‘Nervous’ but ‘Going to Have Fun’ : Blind Man Sails for England--Solo

PORTSMOUTH, R.I. — A blind man who has never spent more than an afternoon sailing alone shoved off for Plymouth, England, today on what he hopes will be the first solo crossing of the Atlantic for a sightless person.

After a last-minute delay to say goodby to his family and make some equipment repairs, Jim Dickson shouted, “I’m going to have fun,” gave a thumbs-up salute and set sail from Bend Boat Basin.

Before leaving, Dickson, 41, said he was a little anxious but expected that once the voyage was under way, things would be fine.

“I’m nervous,” Dickson said. “I expect to be nervous for the next three or four days. After that, I expect to have the time of my life.”

During his voyage, Dickson will use a $12,000 talking computer that will tell him his position, speed and wind direction. He also was carrying a Braille compass in case the computer fails.

If successful, the trip should last about a month. Three separate electronic systems are on board the 36-foot sloop Eye Opener in case of an emergency.

“All I have to do is pull a little Velcro tab and two people in a control room will know exactly where I am and that I need assistance,” he said.

Dickson has suffered from retinitis pigmentosa since he was a boy. The degenerative eye disease, which eventually causes blindness, has left him with 10% of his sight, and he often cannot see anything during the day because of the sun’s glare.

He said he would keep busy by listening to some of the 25 talking books he brought along and will also be working on a book about the trip. Two cameras in underwater housings were mounted on the railing of the boat to record videotapes for a documentary he is preparing.

“If I’m not having a good time out there, if I have major equipment failure, I’ll not hesitate to put in half way across,” he said. “I’d have no hesitation in turning back to shore or putting out a beacon to ask for help.”

He said he hoped his trip would demonstrate that blind people can lead productive lives with a little help from technology.

“It’s not me alone sailing. There’s a lot of people helping,” he said. “If the same helping hand is extended to hundreds of thousands of disabled Americans it would make lives a lot easier.”