Buying sh*t you don't need off eBay --

[spookini]

"Seemed like a good idea at the time..."
http://www.boston.com/news/weather/2015/02/15/coast-guard-rescues-sailors-miles-off-nantucket/Sgw0fEkpkjWAArK9m2tqIO/story.html?p1=Must_Reads_hp

Sooooooooo close.   Only about 13,000 nautical miles short.   

[spookini]

Wow, it gets better:
“We’ve never done anything like this. Dad’s not even a sailor, but he’s a quick study,” said Jason McGlashan in his Australian accent. “We’ve got plenty of food, plenty of booze...so we’re going to be OK.”

Can't make this stuff up: 
http://www.newportri.com/newportdailynews/news/page_one/once-in-a-lifetime/article_8208539e-b214-5d8b-ad5f-009a1f2251c4.html

[SUPcheat]

Wow, it gets better:
“We’ve never done anything like this. Dad’s not even a sailor, but he’s a quick study,” said Jason McGlashan in his Australian accent. “We’ve got plenty of food, plenty of booze...so we’re going to be OK.”

Can't make this stuff up: 
http://www.newportri.com/newportdailynews/news/page_one/once-in-a-lifetime/article_8208539e-b214-5d8b-ad5f-009a1f2251c4.html

Once in a lifetime trip, or end of a lifetime trip?  Maybe they should have watched that Robert Redford movie "All Is Lost".

[lucabrasi]

Wow, it gets better:
“We’ve never done anything like this. Dad’s not even a sailor, but he’s a quick study,” said Jason McGlashan in his Australian accent. “We’ve got plenty of food, plenty of booze...so we’re going to be OK.”

Can't make this stuff up: 
http://www.newportri.com/newportdailynews/news/page_one/once-in-a-lifetime/article_8208539e-b214-5d8b-ad5f-009a1f2251c4.html

Perhaps it does get better.
 
This was in there to click on. They waited a few days as it seems it was a bit to rough earlier in the week.
(wait, maybe not, perhaps repairs were the real reason to wait)

http://www.newportri.com/newportdailynews/news/local_state/father-son-duo-delays-trip-back-home-to-australia/article_2c87f2f6-5080-5e98-bc85-40af25b522f0.html

[supthecreek]

Friday seems like a good day to cast off..... the monster storm won't really kick in till we're 70 or 80 miles offshore... throw me a Fosters!

[KiwiSupGreg]

Aussies...not the sharpest knives in the drawer.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[spookini]

Now that the boat's gone, I get the feeling these guys are going to fly home -- in a rented hot-air balloon.
"Dad's never been up -- even in an elevator.
But we've got a big bag of funyons, and a half case of yoo-hoo.  Should be all set!!"

Hey wait a minute....something's off about the Skipper.  Looks like a certain Cape Cod ZONER....??   

[stoneaxe]

So close......they could have been Darwin award winners for sure.

Never ceases to amaze me how stupid people can be.

[Bean]

Here is the original float plan summary:

"Jason McGlashan said the plan is to leave Narragansett Bay and sail south to Bermuda, a trip that should take about four days if the wind is right. After a brief stay there, the captain — Jason — and first mate — Reg — will head further south, round the tip of South Africa and take a straight shot home across the Indian Ocean, he said."

Meanwhile, on February 9th, some serious advise from a concerned mariner:

Hi Reg & Jason,
I'm hoping that was a typo and you're following the prevailing winds to Australia via the Panama canal to the Marquesas & then on to Australia. Matt Sheley, please pass on this information http://www.cruisingworld.com/how/ocean-passage-planner . Also to Reg & Jason, Newport is rich with experienced circumnavigators who will assist you in planning a safer route. Reach out to them.
Fair winds & following seas,
Your Neighbor

You can't make this stuff up...

[spookini]

Interesting how the Coast Guard's onboard video ends w/ the rescuees high-fiving each other.  I'm guessing the footage "rescue diver clips out of harness and beats both aussies silly", ended up on the cutting room floor.

Wonder if these guys will be asked to chip in for gas money?

[DavidJohn]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/us-coast-guard-saves-australian-dad-and-son-in-daring-high-seas-rescue-in-atlantic-ocean/story-fni0fiyv-1227222044619?sv=173747b4bf0e405c37d550716764a44a&utm_source=Herald%20Sun&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=editorial

[starman]

That's a story that could have been found in The Onion if not for the very real danger they put that USGS crew in. Absolute lunatics.

[supthecreek]

One of our very own Zoners was a rescue diver stationed at Woods Hole (localkine)... it would have been his life at risk if he was still there.... but he made the move to Oahu.... Tough work those folks do.

I was walking the beach today to check storm damage.... wind chill was -20 or something like that. I was in front of the Coast Guard Station.... it made me think of what it must have been like to row out to save lives off a shipwreck on days and nights like today. Yikes.... those fellas had some mighty dangerous work. Thank God for the brave souls who continue the tradition of saving people during horrendous conditions.

CG Station is just next to my head.... no joke today.... I needed that get up to walk back against the wind..... bone chilling

[headmount]

That's a story that could have been found in The Onion if not for the very real danger they put that USGS crew in. Absolute lunatics.

How do those guys have the cajones to get lowered down on that wire swinging around in that kind of wind?  You could say practice but there's no way that becomes risk free.  Pretty damn impressive.

[PonoBill]

The system of charging people for rescues has gone somewhat sideways, which is a big mistake IMHO. If you do something stupid it shouldn't be up to other taxpayers to bail you out. There's no question in the case of these morons, but the reality is that they probably won't be charged, and if they get a bill, they can probably skedaddle without paying it.