It Could Happen to You

By Lynn Fitzpatrick

John Redmond of Pacific Provisioning & Supply is used to fielding odd requests from callers. When it was founded in 2009, Pacific Provisionings tag line was From Bordeaux to Bottom Paint, and the business has grown to include refits and new builds all over the world.

When I called him about helping plan an intimate and important Argo Challenge event in San Diego, I was overwhelmed by his response. Wow. That sounds like a great cause. One of my best friends broke his neck a month ago and we have been thinking about what we can do.

John spent the better part of two days contacting friends and family, including captains, stewardess, mates, boat builders and refit specialists and generating global support for the Argo Challenge, a prospective Americas Cup team that includes sailors and athletes with disabilities as well as able-bodied athletes.

Everyone can identify with the Argo Challenge, said Redmond, who had a diving accident when he was in his late teens. I was in a decompression chamber for a week and they said that I would be a quadriplegic. My acupuncturist said that I would take 20 years to heel. My feeling was restored gradually and 20 years later I had sensations in the bottom of my feet again, said Redmond.

Redmonds friend was such an incredible athlete that he had even mastered barefoot waterskiing. If he had jumped off of a 60-foot cliff, I would have believed that he had broken his neck, but he fell off a boat that was sitting on a trailer. His legs got tangled in the steering bar and he flipped over and broke his neck, said Redmond incredulously. Redmond pays regular visits to his friend, who is still in the hospital and getting used to motorized and push wheelchairs. The good news is that he has twinges in his feet and can sense temperature and pressure differentials.

Redmond is in San Diego and his reach, for his Pacific Provisioning & Supply clients and for Argo Challenge extends globally. Says, Redmond, Most captains think the Argo Challenge it is a great idea. Most owners are loyal to their charities, but everyone realizes that a simple accident can lead to a life-altering disability. As we age, were prone to becoming disabled. I m also interested in the Argo Challenge because it would be nice to have a team in the Americas Cup that I can directly identify with.

Picture by Mike Pinckney