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Disabled Sailors Compete in Transpacific Yacht Race
By Sherry Metzger, MS
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The whole team (from left) Urban Miyares, Jim Halverson, Josh Ross (back row) Jeff Reinhold, Kevin Wixom, and Scott Meade. Photos courtesy of Kevin Wixom. |
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In July, skilled mariners sailed across the
Pacific from Los Angeles, California, to Honolulu, Hawaii, marking
the centennial anniversary of the Transpacific Yacht Race. As one
of the longest, non-stop ocean races, Transpac, as it's called,
attracts top sailors from around the world. Challenged America, San
Diego, California, a nonprofit organization offering free sailing
programs for children and adults with disabilities, entered its
Tripp 40 racing sailboat, B'Quest, to compete with over 70
others. The B'Quest team members were chosen from 44
candidates with disabilities vying for the six coveted crew
positions aboard their ship.
Gusting winds and high seas challenged the sailors' physical
abilities, strategies, and seamanship. However, this race, unlike
most recreational sports, is able to level the playing field for
small and large boats, amateur and professional sailors, and the
disabled and able-bodied mariners alike. B'Quest raced
2,225 nautical miles in a respectable, 13 days, 23 hours, 31
minutes, and 50 seconds, to finish fourth in its division.
About Transpac
The race is the longer of the two oldest ocean races in the
world, dating back to 1906 along with the Newport/Bermuda race.
Beginning when Clarence MacFarlane invited friends from San
Francisco, California, to race to his home in Honolulu, the
Transpac tradition continues biennially on odd years, alternating
with the Newport/Bermuda race. The race begins in Los Angeles, off
Point Fermin on the Palos Verdes peninsula, and finishes just east
of Honolulu at the Diamond Head Lighthouse. Since 1991, the
launches have been staggered according to yacht size in order to
merge the finishes and facilitate award ceremonies at the
conclusion in Hawaii.
This year, a near record of 75 entrants competed for several
awards, including the coveted Transpacific Yacht Club Perpetual
Trophy, better known as the "Barn Door," a 3 ½ x 4-ft. plaque
of hand-carved Hawaiian koa. Roy Disney, nephew of Walt Disney, set
the record in 1999, finishing in 7 days, 11 hours, 41 minutes, and
27 seconds with his 75-ft. Reichel/Pugh maxi ultralight,
Pyewacket. This year, Hasso Plassner's Morning
Glory broke Disney's record by finishing in 6 days, 16 hours,
4 minutes, and 11 seconds. Plassner also set a new one-day record
of 393 nautical miles.
Challenged America
Challenged America began in the late 1970s with the purchase of
a Cal 20 sailboat by two disabled veterans who loved the sea. In
1990, Challenged America was formally launched, providing free
learn-to-sail and advanced sailing programs year round. Its mission
is "to enhance the life of people with disabilities and their loved
ones through innovative sailing programs designed to advance their
rehabilitation, increase participation and performance in a
successful mainstream outcome."
Challenged America's Boat: B'Quest
Challenged America's Transpac team raced in a donated Tripp 40
sailboat that had been modified over a period of three years.
"Sailboats are designed for sailing, not for people," Josh Ross,
the skipper, joked. "They are not comfortable or ergonomically
correct." They added a few features to their boat to accommodate
the unique crew. For example, a simple elevator was added to move
the crew back and forth from the cabin to the top deck. Also,
despite the use of prosthetic limbs, it can still be difficult for
an amputee to move around a boat, so they built a simple sliding
bench to move from the front to the back of the boat. They also
attached four seats with harnesses to hold up the upper body and
included a talking compass and GPS system. "You can rig up a boat
to equalize the physical needs in a boat. We've leveled the playing
field, so then it comes down to strategy," said Kevin Wixom,
crewmember.
B'Quest: The Crew
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Josh takes a sun sighting with his sextant. Four sightings were required by the Transpac rules. |
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Of the 44 sailors who applied, these six were
chosen for their competency, sailing experience, medical stability,
and their commitment to the program.
Joshua Ross, program director of Challenged
America, was ideally suited for the position of skipper and
navigator of B'Quest. Being a professional mariner for
over 17 years and his "on-thespot" safety training with the US
Coast Guard, prepared him to captain this particular crew. "A good
crew is one that you don't really have to tell what to do," he
said. "I was confident in our ability to work as a team, and we all
relied on one another for our safety." He also captained the
history-making 2003 Challenged America Transpac team, the first
disabled crew to ever compete in the Transpac. "We sailed in 2003
to make history, and this time to show it hadn't been an accident,"
he joked, adding, "It was a peak experience. It wasn't easy, but
there were such great moments." Ross is recognized as a leader in
teaching adaptive sailing as recreational rehabilitation for the
disabled and has earned several honors, including "National
Outstanding Director of a Year-Round Program" and "National
Outreach and Inclusion Sailing Program" awards by the US Sailing
Association.
Kevin Wixom, a transfemoral amputee, served as
the trimmer, navigator, and handled the helm and pit on this, his
first Transpac race. Married and father of four grown sons, Wixom
lost his leg in a car accident shortly after he and his wife,
Rhonda, ordered their sailboat. "I decided right away that I was
going to 'stay in the game.' I wasn't going to back off work,
sailing, or life," he recalled, mentioning that he went back to
work three short weeks after his accident. "I got involved with
Challenged America and a local triathlon. I'm in better shape now
than I was before the accident," he added. With an electrical
engineering degree and an MBA, Wixom is an engineering manager of
product development teams, as well as a mentor for disabled youth
and adaptive sailing instructor.
Proud of his team's accomplishments, Wixom noted, "we didn't get
special treatment; we were pitted against [able-bodied]
competitors, and we beat many of them because we were good and we
worked hard." Wixom stressed, "I truly believe all this attention
is not really about us or Challenged America, it's about all of
those people stuck in their homes who perceive their disabilities
as limitations. Beyond the personal challenge of Transpac, I hope
that those people will be inspired by this story to become more
active. They may not sail across the Pacific or enter a triathlon,
but maybe they'll go to the mall or their kid's graduation."
Urban Miyares, president of the Disabled
Businesspersons Association and co-founder of Challenged America,
sailed as the trimmer, sewer, and handled the foredeck and galley.
He has dedicated his life to helping the disabled return to work or
school, particularly with vocational rehabilitation. The White
House, US Congress, US Small Business Administration (SBA), the
governor of California, and Inc. Magazine, have all
recognized Miyares' accomplishments as a business owner, inventor,
public speaker and educator, world-class athlete, and authority in
the rehabilitation and returning to work of people with
disabilities. Honors have included the National Disabled Veteran of
the Year and Disabled Athlete of the Year by the San Diego Hall of
Champions Museum. Miyares is a stroke and kidney transplant
survivor; totally blind, and hearing-impaired.
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The crew saw lots of beautiful sunrises. |
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This was Miyares' second Transpac race. Three days
into the race, he choked on a chocolate chip cookie that upset his
stomach and tore his esophagus in the process. He couldn't eat or
drink for four days, and incredibly he healed himself. He stated,
"We were like a floating pharmacy out there. We fortunately know
our bodies' needs so well that we can take care of ourselves
without becoming a medical emergency."
Jim Halverson has had a fair share of
challenges over the last few years. His left leg was amputated
above the knee in 2003; he survived lung cancer in 2004; and 2005
found him at the helm as a trimmer or a mechanic in his first race
across the Pacific. The latter was not only a new challenge, but
also one of his greatest accomplishments. "We did this not just to
prove we can do a race," he commented, "but to show other people to
forget their disabilities and focus on their abilities. If you can
breathe, you can sail." After several days on the boat, Halverson
began prioritizing what he would do once on land. "I need a hot
shower, good steak dinner, and sleep--in that order!"
Halverson has raced sports cars, competed in the Daytona 24-hour
Endurance race, and worked as a regional and national sales manager
in the machine tool business before meeting his wife Judi. Now in
retirement, Halverson enjoys sailing with her, their four children,
and eight grandchildren, and being an adaptive sailing
instructor.
Scott Meade, with 20 years of sailing
experience, returned for his second Transpac voyage as a mechanic
and trimmer who could handle any crew position as needed. A US Navy
Veteran, Meade lost his right arm and became partially deaf while
serving in Vietnam. He is also a cancer survivor who has been
sailing with Challenged America since 1995. A member of the
American Legion Post #88, the Disabled American Veterans (DAV), and
Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Meade enjoys spending time with his
two children, six grandchildren, and sailing with Challenged
America.
Jeff Reinhold, trimmer, helm, medical and
communications specialist, sustained a spinal cord injury in 1981
resulting in quadriplegia. In 1993, he moved to Seattle,
Washington, bought his own boat and began cruising and racing the
Puget Sound. He owns a small printed circuit board company in
Seattle, but often travels to San Diego to train and sail with the
Challenged America Team.
Teamwork Carries the Day
As a team, this crew faced many challenges that they were able
to overcome with camaraderie and teamwork. Once, when the spinnaker
wrapped around a cable, the crew had to work together to unwind it.
When one member became ill, two others had to quickly learn to fill
his position. "A typical crew position is different for us. We have
to overlap one another and understand each other's abilities,"
Wixom explained, "Other crews do that too, but for us it's even
more critical to work together."
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Keven, Jeff, Josh, Urban, Scott, and Jim with Pacific High Trophy (the most northern boat) at the Transpac 2005 banquet. |
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For Ross, the real challenge was "getting to the
starting point." He said, "We prepared for six months, but I always
wondered if we were ready. During the race we were 1,000 miles from
land, the farthest you can be without being on the moon! So, we
hoped we had brought everything we needed!"
At the awards celebration in Hawaii, Roy Disney gave his
farewell speech after sailing the Transpac 15 times over the last
30 years. He said, "This race is not about the big boats. It's
about the Cal 40s; it's about B'Quest's disabled
sailors.
Keep doing this." The Transpac team has shown that sailing is an
"all-inclusive" sport, even for the severely disabled. Ross
concluded, "These are interesting people, living their best
life."
Sherry Metzger, MS, is a freelance writer with degrees in anatomy and neurobiology. She is based in Westminster, Colorado, and may be reached at metzgerfive@hotmail.com 
Table Of Contents - October 2005
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