admitting females, I was thinking of letting my daughter join and attend camp events. After all, as I read: 16 YO girls and boys around a camp fire out in the middle of nowhere, what could go wrong?

When I was that age, my parents took off for the boat on weekends and for summer cruise, and left me to fend for myself. I'm not going into detail, but let's say that wasn't a good plan.

I think what I will do is follow this example. I'm going to load the boat with months of Heineken, and be found floating around Lake Ontario months later. I'll claim I couldn't get into Toronto because it's too shallow, so headed to Oswego, but they'll find me off Niagara, against the current. I'll claim the motor quit (ahem when I ran out of fuel) and I was afraid to hoist sails because I didn't have a split ring on a turnbuckle and the mast could come down. 20' sturgeon attacked us day and night, surfacing to watch us in the hopes to grab me from the cockpit. We watched the USCG go by multiple times, never having spotted us, and were finally rescued by BoatUS. Despite having (obviously) crossed the freighter alley, we never saw one. I was afraid the boat would sink within 24 hours because the thru-hulls are marelon. I fell off the transom no fewer than a dozen times while peeing, but managed to get back aboard. I am so glad that BoatUS saved us, because we were almost out of Heineken having totally exhausted our fresh water supply.

now that sounds like a good well thought out plan of action.

[Tetepare]

And, as the facts come rolling in....liars made the news again, being called out.

Hawaii women's tale of survival at sea unraveling as more evidence disputes claims | Fox News


Anybody still want to jump up and defend the snowflakes?


Sad thing is, these two have had fifty times more media coverage than the America's Cup.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Tetepare

And, as the facts come rolling in....liars made the news again, being called out.

Hawaii women's tale of survival at sea unraveling as more evidence disputes claims | Fox News


Anybody still want to jump up and defend the snowflakes?


Sad thing is, these two have had fifty times more media coverage than the America's Cup.

Does anyone really give a damn?

[Souzag818]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

First, I would like to thank all the posters who have written in support of myself and my position.

I would like to explain why misrepresentation of facts in an incident that led to rescue matters so much to me.

1. Honesty in dealings of any kind is important to me. I am a person to whom trust is important, and for me, it cannot exist where there is dishonesty.

2. An event such as this, when the hoax aspects are finally realized, will only serve to make the general population question legitimate emergencies. It will make all long term cruisers appear worthy of suspicion. To me, not a good thing.

3. There are many people who read CF who do not post. I am a voice for the cruising community of which I am a member. Therefore, my honesty, and my process, like those of the other posters here, is important as a small representation of the community.

Ann

Ann, I for one don't feel that you need to explain yourself. I think the majority of people on CF are in agreement with you on most if not all counts, and respect your and Jim's experience and opinions. I think when the truth comes out, you will be the wise one.

[Valmika]

Anne, I think most on this forum agree with your well thought out and rational opinions on all matters. The one thing in this story that no ones seems to mention is the very real possibility this woman is just crazy. She doesn't have to have a motive (at least a rational one) If she was rational and had even a little knowledge she would not have made up stories so easily debunked.

Depending on your beliefs God created us all equal but I believe that refers to the value of our souls not to the capability's of our minds and bodies.

This woman, as someone very early in this post who allegedly knew her put it. is a "few bricks short of a wall" or something like that
I do wonder what if any repercussions they may suffer from the navy for lying

[Tetepare]

Originally Posted by Cadence

Does anyone really give a damn?

I would think so.

Every time some idiot does something stupid some politician exploits it and next thing you know we have additional unnecessary regulation.

Furthermore, if these two have, or had, made it to a foreign port very real risk is run that the next "real" cruiser that gets to that port is going to have problems, thanks to the snowflakes.

Also, don't forget the "cry wolf" story. It's unlikely that USN or USCG would ignore the next stricken boat due to this one, but foreign assistance certainly might.

Finally, I was in Belize for the OJ trial, and Americans were the laughing stock. In Honiara, we watched one of those retard survivor shows filmed in Aitutaki, and the locals nearly wet their pants with how useless and stupid Palagis are.

Certainly my Pacific friends and colleagues have seen this news, it's only a matter of time until the first (and then more) emails start pouring in reminding me (mostly joking, but not fully joking) how stupid American sailors are.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Tetepare

I would think so.

Every time some idiot does something stupid some politician exploits it and next thing you know we have additional unnecessary regulation.

Furthermore, if these two have, or had, made it to a foreign port very real risk is run that the next "real" cruiser that gets to that port is going to have problems, thanks to the snowflakes.

Also, don't forget the "cry wolf" story. It's unlikely that USN or USCG would ignore the next stricken boat due to this one, but foreign assistance certainly might.

Finally, I was in Belize for the OJ trial, and Americans were the laughing stock. In Honiara, we watched one of those retard survivor shows filmed in Aitutaki, and the locals nearly wet their pants with how useless and stupid Palagis are.

Certainly my Pacific friends and colleagues have seen this news, it's only a matter of time until the first (and then more) emails start pouring in reminding me (mostly joking, but not fully joking) how stupid American sailors are.

I was only asking because it has been beat to death. The consensus of opinion seems to be the one is the dominant fruit cake.

[Kelkara]

I'm still hoping that this all turns out to be just another tale of the inexperienced and incompetent being bested by mother nature. With all the lies and exaggerations being a desperate and futile effort to cover up their short-comings in an act of denial of their own failures.

Removing the exaggerations ... I imagine it going down something like this ...

Force 11 storm for three days one day after leaving:
Once we were out of sight of land we felt uncomfortable with the way the wind and swell moved the boat, and suffered badly from sea-sickness. Admittedly it could have been worse, and since force 12 is as high as the scale goes, we joked that it couldn't be worse than a force-11, surely it's not actually "The Perfect Storm". After 3 days we started to feel comfortable so felt good about continuing.

Sat Phone dropped overboard:
While trying to call my mum on the sat phone I had to stand out on deck to get a good signal, but I dropped it overboard. There goes our long-distance comms, I guess we can survive without it ... we'll have to make a habit of attaching lanyards to important equipment from now on.

Mast damaged during "storm":
We noticed that one of the spreaders had started to wobble slightly. I never got round to checking them during the 2.5 year refit, there was too much else that needed doing to the boat. Not to worry, it will survive for a while yet, we'll fix it at Christmas Island.

Boat to big to anchor in Kiribati:
On approaching Christmas island we look at the chart and see that we won't be able to enter the lagoon due to our draft, so we would have to anchor on an open coast. It's climbing the mast as the sea rocks the boat that terrifies us, so we aren't going to try and fix the spreader there. We should have looked at the chart more carefully before arriving, we could have stopped in English Harbour on Tabuaeran Island instead, but we don't want to back-track so I think we'll just continue on to Tahiti as planned.

Navy contacts Sea Nymph near Tahiti:
We get a friendly call from a passing Navy ship as we near Tahiti, we tell them we are fine and expect to make landfall tomorrow. The next day we make contact with customs and immigration in Tahiti, and they inform us that Pit Bull dogs are banned from Tahiti, and we will not be permitted to land unless the dog is destroyed ... so we decide to bypass Tahiti and head for our next destination ... the cook islands. On arrival at the Cook Islands we are told that dogs from the USA don't pass quarantine, so we can't stop here either. They never mention this in the movies, but this could be a problem on all the islands. So we turn north and head back for Hawaii ... we're going to have to do that soon anyway.

The White Squall:
After leaving the Cook Islands we encounter a brief storm. It's the first real storm we've met, and it is terrifying! We even got pooped by a wave and the cockpit flooded. I felt sure the boat was going to sink. I wish I had never watched the film "White Squall".

Engine Failure:
Soon after the storm we tried to start the engine, but the storm had stirred up sludge from the bottom of the tank, and the fuel filters were hopelessly blocked ... we don't have any spare filters. During our efforts to get the engine going we overheated the starter motor, and now it won't crank properly. It looks like we're going to have to continue without the engine.

Battling against a 10kt current:
As we head north the spreader is starting to worry us, so we turn east to head to English Harbour to fix it this time ... I'm still not happy about climbing the mast in ocean swells. But not only is the current against us at almost 2kts, but it's upwind too. This puts a lot of stress on the spreader, and our VMG is pitifully slow, so after a day where it felt like we were going backwards we decide we might as well just head for Hawaii.

Entering the Devils Triangle - boats enter only ghosts leave:
Once we were north of the equator we entered an area with very light winds. Our strategy for dealing with light winds has always been to motor through them, so I've never learnt how to sail in light winds. But now we have a dead engine, no light air sails, I've never heard of a preventer, and I thought poles were only for spinnakers, so we can't control the sails as the boat rolls in the swell. Our only option seems to be to just drift and wait for some wind.

Attacked by sharks!
We saw some sharks today, they were impressively big. Really freaked out the dogs, freaked me out a bit too. At one point one of them even bumped into the boat! I thought it would be fun to watch "Jaws" before we left, but now I'm having nightmares about sharks.

Rescued by dolphins:
The day after seeing the sharks we saw some dolphins. We joked that the dolphins must have fought off the sharks for us. I'm sure "Flipper" did that in one episode.

98 days issuing Maydays, but being ignored by ships:
we've been becalmed for a couple of weeks now, and we're starting to drift seriously off course. But we've still got a floating boat, food and water, so we're not in a life threatening situation ... no need to activate the epirb yet. We'll hail a passing boat and ask it to tow us out of the doldrums. We see a few ships, but they are all huge, and wouldn't be able to give us a tow anyway, so we let them sail past. Wouldn't it be awful if we really needed their help, and they sailed off like that ... wasn't there a movie about that?

Taken in tow by Taiwanese fishing boat:
We were beginning to think that we would have to use the epirb - I'm sure the dogs had already decided this since they've been having to eat oatmeal for a few days now. When finally we see a fishing boat that is a suitable size to give us a tow. They take us in tow, but neither they nor we have a suitable tow-rope, and the steel cable they used was putting too much stress on our bow fittings, and after a day the boat was literally starting to be pulled apart. I watched the movie "Dead Calm" once, now I'm paranoid that these fishermen might have nefarious intentions too, either way we have to find another solution, the boat isn't going to make it like this.

Contact made with Navy:
We use the radio on the fishing boat to contact the Coast Guard, they advise us that a Navy ship is in the area, and that they will come to help. The fishermen go back to work, and the navy establish that they don't have the spare parts to fix our engine either. Although one of them does climb the mast to look at the spreader.

If I get into trouble the Navy will rescue me!
The navy ship can't give us a tow, but they offer to take us and the dogs to Japan. They say we don't have to abandon the boat, but if we don't, they won't come back to help us a second time. Being rescued by the navy is the last line of defence we have, we can't let it go, we have no other options left, so reluctantly we abandon our home.

We had an adventure that even hollywood couldn't put into just one movie!
Adrift 1000 miles off course, rescued by the navy etc, how humiliating! People are going to think we're such losers. We didn't even get to land in Tahiti. What kind of a story do we have to tell? ... actually it's quite a good story ... it all started with that force-11 storm the day we left etc. At least we don't have to make up a story like the Crowhurst character in "A voyage for Madmen".

(ok - I didn't manage to work the geiger counter into the story ... but I'm sure there could be a quite pedestrian explanation if you think far enough outside the box).

I hope they do come clean and tell the truth, because the truth is probably quite a good story, and some of us other "landlubber newbies and greenhorns" could learn from their mistakes. But on the other hand I hope the media spotlight moves elsewhere, and we all leave them alone to climb quietly out of the rather large hole they've dug for themselves.

[CSY Man]

No big deal.
The bimbos screwed up and now they look like fools.
So what, let them sail into their 15 minutes of fame, then fade away.
Live and let lie..