Boating New Zealand - May 2018

132 Boating New Zealand

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story of his voyage in Dove for three years, and it became one of

the magazine’s most popular series of articles ever.

Robin and Dove had an all-American photogenic charm

and his adventurous life, as portrayed in the magazine, struck

a chord in a nation that was undergoing the ructions of the

Vietnam war.

he popularity that resulted in his coverage by National

Geographic was something that Robin was never quite

comfortable with. he artiicial poses and the scripting of his

story by the magazine were something he came to resent.

Lyle kept reminding him that the sponsorship of the

magazine was paying for a large chunk of his voyage, which only

served to widen the growing rift between them.

After he completed his ive-year solo circumnavigation

Robin and Patti were ofered all the trappings of urban life, a

scholarship to Stanford University and a Ford Maverick.

For a kid who had dropped out of school and escaped to sea,

Robin was woefully under-prepared for life back on land. He

developed a deep depression, which overran him with all the

attendant issues of alcohol and drug addiction.

To his immense credit Robin was able to climb out of these

depths with the aid of Patti and their newfound Christian faith.

hey built a log cabin in Kalispell, Montana, surviving their irst

winter and a badly-acted movie about his adventures, which

came out in 1974. hey still live there to this day and have

raised a young family and delight in their anonymity.

Robin was no author – all three of the books about his story

and the aftermath were shadow written by American writer

Derek Gill. Yet, as a trilogy they recall an epic tale of growing up,

falling over and growing up again.

At 10 years old all I was interested in was the sailing, the

simple purpose of a boy who wanted to see the world by boat. It

is still the most dangerous book in my library.

I get it out once in a while and I handle it very carefully. I

keep it there because it kindles my childhood dreams. I keep it

there to fend of the worst that life on land can throw at me. BNZ

FAR LEFT Notes and hand-drawn

map from Dove’s log book.

BELOW Arriving in the Solomon

Islands; shooting the sun; meeting

the media at the finish.