S/V Rebel Heart Rescue in Pacific off Mexico

[Jim_ME]

I have been thinking that what prompted me to start the thread was watching the story in the evening news, where with the shortage of time between commercials, they might have devoted 1 minute maybe 2 minutes to a very condensed version of events [punched up with drama like "doomed" sailboat], reported by and based on information fed by people who are not sailors.

In contrast, I (we all) got to read about the events that Zen and his partner experienced in Zen's own words, and at as much length as he felt he needed. And not just the stark events, but how he felt about them, and how that factored into his thinking and decisions.

In the S/V Rebel Heart situation, the story was "broken" [probably an accurate term] by the major commercial media. The captain/father and mate/wife will be playing catch up to do their own reporting later in their blog. (Maybe it will even include some expression of empathy for Zen, now that he has been in a somewhat similar situation.)

Many thousands or millions will have only heard the initial compressed story and will never even know that there may be another more complete version that they could also read to get the full story of events. What they remember could probably be summed up as "Sick baby, bad parents, stupid, nuts, dangerous, had to be rescued." For them that will stand forever as the unquestioned truth. End of story.

A few of us will get to read both stories (even three if you count the separate captain and mate blogs) and will be able to compare and contrast them, and hopefully gain more useful knowledge and lessons.

[Zen]

The Universe is a heartless teacher. I hope they learn their friends are as compassionate as our were and they recover well.  It is a blessing no lives were lost, things can be replaced.

[s/v Faith]

The Universe is a heartless teacher. I hope they learn their friends are as compassionate as our were and they recover well.  It is a blessing no lives were lost, things can be replaced.

Beautiful.  I will give you a grog, but the universe is much better suited to offer your reward then I.  ;D

[sharkbait]

They've taken down the responses on their blog .

[CharlieJ]

Their entries? or the hurtful ones many of the idiots posted? Couldn't blame them for the last.

[CapnK]

My take is that they are pruning what they see as all the bad ones. That said -

In todays blog she posted an image of 3 responses which were no doubt vicious and uncalled-for, BUT in doing so she left the senders email addresses/names/contact plainly visible on them.

That is pretty vicious in itself; by doing so she is in effect "inviting" people to recriminate on her part.

I would think that as an experienced blogger/website-using person - one who is 'up on their tech and skills', as these two obviously are - she would know the consequences of doing this, having seen it happen elsewhere/to others. Despite that she may feel wronged (and understandably so), this bit of pettiness IMO brings her right down to a comparable level of the very people she is complaining about.

??? ::)

[Grime]

I feel for the family and hope they recover. I also feel for the families that lost love ones in the mud slide and for the families that lost 21 children when the school bus driver drove into a flooding low water crossing. Bad things happen to good people. 

IMHO maybe it would be best to keep our personal opinions to ourselves.

[CapnK]

Oh, I don't think anyone here is wishing them ill. I know I am not, but the more I learn of them - admittedly at this remove - the more I find it hard to feel at all "sympathetic". Bashing Zen like he did a year ago both on a personal spiritual level and for what happened to them at sea, now with the above seeming recriminatory blog post, well...  ???

[Grime]

There is an old saying. " What goes around comes around".  Shall we say this happened to him because of what he said about Zen. 

Right or wrong I'm not in position to judge. I just know first hand what its like to be completely homeless. Been there done that. We say things to try and hurt those that are hurting us at the time. In a normal mind state we might just ignore them.

JMHO

[CharlieJ]

I'm with you there Grime. Enough in my own life to not judge others

[s/v Faith]

I prefer to celibrate the grace shown by my friend Zen, and to revel in how right I was about his reaction.  ;) ;D ;D :) ;)

[Jim_ME]

But, I will say that having looked at some of the comments in the CF thread on Zen's experience, I would like to reiterate the thought "Thank goodness I avoid that poisonous place." ...It is instructive to look at the experiences of others and use them as springboards for discussion.  However, pointing "blame" and casting insults is more often than not the product of extremely lazy thinking.

It seems that, like many places in our culture, there can sometimes be a kind attitude of rivalry and competition...and keeping up with the Jones...who has the biggest most expensive new boat and the most toys and gadgets. This environment, and the disappointments of such materialism, may bring with it feeling a need to try to fill that hole through elevating one's position by putting others down--as may have been done to Zen.

For myself, one of the benefits of being part of a group that appreciates and honors the simple, smallish, and modest, is that this may serve as a kind of inoculation against that other kind of thinking and behavior. Instead we cooperate, support, and encourage each other here.

If anyone was unfair, harsh, or hypocritical to Zen, and does not set things right, then his/her reputation and standing will likely suffer--not because of any judgment that I make or write about here, but because it will be obvious to the broad community, most of whom I trust are fair minded. I need not take on that burden for myself.

[Jim_ME]

In todays blog she posted an image of 3 responses which were no doubt vicious and uncalled-for...

Agreed. When one's criticism qualifies as hate speech, it discredits whatever point one might have had. Their voyage is ruined, their boat is lost. They had already paid quite a high price.

[w00dy]

I found this  post on the CF thread, which was eventually closed down by the mods. Out of all the tripe that has been thrown around concerning this event, it seemed to me to be well reasoned, fair, positive, and most of all, cut right to the heart of the matter.

Here's the linkhttp://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/f2/forum-members-boat-and-daughter-in-trouble-off-of-mexico-123774-92.html#post1516701

And the full text:

Hello, this is my 1st post as a new member. The Rebel Heart incident has led me here. Although I have been on various fresh- and salt-water vessels throughout my life, I am not a cruiser or sailor. I've never met or spoken to the Kaufmans, online or offline. I don't work in the media or entertainment industry.

I have, however, spent hours upon hours reading the Kaufmans' blogs, as well as many of their posts on the forum and their Facebook page. I have also viewed the Air National Guard press conference regarding the Rebel Heart crew rescue a few times. Finally, I have read various threads on various forums concerning their recent trip.


First, let me just say that I'm happy the family is safe and back on land. I think it's reasonable to say that most if not all of us go through things in life which put us in harm's way, whether we spend our time on land or on water. Life is simply full of risks -- and also full of rewards. Many of these events, however, are not typically broadcast in such a public fashion as the Kaufmans' story.


I recognize and understand that both Eric and Charlotte are members here, and that apparently many here are supporters and possibly have even met them offline.

I also, however, think it's important and relevant to understand and discuss some facts leading up to this incident. It is not necessarily only a sailor/cruiser story; this also becomes a Kaufman family story. Regardless of your personal relationship with them, and regardless of your own sailing/cruising experience, I think it's vital to consider the facts which have been thoroughly documented mainly by the Kaufmans themselves -- especially those from the past few months.

I don't see many people here discussing many of these, most of which can be found at their blogs. This is the reason why I decided to register and post here. I'm interested in hearing responses to any or all of the following findings.


Without comment, here is just a list of what I have found at their blogs:

- The longest trip prior to their most recent, was just 4 nights long, taken only by Eric. This was a coastal trip. The entire family never spent this much time sailing at once. They have never been outside of coastal waters. None of them have been crew or passengers for another's blue-water trip.

- Much of their time has been spent ashore, as well as being docked.

- Prior to the trip, Charlotte and their two girls had physical health issues, which can easily reoccur if not fully treated and healed, and can easily be re-exposed if certain sanitation requirements are not fulfilled, causing a vicious cycle of reinfection.

- Their voyage was physically much rougher than they expected, considering they had never experienced blue-water sailing, nor had they spent much time away from stepping foot on land. They were constantly jostled about, couldn't sleep well, and experienced bouts of seasickness. Couple this with Charlotte's and the girls' recent illnesses, and you have a potential recipe for disaster.

- Charlotte's mental health was not the greatest, per her own admissions. She was very unhappy oftentimes during their trip, even asking Eric at one point early on what he thought about the prospect of she and the girls going back ashore and letting Eric do the voyage himself. Approximately two months prior to their departure, Charlotte also posted about feeling suicidal; she did not state if she received any professional psychological assistance for this. And approximately three months prior to their departure, she publicly accused her father of sexually and mentally abusing her and her sister, which apparently split their large family in two, causing emotional distress for many, including for Charlotte, herself.

- During the California Air National Guard press conference video, starting at approximately 2:05, one of the rescuers stated that the Kaufmans were in "decent condition" and that Lyra was "a little bit sick" when the rescuers first boarded Rebel Heart. It wasn't unil later in the conference that another rescuer made statements contradicting that. It was also not disclosed if Lyra was suffering from salmonella, long-term seasickness, or both -- all of which can lead to similar symptoms.

- Finally, this was a 3,000-mile trip which was expected to take 3-4 weeks. They were two weeks into the trip, and had only gone 900 miles.


Given the above, one can argue that this was simply a case of the captain and crew not being experienced enough, nor mentally or physically prepared enough, for such a voyage attempt. There is no shame in admitting that. When the Kaufmans do speak, I think we'd all like and expect them to be fully open and honest. Doing so will not only garner them further respect, but also potentially help other families facing similar decisions.


I'm fully aware that I might attract some negativity from others here by posting this. This is not an attack on the Kaufmans or their decisions, nor is this a personal attack against any of you reading this or your lifestyle choices. I would expect the same respect. However, I think I've done a pretty good job in listing some facts, many of which aren't discussed much here, and again, can be found throughout Rebel Heart's blogs and in the National Guard press conference video. I strongly suggest that many of you, if you haven't already, to spend at least several hours reading through that publicly-documented first-hand information prior to responding to my post, especially the blogs from the past 3 months or so, at a minimum.

Thank you. And again, welcome back, Rebel Heart crew. Glad to have you aboard the mainland. May your experiences be lessons for all of us. And good luck in your future endeavors.

Most of the crew at CF seemed to take this post as some sort of insult, though I guess that it's easy to get on the defensive when you have to deal with some of the vitriol that has arisen.

Personally, this whole affair has allowed me to grow as a person and caused me to do some serious thinking about my own situation and choices. I continue to be thankful to have such a positive, knowledgeable, and close knit community to share and discuss with. I hope we can all continue to learn from each others experiences and mistakes while supporting our collective goals and dreams.

SailFar, you're doin it right!

[Jim_ME]

I hope we can all continue to learn from each others experiences and mistakes while supporting our collective goals and dreams.

Agree with that. If we can learn from others' miscalculations and misfortunes, that does give some positive meaning to those experiences.