[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 10]
[Senate]
[Page 14053]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO RICH WILSON

 Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, just a few days ago I received a 
special gift from a consummate mariner, Rich Wilson of Marblehead, MA, 
the skipper of the Great American III. The gift was a U.S. Yacht 
Ensign, the red, white and blue flag used to identify American licensed 
yachts since 1848. What made this particular Ensign so special is that 
Rich flew it aboard the Great American III on December 10, 2008, in the 
solo, nonstop, around-the-world sailing race known as the Vendee Globe.
  Rich flew the Ensign on his 31st day at sea from France, just as he 
was entering the Indian Ocean bound for Cape Horn. Ninety days later, 
Rich and the 60-foot Great American III completed their 28,000-mile 
global trek from France to France, ninth among the 11 finishers of a 
race that began with 30 boats. Rich was the only American entry, the 
oldest skipper in the fleet at 58 years of age, and only the second 
American ever to finish the Vendee Globe in its six quadrennial 
runnings.
  The Vendee Globe is widely regarded as the Mount Everest of the seas. 
But, in fact, it is even a greater challenge than climbing Mount 
Everest. Consider the fact that while 3,000 people have climbed Mount 
Everest, Rich was only the 46th person ever to sail alone around the 
world nonstop. Consider, too, the fact that some 500 astronauts have 
flown in space, and that further underscores just how rare and special 
Rich's accomplishment in the Vendee Globe truly is.
  The Vendee Globe is like no other event on this earth. It is a 
grueling contest largely unsullied by hype and commerce, a competition 
of men and women against each other but mostly against the ceaselessly 
moving sea, sometimes playful, sometimes terrifying, an immense power 
inspiring admiration, caution and, above all, respect.
  But in the hands of Rich Wilson, the Vendee Globe also became a 
learning experience for students and newspaper readers throughout the 
world. As with his earlier long-distance ocean voyages, Rich shared his 
Vendee Globe experience through the online company he founded, 
www.sitesalive.com, a nonprofit that has produced 75 live, interactive, 
full-semester programs linking K-12 classrooms to adventures and 
expeditions worldwide. During the 2008-2009 Vendee Globe, 
sitesalive.com shared Rich's 15-part weekly series, written at sea from 
the Great American, with 250,000 students and 7 million readers.
  Rich's goal was to excite students and engage students by connecting 
them to a live ocean expedition. As Rich explains it the reasoning 
behind sitesalive.com: ``Excite a kid with dolphins, flying fish, and 
gales at sea, or with snakes, bugs, and bats in the rainforest, and 
they will pay attention, not knowing what will happen next. Then the 
science, geography, and math flow freely.''
  Anyone who enjoyed high seas adventure novels like Moby-Dick and 
Treasure Island or anyone who marveled at National Geographic 
expeditions or the adventures of Jacques Cousteau on the Calypso can 
understand how Rich is making the world come alive for students. And 
anyone who has sailed, even within sight of the shore, or who has run a 
marathon or has hiked a mountain range can appreciate the skill, 
conditioning, and discipline it took for Rich to complete Vendee Globe.
  I thank Rich for the Ensign, the memento from his great adventure, 
and I congratulate him, not only for completing his great voyage but 
also for sharing it online with millions of people around the world. 
And as he considers whether to enter the Vendee Globe again in 2012, I 
urge him to once again climb aboard the Great American III and set 
sail.

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