Brian 'BJ' Caldwell (born December 17, 1975) is an American
sailor. He spent seven years cruising the
South Pacific
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
with his parents when he was young, returning to
Hawaii at age 15. He departed Hawaii aged 19 and completed his voyage on September 28, 1996. He was the youngest solo circumnavigator, finishing at the age of 20, making him the first person under age 21 to circumnavigate. He has raced in France in the
Mini Transat 6.50
Mini Transat 6.50 also known by a number of alternatives Mini, Class Mini, Transat 650 is a development measurement controlled offshore sailing primarily used for racing in the Mini Transat Race hence the name.
Background History
The Classe Min ...
,
Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race
The Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race is an annual event hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, starting in Sydney, New South Wales, on Boxing Day and finishing in Hobart, Tasmania. The race distance is approximately . The race is run i ...
,
Fastnet,
Transpacific Yacht Race and other sailing races.
Journey
Caldwell departed from
Honolulu,
Hawaii on June 1, 1995, traveling to
Vanuatu,
Cocos (Keeling),
Mauritius,
Durban,
Cape Town,
St. Helena
Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...
,
Grenada
Grenada ( ; Grenadian Creole French: ) is an island country in the West Indies in the Caribbean Sea at the southern end of the Grenadines island chain. Grenada consists of the island of Grenada itself, two smaller islands, Carriacou and Pe ...
,
Panama, and returning to Honolulu on September 28, 1996.
Caldwell reported a number of difficulties on his voyage, "I was rolled by a big wave in the
Indian Ocean, I was almost run down by a supertanker. I encountered a lot of storms, especially around South Africa. But nothing that unexpected. It's a given on a circumnavigation."
See also
*
List of youth solo sailing circumnavigations Youth solo sailing circumnavigations
Abby Sunderland attempted on her boat ''Wild Eyes'' through a planned easterly circumnavigation in 2010 but did not complete due to bad weather on the remote area northeast of Kerguelen Islands.
Since the J ...
References
External links
Honolulu ''Star Bulletin'' archivesBrian Caldwell circumnavigation web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Caldwell, Brian
1975 births
Living people
American sailors
People from Hawaii
Teenage single-handed circumnavigating sailors
Single-handed circumnavigating sailors