PayPal Stories Archive

Skippering a dinghy solo around Ireland on the icy Atlantic and Irish Sea, Ted Sargent, a Manager of Global Employee Communications, is in for the sail of his life in just a few days, all for a good cause: raising money for blind children.

 

The epic sail, which Ted has dubbed “One Wild Ride,” will take him and his 13-foot Laser — named “My Little Monster,” — up to 40 days over 1,500 kilometers (930 miles), up the roiling Atlantic on the country’s west and cruising down its calmer waters on the east.

 

We sat down with Ted to hear more about his upcoming trip around the entire coastline of Ireland, starting and finishing in Schull, Co. Cork.

 

 

 

 

I started sailing when I was a small kid. Growing up in a family where even the dog had a lifejacket meant I was never going to be a golfer! With my granddad also building boats at the time, sailing was always a first love.

 

 

 

I take off on May 14. As for an idea of what the sail will be like, do you remember the ice bucket challenge? It will be like that — for about 40 days, eight to 10 hours a day, in 12 degree Celsius (54 F) waters.

 

 

 

I’ve been a lifelong sailor, and have always wanted to do this trip. But I also wanted to give something back. It felt wrong to make the effort for my own gain. The goal of my sail is to fundraise for ChildVision, a school dedicated to the education and training of blind and visually impaired children. I’m hoping to raise 100,000 Euros ($114,000) to help build a sensory room for the Dublin-based charity.

 

 

I first learned about ChildVision through my wife and quickly realised my voyage could serve a purpose greater than my personal sailing ambitions. ChildVision offers preschool through secondary education as well as live-in services to about 150 amazing children. Many of its students suffer from other conditions in addition to visual impairments, such as being deaf or having cerebral palsy.

 

 

 

To be honest with you I simply couldn’t have done this without the support from PayPal. PayPal offers a 4 week sabbatical program for every 5 years you are with the company. This is my second sabbatical so if I add some of my holiday days I essentially have the 7–8 weeks I need to complete the journey.

 

The access to PayPal benefits ( free gym, onsite physiotherapist/ personal trainers ) and more have saved me valuable time, lowered personal expense and protected me from the hometime stress of finding those services elsewhere.

 

Big shout out to all my teammates also. They went above and beyond to get me where I needed to be to go on this journey.

 

 

 

Well, the dinghy is built for speed, not comfort — so it’s going to be hard to sail over long periods since it offers no protection from the strong winds, freezing water and beating sun. Picture a 3-D surfboard with a sail and a hole in it with a little toe strap to keep me in it; for all intents and purposes, that’s all it is. Though larger yachts and motor craft have completed this trip before, there are few who have attempted it in such a small dinghy.

I guess I’m more excited than worried. I’m a lifelong sailor and I’ve been training for this since September. I believe I have the stamina, willpower and determination to complete this trip. I’m a stubborn old soul afterall!

 

 

 

I’ll have to eat about 5,000 calories a day to keep up with the physical demands of sailing before coming ashore at day’s end.

 

 

I’m set to sail up to 70 kilometers (43 miles) a day, and have plotted 350 spots for launching and retrieving the dinghy. My friends and team are assembling a chase crew with three vehicles, including one towing a boat that can be deployed if rescue is needed.

 

 

 

My dinghy holds only one, but I’m trying to make it so supporters can follow along. I’ll mount GoPros and wear a marine safety helmet that has a VHF radio built into it, and I also plan on sharing daily updates via Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and blogs.

 

 

 

Some of the highlights of the sail will include passing by stunning headlands on Ireland’s west coast and rounding Malin Head — a wild and windy halfway point of sorts that I call my own private Cape Horn. I’ll finish the journey in Schull, Cork County, where I started.

 

 

 

This whole experience has reinforced my belief in people. One Wild Ride is an exhilarating challenge I’ve chosen to face, but like the kids in ChildVision, sometimes a person’s greatest challenges are closer to home.