Honolulu (AP)-on the Pacific only with his cat named Phoenix, Oliver Widger pondered why he believes his many followers-much more than a million “Tiktok” and “Instagram”
“The type of world is sucking and, for example, I don’t think I’m alone as I felt with my work,” Widger, 29, told Associated Press on Wednesday. “You can earn $ 150,000 a year and still feel that you are just preparing the back, you know what I mean?
People are inspired by what found a way out, said Widger, who is one of more and more people who have taken such trips in recent years.
Diagnosed with the risk of paralysis four years ago, he realized that he hated his duties as a tire company manager, requiring him to be clean and wearing a pressed shirt. He heard about the people who sailed from California to Hawaii and decided it was his life.
He suddenly withdrew from work without money, without plan and $ 10,000 debt.
“I knew one thing: I buy a sailboat,” he recalled. “I am swimming around the world.”
He liquidated his savings for his retirement, taught me to swim mainly through YouTube, and moved from Portland to Oregon, where he spent months when he spent $ 50,000 he bought.
Widger now uses the power of social media to finance the dream of his world sailing.
Ever since he sailed in April, the followers have been involved in their “sailing with Phoenix social media records to see videos of him and his cat’s first friend fighting with waves and fights, enjoying dazzling sunsets, recalculating sophisticated boat repairs or simply reflecting life in the sea.
When he discussed his journey with AP, the network carrying water in bottles and snacks, he spun through his head as the boat revolved.
He remembered the highlights of the trip so far, including the speed of the dolphins cut through the water and finding a flying fish on the deck. There were stretches when there were no birds for a few days. It can be a struggle to sleep when the boat sips while it buffet with waves or a steady boiling pot he survived.
There were brutal moments, for example, when the steering wheel failed and the boat tilted the side sideways for three hours when it repaired, and the time he settled in the engine compartment and left the wrench.
Widger acknowledged that he was relatively inexperienced as a sailor, but he implemented security measures and communication plans, including a satellite phone and an emergency lighthouse.
Cmdr. Jesse Harms from the US Coast Guard Service did not care closely to travel, but said he was reluctant to hear Widger’s emergency position indicating a radio beacon known as an eporchin.
It is a critical measure to determine the position of a sailor during an emergency, especially in the Pacific Ocean, in the largest ocean, Harms said.
The Widger journey gives a good opportunity to educate the public about sailing safety, for example, it is important to wear a personal flotation device as soon as the top is on the boat, closely monitoring air and registering emergency tools such as Epurb, said Harms.
“It’s a truly critical piece for all that is motivated by its story to go to his adventure,” Harms said.
Before his arrival, most of the Honolulu, Widger makes sure everything is in place to prevent Phoenix to avoid Hawaii’s animal quarantine. He said a mobile veterinarian would sign Phoenix health when they arrive.
In addition to a daily life practice boat, it copes with the virus in the middle of the ocean, creating social media content and making decisions about its fans to buy.
He appreciates all this to the problem of his neck, which “shocked my world and it changed my approach to everything.” He also hopes that there may be inspiration for anyone who is in the ravish.
“Everything I did, I thought it was impossible,” Widger said. “Swimming around the world is such a funny dream. Whatever your dream is, just go, just do it.”