Disabled sailor to try again after being thrown from boat

By Will Carson


HELPING HANDS: Geoff is pulled from the Solent after hitting the wave.
Picture by onEdition
A HAMPSHIRE yachtsman has spoken of his "personal heartbreak" at
having to call off his bid to become the first disabled person to sail
singlehanded round Great Britain when he was thrown from his boat.

Quadriplegic sailor Geoff Holt set sail from Hamble on the first leg
of the record-breaking 1,600-mile voyage yesterday.

But disaster struck when waves generated by the dozens of spectator
and press boats caused his 15ft trimaran to become overpowered and he
was thrown into the Solent.

To make matters worse, the 40-year-old's lifejacket didn't inflate
properly, and he lay face down in the water unable to turn himself
over.

One of his rescue team jumped the support boat and flipped Geoff onto
his back, before dragging him to safety.

Today Geoff said that he was fine and well - but his pride had been
hurt.


He said: "What started as one of the most amazing days for me ended
in personal heartbreak.

"I became a victim of our own PR interest by the world's media when
the many spectator boats caused a confused sea and with a following
stiff breeze, my boat broached across the top of one of the washes
from a nearby RIB.

"It flung the boat around, I overbalanced and found myself face down
in the Solent in front of the worlds press.

"Was anyone to blame?

"Of course not, it was just one of those things.

"This is a momentous Challenge and one we hope to restart in the next
few days.

If the challenge goes ahead, Geoff, from Shedfield, will aim to sail
about 50 miles a day on a voyage that will take around 50 days to
complete.

Dave wrote:
On Tue, 15 May 2007 11:24:40 -0400, Charlie Morgan
wrote:


In New York we lose millions in lost time as hundreds people getting to work
each day by bus have to wait for riders in wheel chairs to get loaded using
specially constructed elevators on each bus. It would be much more
cost-effective just to pay for limousines to transport those folk, but that
wouldn't make enough of a "statement."

Just thank your good fortune that you aren't in one of those
wheelchairs.


You would prefer to ride the bus rather than a limousine if you were
confined to a wheelchair?

I think I would rather the bus, myself....having a limo pull up makes
for all kinds of conjectures plus sets one apart from the general
public. Many places have Dial-a-Ride but from my experience in the elder
care business, it is not reliable in most places and sometimes people
get stranded for hours waiting for their ride to show up. If you're
handicapped, that could be a major problem. Go talk to some workers that
are handicapped and find out which they'd prefer. Maybe some might
prefer the limo, but I bet not the majority.

"Dave" wrote in message
...


But the profit motive can do wondrous things
if properly used.

Wouldn't it be even better for everyone to pay the handicapped to stay home?

Bob Crantz wrote:
"Dave" wrote in message
...



But the profit motive can do wondrous things
if properly used.


Wouldn't it be even better for everyone to pay the handicapped to stay home?


Many handicapped do not want to stay at home. They have skills and
aptitudes that are just as viable as anyone else's. Having a handicap
does not mean you are less improtant to the world. It just means you
approach the world from a different angle. Having a handicap in one area
does not mean you are handicapped in all areas.

Dave wrote:
On Tue, 15 May 2007 16:31:21 -0400, katy
wrote:


Wouldn't it be even better for everyone to pay the handicapped to stay home?



Many handicapped do not want to stay at home.


Many would like to stay home if they were paid for it.

I'm sure many non=handicapped would like the same...unfortunately, the
world doesn't work that way...

In article ,
Dave wrote:
On Tue, 15 May 2007 13:32:54 -0600, "Bob Crantz"
said:

Wouldn't it be even better for everyone to pay the handicapped to stay home?

Tried that with welfare mothers. Pretty soon all the teenage girls were
staying home and making babies.

All of them? Wow. I didn't know that.


--
Capt. JG @@
www.sailnow.com

Dave wrote:
On Tue, 15 May 2007 17:13:48 -0400, katy said:


unfortunately, the
world doesn't work that way...


http://www.detnews.com/2005/autosins...A01-351179.htm

Hey...not fair! We're from Michigan and no one paid us to stay there and
not work!

In article ,
Dave wrote:
On 15 May 2007 15:39:34 -0700, lid (Jonathan Ganz) said:

Tried that with welfare mothers. Pretty soon all the teenage girls were
staying home and making babies.

All of them? Wow. I didn't know that.

That's called "hyperbole," Jon. You can look it up.

I thought you were doing what you usually do... over-generalizing.


--
Capt. JG @@
www.sailnow.com

Dave wrote:
On Tue, 15 May 2007 19:28:28 -0400, katy said:


Hey...not fair! We're from Michigan and no one paid us to stay there and
not work!


Guess you didn't belong to the right union.

Guess we didn't belong to any union!

In article ,
Dave wrote:
On 15 May 2007 16:52:46 -0700, lid (Jonathan Ganz) said:

That's called "hyperbole," Jon. You can look it up.

I thought you were doing what you usually do... over-generalizing.

Glad I could educate you on the point.

You might want to look up the definition of sarcasm. g

--
Capt. JG @@
www.sailnow.com