Playing the Long Game - Jon Sanders

Jon Sanders is very safety conscious. You could not sail eleven circumnavigations of the globe if you weren’t. Parry Endeavour was especially strengthened for the triple circumnavigation in preparation for hazards such as violent knockdowns or collision with a whale, an iceberg or with a man-made object such as a shipping container.

One night, just north of Cape Horn in the South Atlantic Ocean, Jon saw the lights of a fleet of squid trawlers some distance ahead. He set a course that would take him away from the nearest fishing boats and retired for supper leaving the self-steering gear in charge. He knew he couldn’t afford to sleep for long periods of time in this crowded ocean but settled down for a rest. He dozed momentarily but was woken by a violent crash up forward. He leapt from his bunk and reached the cockpit in a couple of giant strides just in time to see Parry Endeavour bouncing off a squid trawler. You can see the damage that Parry Endeavour suffered that night. The rail at the front of the bow was a tangled mess, one forestay was broken, and other rigging had slackened off causing the mast to lean dangerously. The wind was picking up and it was a frigid five-degrees, but Jon’s quick assessment was that he could sail on. Luckily the remaining forestay was secure and by re-tensioning the rigging he stabilised the mast. Jon noted in his logbook that the strengthened hull, fitted with the collision bulkhead, suffered no damage. His thorough preparations had paid off.

And to cap it all, it was his mother’s birthday. He hoped she had enjoyed her day more than he had!

Jon Sanders on the Parry Endeavour for his triple circumnavigation of the world, 1988.
Credit: State Library of Western Australia, 135228PD