End of the Line for Rimas?

Mariners traveling in American territorial waters and beyond take great comfort in knowing that Coast Guard resources are always standing by to assist them if an emergency should occur. But when solo sailor Rimas Meleshyus had to be rescued by Guardsmen Wednesday and towed 30 miles into Monterey Harbor, we had to wonder if there is a limit to how many times an individual sailor can call for help before rescue authorities say, "Enough already." We can’t actually imagine that happening, but it’s worth noting that since Rimas’ first offshore adventure in Alaska four years ago, he has sailed and drifted thousands of miles, yet has never made landfall without assistance.

As reported Wednesday, some of the Russian-born American sailor’s supporters became concerned early last week after he left Sausalito’s Richardson Bay anchorage March 7 in unsettled weather without alerting even his closest acquaintances. But after 10 days at sea he turned up off Monterey (185 miles south of his departure point) with his Rawson 30 Mimsy "completely trashed," according to Jean Mondeau, who gave Rimas the boat last year so he could pursue his dream of sailing alone around the planet. The "brand new" headsail is in now in tatters, the dinghy is gone, there’s no anchor chain aboard, and the engine won’t start, even with a jump. 

In Rimas’ latest post on Facebook, he talks of coming dangerously close to cargo ships often during the short trip south, and being washed overboard "many times," each time pulling himself back aboard again. In his broken English he writes, "Many people do not understand me. Maybe I do not have experience sailing, but I know how to survive on the open [ocean]; dangerous place."

Rimas’ options for continuing on now seem severely limited. Not only is his boat in disrepair, but he’s flat broke and harbor authorities are, of course, threatening to seize the boat if he can’t come up with slip fees soon. Even worse, Rimas’ greatest supporter has lost all confidence in his potential to become a competent mariner. "I’m done," says Mondeau. And this time we’re pretty sure he means it.