Tiny update: Talking to ghosts and shedding pounds
Apr 28, 2005 15: 52 EST
Well, he doesn’t exactly talk to ghosts; it’s more like an interior dialogue. Hey, don’t judge the guy. You’d get lonely too if you’d been at sea for months with no human contact. As he puts it, “The world goes about its business and knows nothing of you. Splendid isolation.” Here’s a snippet from Tiny’s last conversation with his (imaginary) friend, somewhat reminiscent of Hamlet:
Scene: “For the last two days the wind has been blowing steadily from the southeast, which is unheard of in this parish. They were not forecast but they’ve even had the cheek to bring their own cloud streak with them as if they were legitimate trade winds!”
Tiny: “What are you then?”
Friend: “We’re the SE Trades.”
T: “Impossible, you don’t exist.”
F: “We do now, everything is up for grabs, so our government did a management buyout and got the Trade Wind contract so here we are.”
T: “So what about the famous NE Trades?”
F: “Dunno mate, not our problem.”
But contrary winds and troublesome imaginary friends aren’t Tiny’s only concerns. On certain days, the temperature can be downright nasty. On the 25th, he reports, “116 degrees in the rowing position and 98 in the shade, but there ain’t no shade.”
Crazy new diet
On a day like that, rowing is out of the question. That leaves time for odd jobs, like making plans for the arrival in Antigua, and stowing away old clothes that don’t fit anymore. Forget weight-loss drugs; try rowing across the Atlantic to shed pounds. As Tiny puts it, “When you’re trying to imagine how skinny I look, think Ghandi.”
But soon enough, it was back to business. “Rowing today (April 26th) was more difficult than usual; the wind and current were at right angles to each other, which made our top speed 2.5 knots, but the sea was very heavy going. We still made a fairly good mileage, but my limbs will be hurting tomorrow. In about an hour we will pass the 500 miles to go mark, which is worth a small glass of something red.”
James “Tiny” Little set out from La Gomera in the Canary Isles to Antigua in the Caribbean to attempt a solo and unsupported Atlantic crossing. Only 25 people have completed a solo, unsupported east to west crossing of the Atlantic. Tiny is a pub-owner from Norwich, England who spent 14 years in the navy. More information on Tiny’s voyage, his daily diary updates, and his charity, The Davenport Trust, can be obtained on his website.
Image (compiled by Exweb) courtesy of Ocean Rowing Society.
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