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Review: Nat Geo 'Solo: Lost at Sea', and for what?
By April MacIntyre Sep 15, 2008, 1:32 GMT
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Older Talkback
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His wife said 'he made it.' Yeh, he made it to the bottom of the sea alright. Very stupid and selfish individual. What, hes suppose to be an IT specialist? Well, he should have stuck to that. Obviously, his balls are bigger than his brain. What a dumb shithead. He deserve what happened to him. My heart goes out to his son and his son only. Because I have a son of my own. I can't see myself doing something like that that would cost me my life. Obviously he's son is not that important to him. For leaving his son in a non sense way, I hope the sharks ate all of him and he's soul may rot in hell.
M&C writer,
I couldn't agree with you more. As I watched the episode the only thing I could think about was the absolute selfishness of this so called 'adventurer'. These people who claim to be living life to the full but who take the feellings and welfare of others forgranted for ones selfish desires is the furthest thing from living. His story confirms that in this world there are those who don't deserve to have life at all and Andrew McAuley was one of them. And for those who say he died doing what he loved I doubt that was what he was thinking as his lungs filled with water. He was no doubt thinking about his wife, son and friends, therefore the moments before he died were the only moments of sanity in his pathetic life.
There was only one thing worthy for this man and he got it.
This is a well written article and so far we've all hit the nail on the head. It is only tragic that that kid is without a father. I understand there are these thrill seeking people out there, that just can't live a normal life and they need to push it. But you know what? Christopher Columbus and Magellan explored BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T KNOW there was land out there and they found it. That had a purpose. This guy just wanted to cross hte sea in a KAYAK?? It didn't need to be done..it shouldn't have been done, and frankly, if he did it...I wouldn't have been all that impressed anyway. The wife knew what she was getting into, and I do feel sorry for her, but she should've talked him out of it and REMINDED him he had a family and a son. Cross the ocean in a bathtub when you're single.
Alex
I would like to know if we can purchase the video of this story. When will this story of Andrew air again?
Next Nat Geo airing:
Solo: Lost at Sea
SUN OCT 12 7P SUN OCT 12 6P SUN OCT 12 5P SUN OCT 12 4P SUN OCT 12 3P SUN OCT 12 1P
Thirty-nine-year-old adventurer Andrew McAuley has a dangerous, monumental mission: Be the first person to kayak solo from Australia to New Zealand.
To purchase go here:
http: // shop.nationalgeographic.com/gateway/128/105.html
Agree with the above posts too.
What was this misadventure really about anyway? Forget human endurance overcoming all odds etc etc - marketing crap. This is about McCauley making himself more marketable to get the sponsorship dollars to stoke the legend to make more 'adventures'. Hence the rush to beat the Crossing the Ditch crew (who crossed it just fine BTW. Took a bit longer but they are not crab bait at the bottom of the Tasman Sea.
Too bad he's dead but how totally underwhealming and unsurprising.
He may have made it in his wife's mind - whatever - but pity about the kid. All he wants is his dad to read him a story at night - now he just has some faded memories of a dead 'hero'. He'll carry that around for the rest of his life.
And for what?
I watched this last night. I agree with the people that have commented about this. However, some views are a little harsh to say the least. I think he was really wanting to be a hero, and instead a lot of people have a lesser opinion of him. I have a child and fear everyday something happening to me and leaving him alone. Raising a child is the biggest adventure of life, and I am sad that not everyone shares that opinion. I think that National Geographic should be ashamed of themselves for promoting someones death for a useless commericalism. I share the views of some of these other viewers, it was complete suicide. Maybe in his wife's mind he made it, because what else you going to think about someone you have always admired and loved, they are a complete idiot? I would have been ashamed to show my face had my husband did this selfish act and showed it on film. I just hope the woman has sense enough to raise her child without pulling any stupid stunts of her own. If I was that mans wife, I would feel as if he didn't love me or his son enough to care whether or not we had to live the rest of our lives without him. Sad that his friends and family supported him through this. Why not hand the man a gun and bullets and watch him kill himself. They did the same thing, only this way they watched him suffer before his demise. I also would not have been impressed if he had made it. I am not even sure why I cared enough to watch it. Sorry, not the best show ever.
Guttsiest thing I have ever seen!!
I agree with everyone's comments here, and felt the same way about this idiot. It is as if he and his wife just thought about nothing but the finish line. Until he started off on the first attempt and pussed out (smartly).
What kept gnawing at me, as that goofy french weather/sailing specialist kept getting interviewed (cmon Nat Geo - subtitles please!), was this:
If the guy was so concerned about Andrew, why didn't he just follow along in his boat? The guy would be alive now.
And the wife....she was the most pathetic of all, maybe even more so than the idiot in the kayak. It was clear throughout that she didn't understand the risk involved. Notice throughout the documentary, instead of being with her son, she's hanging out at restaurants sucking down draught beers and joking and joshing about it, trying to milk every bit of attention she can get out of it. Pathetic.
Selfish Maybe? But a phenominal Docum. I saw this guy in my dreams after watching this amazing found footage. I have a two year old baby girl and cringe at the thought! Remember that these folks have diff. chemical makeup in there brains, its been proven!! He loved his family no doubt! The guy was almost there for goodness sake...(Amazing). If Casper would have held up in protecting him!! Thanks Nat. Geo. for another amazing show!
At least he led the life he wanted and didn't cower alone in a room taking pot shots on the web. He was more than prepared and able. Did you actually watch the documentary? Small minded review with smaller minded commentators. Fortunately it of no consequence.
I don't have any business criticizing him, and I think neither do any of you. This article is a complete waste of time.
His effort stands to be far more worthy than that of any armchair commentator who had the gall to click and type out a pitiful critique of a total stranger.
Had he completed it, he would have done far more than any of you.
Jealousy, it is an easy thing.
Watched this documentary tonight on Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
What an incredibly foolish person. The Australian officials begged him not to go. He went anyway. The New Zealand officials risked their lives searching for him. Can you imagine doing something this dangerous and wilfully risking the lives of other people in the process?
The most miraculous thing is that his kayak was recovered.
I suppose his next escapade was to run around in a lion's cage, wrapped head-to-toe in bacon?
I too watched this on CBC television. I found it disturbing yet compelling watching. I don’t blame National Geographic for making it. I respect Andrew’s desire to stretch himself but wish he had chosen something less risky, or managed the risk better. In terms of risk: one wave capsizes you, you wet exit, and another wave knocks you away from your boat. What do you do then? He wasn’t wearing his emergency locator as the coroner’s report points out. See www.nswseakayaker.asn.au/magazine/70/inquest.htm. The builder thinks that it might have been a hot day and he wasn’t wearing the drysuit. See www.laurieford.net/antkayak.htm. I think that the Australian authorities did well to impound his boat until he had completed a risk assessment. The reviewer writes “McAuley didn’t think things past reaching the finish line” but I think he carefully planned and prepared for his trip. I just wish he had taken the risk assessment further and thought of some of the things that the coroner did.
I think better of the successful journey by his competition, the two Australians in a double kayak with a cabin who subsequently took a more northerly route paddling from the Australian mainland to New Zealand. See www.crossingtheditch.com.au. They had warmer air and water temperatures and more frequent communication with land. If something had happened to one paddler, the other might have been able to call for rescue.
Such a journey cannot be completed without risk. All you can do is reduce the risk. Perhaps some day another solo kayaker will successfully paddle from Tasmania to New Zealand. Andrew will have shown that the journey is possible.
I have been an adventurer all my life and I like to think I have been responsible, I am 60 years of age now with a wonderful wife and two grown boys who admire more than anything, In May 2008 I set off around the UK coast by 42ft Canoe which is spread over a number of seasons. I have worked very closly with MCA and RNLI and they gave me approval for such a journey. I spent three years preparing for this journey.
I play close attention to weather and work with local people to ensure my safety through difficult seas that are paramount.
Andrews need for extreme adventure is fine if you don't have the responsibilities of wife, child and family, I see this as an avoidable tragedy which hopefully others will use this as an example of what not to do unless you are single and have a wish for death. This is without question beyond foolishness and no question about it that the outcome was going to be another Kayaker has been lost.
My heart goes out to the family left behind.
Chris G. Cooper Canoe Guide Spirit Dancer Canoe Journeys.
I to believe the adventure was foolish, but unlike most of the previous postings, I was inspired by the accomplishment. Even though he never survived the adventure, it is one of the most physically and mentally challenging adventures that I have ever seen. I can not help but be inspired by what he must of gone through during the 30 days alone on the ocean in a kayak. If Andrew's goal was to inspire people and to help them face every day challenges, then he was successful.
The documentary Solo: Lost at sea was broadcast at BBC 2 / Feb 22 2009. Receiving it at cable here in Amsterdam, and just watched it. Is it a very impressing documentary, and rare too. To my recollection, the only other example of an failed attempt being recorded so intimate are the diary's of Scott returning from the South Pole, and perishing just miles from the saving food depot.
I must say that I was surprised by the very emotional behaviour on his first departure. This does show that he was very aware of the riscs ahead, but also that he did not had the icy, unshaken over-self confident attitude that some adventures expose - and does protect them in a way -.
I can't say if this made him vulnerable, not knowing any of his other achievements. In the end it seems as if he was able to cope with the worst, but was caugth by surprise in the end. Like a mountaineer descending after the summit.
One point of criticism could be on his equipment and his preparation. I don't know anything about kayaking, but his stuff, the cockpitt and so looked a bit clumsy. It made me think of haphazard sledges build from sewer pipes and so which I sometimes encountered in the mountains. Typicaly build by individuals, uncontrolled by critical bystanders, with a certain romantic association between pureness and simplicity. McAuley didn't consider the high-tech two-man kayak of his rivals being a kayak. I must say that I see this as a misjudgement. You simply need to create the proper equipment answering the demands of the task ahead. A basic sea kayak is not suited to spend 30 days in; he didn't had a proper solution to cope with frequent capsizing, he didn't made a risc assesment of the downside of the cockpitt solution. The other guys - who made it to New-Zealand as I have read - asked themselves that question: how to design a raft that can withstand the Tasman Sea?
We say 'heros are the one's that got away unpunished from acting foolish'. The one's that don't make it, can't tell their stories. With this documentary, we have the rare opportunity to hear someone's story who failed just on the edge of becoming a hero.
I happen to be one that could tell his story, having survived an avalanche in Norway some years ago. I don't consider myself a hero. I haven't saved anyone's live but my own.
Some of the reactions above are quite harsh, and show little understanding of the motives driving people to extreme challenges. If you judge so hard over McAuley, would you also do so on Edmund Hillary, or Neil Armstrong, or any other human stretching the edge of our world?
The judgements on his wife are even harder. Please never do that, you guys have no idea how people react in such circumstances, her behaviour seemed totally natural to me, and I can't do anything but feeling very sorry for her and their child.
It resonated with me, i was going to kill my self, now i want to paddle through my own life as far as i can.I'm not like Andrew but i will get a canoe and canoe further down my own little river, stuff those that try and sell us down the river.
I've not much intertrest in other poeple thoughts about what he did, Brave or Foolish, Doesnt matter.
One thing i would say is i dont think that NG/His Wife should be critisised for the Docu, As the child is now growing up with 1 parent, So any money made from the show should help with the childs upbringing. And Maybe it will stop future people trying things that they are not ready for. If every tale had a happy ending then we would all think we could do these adventures.
I thought it was very powerfull progam personally, a tragic tale yes, but its just life... .
A prime candidate for the Darwin awards if I ever saw one. People like this need professional help to overcome a deep rooted fixation with over achievement and a psychological need to prove/test themselves. Its thrill seeking as a psychological buffer against depression or something. Its the kid I feel sorry for, the wife clearly suffers from the same delusional lack of common sense. A sad story of a shared suicide pact between two parents who needed protecting from themselves more than encouragement.
-You write aboute a man who took his life to the extreme.We all make mistakes,and this one belongs to him.I,m confident he did his homework before going on this journey,including serious talks with his wife.
I wonder what the writings about him would,ve been,had he survived..
Respects from Denmark,
Gregers Petersen.
I'd like to comment on different aspects. Not necessarily in order.
1. In the documentary the wife states he was and adventurer and she knew that from the very beginning. She knew who she was getting with. Probably she didn't comprehend all the implications and profile of his future to be husband and father of her child.
2. He knew what he was doing was wrong. In the first attempt, he clearly reveals that he cares and is attached to his family, and the thought and experience of leaving them behind (struggling against his attachment and internal voice) is intense. But his addiction is stronger, his sensitivity is not enough, and his understanding of what happens with his mind and desires -as well as his endurance against impulses- is certainly weak.
3. He was influenced by the competition. It was pressure which added to his decision to make it happen.
4. As his friend said in the documentary, people who need to push themselves to life-threatening situations to feel alive, not only lack the capacity (not potential) to know and feel they can be truly alive in normal, routine-driven lives, but also develop an addiction to these intense experiences.
5. The achievement of a goal such as record making, being the best at something (at the time, not forever obviously), has no value outside and beyond one's beliefs and values. Everything is valid as long as one holds on to it. As long as the thought is deeply embedded inside the mind, it feels like it is important, necessary, etc. Essential is the capacity to remember the futility of such beliefs that lead only to incompleteness and misery. Completeness and peace have nothing to do with temporary actions and results.
6. He didn't simulate the experience long enough of being inside the kayak, so uncomfortable, or getting hit by the waves.
7. Not a good idea to depend on one thing, or few things only. Options must be more than enough. The safety precautions were lacking. No tracking device (waterproof of course) inside the kayak or himself. His way of communication was limited. Maybe having helicopters or other forms of guards keeping track closely is very expensive and he didn't have the means, or he didn't want to pay that price.
8. Regarding his kayak: it wasn't heavy duty enough. If it had been appropriately tested, and developed what it actually needed, then only thing left would be him messing up. The system of having to empty the water that got in, etc., was inefficient.
9. Where does one draw the line between pure kayak and 'artificially' modified kayak? It is only belief based. The rules that he wanted to play by, were only valid for him, it wasn't a world contest with different people competing and clear established rules applying.
10. As soon as they got the call they should have gone look for him, even if they weren't sure there was enough trouble. Taking that much time understanding the message had a cost. Better be safe than sorry.
All these comments regarding heroes have nothing to do here. Heroes are the ones who save or serve the purpose of helping others, often having to sacrifice themselves. Brave or gutsy is not the same as heroic. And again, someone who is an adventurer may not be brave enough as to face his own feelings, impulses, weaknesses.
May this documentary help people appreciate and value life, be reminded of the great commitments (family for one), and be warned about the dangers of obsessions, getting oneself into serious trouble. It is never late to make things right.
Regards,
Ary
Interesting doco.
Clearly he had not done everything to prepare as he should have for such a life threatening journey. He had no call sign for his craft and had not let the authorities at his destination know of his trip. I am not a nautical person but to me those things seem very important. I agree the craft looked very simple for such a task and Casper maybe should have been a water tight seal when sitting behind him aswell.
But cannot believe authorities didn't play the family and friends the full message immediately.
Also interesting to watch that all people no matter how tough seem to have a breaking point. Seemed his last message he recorded he was at the point. And his last radio message almost didn't sound like a distress call almost as though he had had enough and accepted his fate, and maybe call for help (not the rescue kind). Sort of following on from this comment.. that he was trying to prove something to someone..
'People like this need professional help to overcome a deep rooted fixation with over achievement and a psychological need to prove/test themselves. Its thrill seeking as a psychological buffer against depression or something.'
The National Geographic channel played this film in the wee hours this morning and I saw it for the first time. It was a riveting story. During the entire hour-long show my thoughts about McAuley were 'what a dumb [expletive-deleted] !!!' There was a total disconnect between his adventurous goal and his physical safety. To his credit he almost made it. But close only counts in horse shoes and hand grenades. The person I feel really sorry for is his young son. What a cute lovable little boy. So sad that he will grow up not knowing his father.
'LIGHTING IS GETTING RID OF DARKNESS'.
'BRAVERY IS FACING YOUR WORSE FEARS'.................
Andrew Mcauley is the best forever.....he's always an inspiration to me
How pathetic and amusing most of these comments and the article are. Keep living through your 9-5 job and week-end bbqs, it really matters!
I salute the man, his tale is very inspiring, I hope I have his experience one day to try something this extreme.
An inspiring story and great documentary. With three children of my own it is easy to be angry at him (my deepest reaction) but also called to action to make sure I am making the most of every day. How many would throw stones at him and then watch tv for hours on end or worse yet, put their kids in front of the tv for hours on end. If you can't come away from this more compelled to make the most of every second I am sorry. I do hope he was ready to meet his maker, that is infinitely more important than any thing we do on this earth. Life is short, eternity is forever. John 3:16
Darn right I want to comment. This man rowed a kayak solo accross the Tasman Sea and some of you ridicule and deny him his credit due? This man only died because of a faulty piece of equipment! Not his mental state as the article suggests. This man died within 15 miles of Milford Sound New Zealand. What a testament to the endurance and bravery of Man. Im sorry for his wife and son, and if not for the trouble with the C.A.S.P.E.R. he would never have taken in water. Otherwise he planned the trip without flaw. Rest in peace you brave soul. At least your son will realize that his father had the bravery of Conan to attempt such a thing. Oh yeah and by the way, those other two guys never crossed in a kayak like Andrew McAuley's. Yet they get applause and the pat on the back from the general public. Give Andrew his credit and quit talking trash about the poor guy. Some of you will kill yourselves with a fork and the bravest thing most of us do is get on the highway to go to work. This one man proves another thing too. How resilient humans are and thier ability to travel great distances to new lands. Was Christopher Columbus also stupid? I think not.
I watched this documentary, but not from the start, so I did'nt know how this adventure was going to end. The final realisation that he didn't make it was very moving. Of course, it was all about futility but some of the comments I read here made me really sick. Yes, the man left behind him a son and a widow... but his wife knew from the start the true nature of her husband... and she accepted it. To me, letting him go was an incredible proof of love. The contemplation of this man, litterally torn apart between the genuine love for his family and his obsessive craving for dangerous adventures, is an euphemism to say how fragile our minds are and how easy it is to fall into insanity. Please, don't judge him too harshly. Between great achievements and tragic failures, the gap, often consisting in pure luck, can be very thin...
I saw that film last night on ARTE (german-french tv-station) among two other documentations about men experiencing their own borders. But it was this one about Andrew's kayak-adventure that caught me most.
Although in the beginning one could hear and read the emergency call I was in a way hoping till the end that he would do this trip. How horrible it must be to let someone go to make his dreams real - and not get him back. I am sorry for his wife and their boy.
One more time a film accomplished to make me think of what is important in MY life. Thanks NG and 'thanks' Andrew for this renewal.
I watched this documentary completely by chance whilst flying on a Qantas flight from Sydney to Johannesburg last week. I had no idea of who Andrew was or what was the final outcome. Only when I had watched for about 30 minutes did I begin to think: But perhaps he did not make it. From that moment I began to listen very carefully to see if any of the interviewees gave it away. But none did thus heightening the drama.
On the Quantas flight to Sydney I has watched another epic - the story of Toni Kurz on the Eiger North Face as told by Joe Simpson, famous for his own epic Touching the Void. The documentary is called The Beckoning Void.
These are two very moving stories. The common feature of both is that both Toni and Andrew died when they were within sight of being saved. Both had a vision and bravery that is inspiring because it is so unusual - Toni to climb the North Face the year after the first attempt had ended fatally; Andrew to attempt that which is logically impossible. Both died because of errors that perhaps could not have been foreseen. Toni because the rope was not left in place across the Hinterstoisser Traverse; Andrew because (in my understanding) he did not anticipate damage to the cover of his cockpit which filled with water and prevented him from righting the kayak the final time he capsized.
The points about fatherhood are of course entirely valid. As I watched the documentary we crossed the Eastern edge of Antarctica (presumably because the pilot went so far south to avoid unusually high jet streams). That reminded me of Robert Falcon Scott and the British Antarctic expedition of 1911/12 which also ended fatally so close to safety. Seeing the vast expanse of Antarctica again (I had been there by ship in December 2005) raised the question: Who ever would believe it possible to reach the South Pole in the way Scott attempted? Scott left behind a son who himself made a significant contribution as his father had asked of him in his final letters. Perhaps there is a role for Andrew's son.
I found Andrew's story almost as compelling as that of Scott. Both died because they did not consider all possible complications but Andrew's level of preparation (although much less taxing) outstripped that of Scott and his team. Despite a host of errors Scott and his team almost made it out; Andrew it seems made far fewer errors, perhaps one, and still died. Perhaps the margin for error was much smaller for Andrew than it was for Scott's party.
I do hope that Andrew's brave wife and son can find solace and comfort in the future. Their husband and father, even if flawed, existed at the extreme of the human condition. Such people, like Scott, Shackleton and Amundsen, may bring great sadness to their own families.
But they do show the rest of us that humans are capable of feats of mental (especially) and physical endurance that most of us cannot comprehend.
One writer once wrote that after he had watched at first hand the cyclists in the Tour de France climb Alp d'Huez, he never again used the word 'heroic' to describe any other sporting event.
Alpe d'Huez vs the Tasman Sea.
No comparison in my mind.
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