Steven Callahan
Steven Callahan | |
---|---|
![]() Callahan describes his experience of being adrift to students at North Yarmouth Academy in 2016 | |
Born | |
Nationality | American |
Occupation(s) | Author, naval architect, inventor, and sailor |
Known for | Surviving for 76 days adrift on the Atlantic Ocean; Adrift: Seventy-six Days Lost at Sea |
Steven Callahan (born 6 February 1952) is an American author, naval architect, inventor, and sailor. In 1981, he survived for 76 days
Biography
He holds three U.S. patents: a drogue-like boat stability and directional-control device (Patent No. 6684808);[1] a folding rigid-inflatable boat (FRIB) (Patent No. 6367404);[2] and a folding rigid-bottom boat (FRB) (Patent No. 6739278).[3] The initial model FRIB, called "The Clam", was developed on the basis of his survival experience. The Clam is a multifunction self-rescue dinghy, designed for use as a proactive lifeboat (as well as a yacht tender) that allows the sailor to sail to safety.[4]
Callahan asserts that "It certainly would be nice to have a completely different kind of raft now, what the French call a "Dynamic" raft, meaning the thing sails. The last time I lost my boat, had I been able to beam reach, I could have shortened my drift from 1,800 miles to 450; had I been able to sail even dead downwind but increase speed to a moderate 2.5 knots, I would have been afloat 25 days rather than 76; had I been able to do both I would have sailed to safety in a mere 6 or 7 days."[5]
Adrift: Seventy-six Days Lost at Sea
Callahan departed from
Unable to stay aboard Napoleon Solo as it filled with water and was overwhelmed by breaking seas, Callahan escaped into a six-man Avon inflatable
The raft drifted westward with the
Callahan's use of an
On the eve of April 20, 1982, he spotted lights on the island of
During his journey, Callahan experienced a few positive elements aside from suffering, describing the night sky at one point as "A view of heaven from a seat in hell." He still enjoys sailing and the sea, which he calls the world's greatest wilderness. Since his survival drift, he's made dozens of additional offshore passages and ocean crossings, most of them with no more than two other crew.
This incident is featured on the I Shouldn't Be Alive episode "76 Days Adrift".[7] Callahan's story also featured on an episode of British survival expert Ray Mears television series Extreme Survival, and on an episode of the History Channel series Vanishings!.[8]
Life of Pi
In the making of the 2012 movie Life of Pi, director Ang Lee asked Callahan to be a consultant on living aboard a life raft. Ang Lee told Callahan, "I want to make the ocean a real character in this movie." Callahan made lures and other tools seen in the movie.[9]
See also
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- Dougal Robertson, survived 38 days adrift in the Pacific
- Jesús Vidaña, survived nine months adrift in the Pacific
- Maurice and Maralyn Bailey, survived 117 days adrift in the Pacific
- Rose-Noëlle, a trimaran on which four people survived 119 days adrift in the South Pacific
- Poon Lim, who survived for 133 days adrift in the Atlantic
- José Salvador Alvarenga, who spent 15 months (438 days) adrift in the Pacific
General
Notes
- ^ US6684808B2, Callahan, Steven, "Boat stability and directional-control device", issued 2004-02-03
- ^ US6367404B1, Callahan, Steven, "Folding rigid-inflatable boat", issued 2002-04-09
- ^ US6739278B2, Callahan, Steven, "Folding rigid-bottom boat", issued 2004-05-25
- ^ "Sinking survivor designs life raft", CNN, April 22, 2002.
- ^ Callahan, Steven. "The Life Raft: Don't Leave Your Ship Without It". Ocean Navigator Magazine. Archived from the original on 9 November 2018. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
- ^ "Cleveland sailor inspired survival at sea, its lessons" Archived 2012-10-15 at the Wayback Machine, The Plain Dealer, August 14, 2005.
- ^ This Man Survived Over 2 Months Lost At Sea | 76 Days Adrift | I Shouldn't Be Alive S4 EP6 | Wonder, retrieved 2021-07-07
- ^ Steven Callahan IMDB name search, retrieved 2023-11-18
- ^ "Behind The Scenes With The Original Pi", BoatUS, December 2012.
References
- Callahan, Steven (1986), Adrift: Seventy-six Days Lost at Sea, Houghton Mifflin Company, ISBN 978-1-885283-16-0
- Ritter, Doug (2001-10-30), "Equipped to Survive Foundation – Board of Directors", equipped.com, retrieved 2007-08-15
- Ritter, Doug (2001-11-02), "Equipped to survive – Steven Callahan Bio", equipped.com, archived from the original on 2015-02-15, retrieved 2007-08-15
- Klein, Allison, "Harrowing Survival Stories", howstuffworks.com, retrieved 2007-08-15
- Dortier, Jean-Francois, "Survivre seul en mer", scienceshumaines.com, retrieved 2007-08-16
- Guillerm, Luc-Christophe (2005), "Survivre en radeau: le defi psychologique de Steven Callahan", Bulletin de psychologie, vol. 58, no. 479, pp. 589–598, archived from the original on November 3, 2007, retrieved 2007-08-16
- Oaks, Tammy (2002-04-22), "Sinking survivor designs life raft", cnn.com, retrieved 2007-08-16
- Harkavy, Jerry, "'Adrift' author: Dinghy would have eased ordeal", Burlington Free Press, retrieved 2007-08-16 [dead link]
- "Folding hard-bottom inflatable dinghy/lifeboat", Wooden Boat Forum, archived from the original on 2007-09-30, retrieved 2007-08-22
- Worst nightmare travels, 2007-02-26, retrieved 2007-08-15
- US Patent 6739278 – Folding rigid-bottom boat, 2004-05-25, archived from the original on 2007-07-17, retrieved 2007-08-15
- US Patent 6684808 – Boat stability and directional-control device, 2004-02-03, archived from the original on 2007-09-11, retrieved 2007-08-16
- "Listing of available speakers", Cruising World, 2003-12-22, archived from the original on 2007-10-06, retrieved 2007-08-15
- "Steven Callahan", Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, retrieved 2015-10-23
- "Behind the Scenes with the Original PI", Boatus.com
Further reading
Articles
- Callahan, Steven, "The Life Raft: Don't Leave Your Ship Without It", equipped.com, archived from the original on 2018-11-09, retrieved 2007-08-15 (originally published in Ocean Navigator magazine)
- Callahan, Steven (December 1995), "The Proactive Emergency Craft", Cruising World
- Callahan, Steven (1987-02-01), "A Sea So Great, A Raft So Small", The New York Times, retrieved 2007-08-16
- Callahan, Steven (2002-07-01), "Reflections at the Water's Edge", Cruising World, archived from the original on 2006-03-18, retrieved 2007-08-16
- Callahan, Steven (1997-04-01), "Catamaran Overview: Catapulting to the Future", Cruising World, archived from the original on 2006-03-18, retrieved 2007-08-16
- Callahan, Steven (2013), "Ten Most Intriguing, Interview by Claire Z. Cramer", Portland Magazine
Books
- Nalepka, James; Callahan, Steven (1992), Capsized: The True Story of Four Men Adrift for 119 days, HarperCollins, ISBN 978-0-06-017961-8
- Howorth, Francis; Howort, Michael, The Sea Survival Manual- Foreword by Steven Callahan, Sheridan House
External links
- JulianRitterCentral, tells of the ill-fated voyage of the Galilee – adrift 87 days, 40 without food