True Spirit: The Aussie girl who took on the world

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The day the movie “true spirit” I watched it. And the day after. And the day after that. And then about 15 more times after that. I had no idea who Jessica Watson was before the movie was recommended to me on Netflix but after watching the movie I needed to read the book too and I can confidently say this was incredibly beautiful and powerful too! She really is such an inspiration! No. Technically, her primarily southern journey did not go far enough north of the equator to satisfy the World Speed Sailing Record Council (WSSRC) to be a true around-the-world trip. The WSSRC, which is the official record body, recognizes a full circumnavigation of the globe as having traveled an orthodromic distance (great circle) of at least 21,600 nautical miles, the circumference of the Earth. According to Sail-World.com, Jessica's voyage came up at least 2,000 nautical miles short and therefore would not go into the WSSRC's record books as a full global circumnavigation. Circumnavigating the globe is impressive as it is, but in Jessica's case, she was also a 16-year-old girl. In a year when most 16-year-olds were planking and doing the stanky leg, Jessica was sailing around the world solo. Earlier this month, Netflix premiered True Spirit, starring Titans' Teagan Croft as Jessica Watson. The movie also features Cliff Curtis, Anna Paquin, and Josh Lawson. True Spirit gives its viewers an honest and inspiring look at a remarkable story of determination and grit while also being littered with hits from the time, like Empire of the Sun's "Walking on a Dream," or "Geronimo" by Sheppard in a way that captures the essence of the early 2000s perfectly.

Every once in a blue moon someone comes along and has a different take on how to live life. All of us, when we were young, read about people doing amazing things, but how many of us, when the book was put down, said to themselves, "I could do that " and then went about doing it! Jessica Watson's journey was interesting to read about because of her determination to complete her dreams. She set this goal when she was turning 13 and kept persevering and convincing her family and fiends she was capable. During her preparation their was a lot lot media reporting on her. Majority of the media were saying the Jessica's parents were mad for letting her attempt such a life threatening journey at the age of 16. 210 days after departing from Sydney Jessica returned in her trusty boat the pink lady proving the media wrong and making her family proud. Jessica showed true courage and perseverance. This is why she is one of my role models.Jessica says that she handled it "really well." "I'm not sure if that means that I'm really simple or not, but I really did enjoy being by myself," she told 60 Minutes Australia. "I obviously really missed everyone, you know, from the day, the minute I started out of Sydney Harbour, you know, it was something's missing and I missed everyone so badly, but I did, I really enjoyed it. You know, once I got used to it, I enjoyed, you know, the sort of freedom, the independence of being by yourself." The True Spirit movie true story confirms that in the latter portion of her journey, Jessica encountered three monster low-pressure systems that formed in succession off Antarctica and surged through the Southern Ocean, producing 50-knot winds and gigantic waves up to 12 meters (39 feet) high. This is a book for adventurers, for those who aspire, for those who are in pursuit of a dream, for those looking to defy the odds. Below are some of my favorite quotes from part one: Yes. In answering the question, "How accurate is True Spirit?" we confirmed that about a month before Jessica Watson left, she was en route from Brisbane to Sydney when her boat, Ella's Pink Lady, collided with the Silver Yang, a 63,000-ton Chinese bulk carrier. She had reportedly been taking a five-minute nap at the time of the collision and had failed to spot the Silver Yang on her radar prior to lying down. She also had forgotten to turn on her proximity alarms. "'No, no,' I go, 'It's alright, really, I'm okay, but lost half my mast, yeah,'" she stated after the accident. She managed to get the boat to port using the motor. Jessica said that the collision scene in the movie is "really accurate" ( Entertainment Weekly).

Did Jessica perform the tradition of dunking herself in salt water when she crossed the equator for the first time? Yes. In researching the question, "Is True Spirit accurate?" we learned that Watson indeed encountered several complications on her journey, including various repairs that she had to make to her boat. The repairs were chronicled on Jessica Watson's blog, including repairs to the mainsail, battery monitor, stove, toilet (twice), kettle, and the replacement of the wind generator blades. She eventually replaced the wind generator with a spare, and she replaced the engine's fuel pump after being plagued by engine trouble toward the end of her journey. "The little Yanmar engine is going again! A little delicately, but it is running with a water transfer pump rigged up in place of the fuel pump which had stopped working," she explained in her blog. "It's pretty dodgy with all the mismatching hoses but should do the job." In her book True Spirit, she stated, "If I haven't been sailing around the world, then it beats me what I've been doing out here all this time!" Her manager, Andrew Fraser, defended her journey by pointing out that the WSSRC does not recognize records achieved by sailors who are not yet eighteen, so their input doesn't matter. He argued that it was never stated she would be going for a world record, simply that she would become the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe solo, nonstop, and unassisted ( Brisbane Times). Very, very early, every Sunday, I cycle the Brisbane River Loop. A short 35 Km route that takes me over the Goodwill Bridge. From there, you can see Ella's Pink Lady (Jessica Watson's boat) in the Brisbane Maritime Museum where she's on display (the boat, not Jessica). I used to occasionally stop and marvel at how small the boat looks...compared to how BIG the ocean is. I'd think how brave this skinny little Aussie girl was. Even though she completed her round the world trip 10 years ago, I still hadn't gotten around to reading her book. Then, for some reason, Ella's Pink Lady was gone! Thankfully to return after restoration. This made me think I'd better read Jessica's book soon in case it disappears too!

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Sailing is something I’ve done over the years [since my voyage] but it’s something I take less seriously [now],” she said in the interview. “These days I actually have a sensible career. A desk job.” Jessica is finding joy in her family.

It started with the trailer for the Netflix movie. I’m not normally drawn to “based on a true story” books or movies but that trailer immediately hooked me so when it finally released I watched the movie and needed to know more about Jessica Watson and her story! What an incredibly inspiring individual. I’m blown away by what she accomplished at only 16 and I enjoyed reading about every moment of her journey. Her dedication, passion, and grit at such a young age really goes to show that anyone can do anything if they dream big enough and want it bad enough. Which is the very message she wanted to convey throughout the course of her book. I feel so inspired to continue chasing my own dreams. To continue to dream big! If Jessica Watson, at the age of 16, can circumnavigate the entire world entirely alone, experiencing multiple near-death experiences, then I can write and publish those books. I can become my own boss and work for myself. I can improve my drawing and other creative abilities. If Jessica can do something as challenging as sail around the world, then I can accomplish my own dreams that just don’t seem as daunting in comparison. Not that my dreams aren’t just as important, they just seem so much more doable now! if Andrew Short showed me anything, it was to live life to the fullest and cherish the things that matter to you. For him it was sailing and his family. For me, it is the same.” By 16, she had decided to circumnavigate the world by herself. On October 18, 2009, she (literally) set sail on her boat, Ella's Pink Lady, a 34-foot Sparkman & Stephens yacht. In the process, she faced monstrous waves, storms, and understandable loneliness. She would sail 18,582 nautical miles, which, for those that don't know, is slightly longer than a mile on land by 0.1508 miles. Jessica documented her travels on her blog and by video, which would become well-known and still holds hundreds of comments.

Since her voyage, Jessica has maintained a pretty private life. However, her public appearances mostly take the shape of inspiring speeches or podcast interviews. What an awesome story! You may remember last year when there was a bit of controversy over a young (16years old) Australian girl wanting to sail solo, round-the-World. Well, True Spirit is her story. Watson and her family lived on a boat for several years and this was when she developed her love of sailing. She loved to read about sailors and their solo journeys around the World. At around age 14, she decided that she would like to become the youngest person to sail solo and unassisted around the World. This was her dream and for the next two years, her main focus. She spent all her spare time reading books, talking to the sailors, crewing for local yachties, and generally mentally preparing herself. Single-minded, determined and ultra focussed, Watson won many supporters who not only helped her to organise sponsorship but also to prepare and equip her yacht.

Tilda Swinton is remarkable in The Eternal Daughter 24 November, 2023 Bradley Cooper's Maestro will win Oscars - lots of them 24 November, 2023 Does it matter if Napoleon gets its facts wrong? 22 November, 2023 In 2014, she gave a TEDx Talk called “Sail Away” which details all of the preparation that went into her voyage–from learning to stitch up sails to using the stars to navigate. In her most recent podcast appearance on the Australian podcast I’ve Got News For You, she also recounted her voyage and life. In an interview at the time, Watson said: “I wanted to challenge myself and achieve something to be proud of. And yes, I wanted to inspire people. Jessica Watson is a very good, positive influence on girls around the world my age. Scratch that- people EVERYWHERE of ANY AGE.

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A half-moon had risen, giving the sea a silvery sheen above the darkness below. After sunset, the still, glassy conditions of the afternoon had been blown away by a light wind from the west, and Ella’s Pink Lady was making good time under full sail with the mainsail, staysail, and headsail set. I couldn’t have asked for better conditions for my first night out. Watching Ella’s Pink Lady sail along at a steady 4 knots, I felt extremely proud of my cute little pink yacht. I contemplated the next few days before my circumnavigation. It was a beautiful night, and the thought of something going wrong was the farthest thing from my mind. True Spirit is an inspiring memoir that proves that we all have the power to live our dreams - no matter how small or how big they are. Now a Netflix film* The inspiring true story of Jessica Watson—an Australian teenager who set out to sail solo around the world!