Teen sailor celebrates equator crossing

SMH

ACROSS THE EQUATOR: Australian teen sailor Jessica Watson "partied" over the phone with family in Central Otago as she crossed the equator in her world record bid.

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Australian teen sailor Jessica Watson "partied" over the phone with family in Central Otago as she crossed the equator in her world record bid.

Watson, 16, set sail on Ella's Pink Lady from Sydney on October 18, in her attempt to become the youngest person to sail around the world solo.

Her mother Julie is from Dunedin, her father Roger from Wellington, and she holds New Zealand and Australian passports.

The equator is a key milestone of her eight-month journey, which requires a crossing to qualify for the record books.

As the equator drew near, New Zealand relatives – grandparents Gordon and Margaret Chisholm, and aunt Wendy Taylor – phoned in their support from Cromwell , the Brisbane Times reported.

"Grandma and Granddad and all their friends got together in Cromwell in the South Island of New Zealand to celebrate Ella's Pink Lady and I crossing the line – but they were a little early!" she wrote in her blog.

Watson crossed the equator early this morning.

Now two days ahead of schedule, she is expected to reach her next major milestone – Cape Horn, the most southerly point of South America – in another 36 days.

- NZPA