After sailing 100 nautical miles in a record-breaking journey from Antigua to St Maarten, 14-yeqr-old Carrack Jones declared that he would never undertake such a feat again.
“I hope no one tries it [because] it’s absolute torture. I’d rather be hung upside down by my feet off a tree for two days than sitting out there in the water just drifting,” he told Observer on Saturday night.
The journey saw him sailing successfully from Antigua Yacht Club in English Harbour on November 22, and arriving in St Maarten 31 hours later.
The most challenging parts of the voyage, according to the 14-year-old, was the lack of wind and the 4am capsize of his boat which led to the death of his GPS.
“It just overloaded and the batteries exploded out of the back of the thing. It was working for about five hours after that and then it just stopped working right off of St Kitts,” he explained.
Fortunately, he managed to complete the rest of his journey from memory.
Also lost in the capsize but subsequently recovered by a support boat was a stash of granola bars and a cushion, according to Carrack’s father, Tanner Jones who was on one of the two support boats.
Unfortunately, due to rules which required Carrack to complete the journey unassisted, he was unable to get the items back.
Upon reaching his destination, Carrack said that due to the fatigue, he wasn’t really excited. However, after taking a long nap, the excitement kicked in.
As for future plans, the St Anthony’s Secondary School student has his sights set on competing in the RORC 600 – an annual 600-mile race around 11 Caribbean islands that begins and ends in Antigua.
Carrack is currently the world-record holder of the longest distance sailed in an Optimist boat (a small, single-handed sailing dinghy averaging 7.5 feet).
He broke the record previously set by 13-year-old Lolie Osswald who travelled 80 nautical miles from Antigua to St Barths in 2022.
The 14-year-old began sailing at the age of six and has continued to do so for the past eight years. In recent times he has taken part in Antigua Sailing Week, the Classic Yacht Regatta and the Optimist World Championships.
Meanwhile, Carrack’s recent sailing feat was celebrated in an event held Saturday night at Jolly Harbour. In attendance was the Governor General, Sir Rodney Williams who presented an award to the teenager.
