How may parents would let their teen son try this?

Just saw this story on the wire about a 17-year-old kid from California hitting the home stretch in his bid to become the youngest to sail around the world solo. Sounds like he's had one helluva year, from an encounter with pirates to surfing in the Indian Ocean while waiting for repairs on his 36-foot boat. He just passed through the Panama Canal and has about 3,000 miles left before returning to Marina Del Rey.

Being a confirmed landlubber, I doubt such an idea would have ever found its way into my head, especially not when I was a junior in high school.

http://www.zacsunderland.com

The AP story is slugged SAI--Sunderland's Adventure

 

holy crap. mrs. shockey won't let our three teenaged boys walk home alone from a friend's house after 10 p.m. and we don't exactly live in the 'hood. this is as quiet a suburban town as you'll find.

 

His BLOG! is pretty interesting. A good account of what it takes to get through the Panama Canal.

http://www.zacsunderland.com/blog/index.html

 

The kid made it home today, one year, one month and two days after leaving. He covered something in the neighborhood of 28,000 miles.

 

In-between then and now, he was on the cover of ESPN the Magazine.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?id=4233223

I got to hear part of the homecoming party today on NPR, just pretty damned amazing, and seems like a fantastic kid.

 

There is the occasional 17-year-old who is mature enough to handle something like this. I doubt my son will be one of them.

 

My mom wouldn't let me ride my bicycle past the telephone pole on our street until I was about 12 years old. Yeah, trip around the world at 16 ... not happening.

 

My closest friend and her husband moved onto their sailboat full-time last year. They spent most of the year in the Caribbean, may go further afield (further asea?) this year.

They're home-schooling the kids (12-year-old son, 9-year-old daughter). If either of the kids wanted to do this in a few years, I'm sure their parents would be cheering them on. Yes, the daughter, too.

 

Wonder how this kid's conversation with the folks started out ... "Hey, Mom, Dad ... I was thinking of taking my boat out ... around the world ... be back in a year."

 

I think it would be "farther."

But, as with everything, I'm sure it's open to debate.

http://hubpages.com/hub/Grammar_Mishaps__Farther_vs_Further

 

Anything further, father?

 

This kid and his family live next-door to my brother.

That, unfortunately, is probably about as close as I will ever get to an adventure like Zac's round-the-world trip.