Rating: 
Summary: ...from the author...
Review: ...for anyone curious,its one helluva ride,15 minutes of "fame" and a heap of money.For a while there I even believed my own press..very very tempting that, like I was more important than other people..Imagine being flown around the country,having all paid for,being escorted around by people who the week before did Colin Powell or Hilery Clinton..and money!!Talk about seductive.. writing a $100,000 check to the IRS, 3 times what I had ever earned , much less donated to my government of choice in a year.I was a kid in big big toystore and am broke now, but content.My point is, all the "sucess" is fun , an adventure into a realm,but no more.It is in no way worth dreaming about.You will still wake up with yourself in the morning,get pimples,have to fart when it is not appropriate....(and by the way,I met lots of way famous people these last two years,and they are just as unshre as you or I ,and I think generally VERY dissalussioned with a world that thinks THEM so special.) So now I feel a bit like Ishmael on page 1 of MOBY DICK.I own a 50 acre island off wilderness atlantic coast.Gonna sell all(not sparrow!) and live there a year,at least , with my new wife and 11 year old boy(..home school..) and write.I have had adventures. Maybe I will call it "fiction"? I will see what unfololds.. I hope to be"frozen in"for months..., I got no computer(this is the third thing I have ever typed) but do write letters..
Rating: 
Summary: My old man and the Sea
Review: A great book with a mix of comedy and intesity. The book
grabbed me right from the start. The wonderful mix of humor
in Dan's journal and seriousness of Davids' keeps the
reader's attention. Though sometimes rather complex in the
terms used, the appendix at the end is very helpful in my
understanding of the book.
Rating:
Summary: A fascinating account of a physical and emotional voyage.
Review: Cape Horn looms in sailing lore as the ultimate challenge;
a graveyard of ships whose rocks and capricious weather
should be feared by even the most seasoned old salt. Yet,
the temptation to be one of the few who have met this
challenge (Cape Horners are even allowed to put their feet up on the tablein the officers' wardroom in an English warship) is as great as the danger, and the father and son
team of David and Daniel Hays are not immune to this
temptation . On one level, this is the day by day account of two men
who became the first Americans to sail around Cape Horn in
a sailboat under 30 ft long. The details of living and
surviving in such a small efficient space are fascinating,
not only to sailors, but to casual readers, who will marvel
at spending that much time closely confined with a family
member and no form of entertainment other than books or
(gasp) conversation.
On a deeper, and perhaps even more interesting level, this
is an account of the mental and emotional journey taken by
a father and son. Alternating between the voices of the
romantic, dramatic David, and his cynical, directionless son
Daniel, it is a vivid picture of a troubled but enduring
relationship. The two play off of eachother in the narrative
much as they must have played off of each other during that
year-long solitary voyage. As you read, you feel sometimes the cramped environment of two such different men forced to live in such a small space, and sometimes admiration, for the
almost wordless emotional partnership of two men who share
love for each other and for the sea; a partnership whose strength is attested by their accomplishment.
Finally, it is subtly mythical tale of a father who learns
to acknowledge his son's adulthood, and a son who learns to accept a leadership role in the family. Generations of
seafaring fathers weave in and out of the narrative and become
part of the heroic quest.
Sometimes jokey, sometimes over-sentimental, the narrative
tone varies wildly (and sometimes annoyingly) but the book
itself is easy to read and interesting, as the simple details
of the voyage open up the interior lives of the voyagers.
Rating:
Summary: A fascinating account of a physical and emotional voyage.
Review: Cape Horn looms in sailing lore as the ultimate challenge;a graveyard of ships whose rocks and capricious weathershould be feared by even the most seasoned old salt. Yet, the temptation to be one of the few who have met this challenge (Cape Horners are even allowed to put their feet up on the tablein the officers' wardroom in an English warship) is as great as the danger, and the father and son team of David and Daniel Hays are not immune to this temptation . On one level, this is the day by day account of two men who became the first Americans to sail around Cape Horn in a sailboat under 30 ft long. The details of living and surviving in such a small efficient space are fascinating, not only to sailors, but to casual readers, who will marvel at spending that much time closely confined with a family member and no form of entertainment other than books or (gasp) conversation. On a deeper, and perhaps even more interesting level, this is an account of the mental and emotional journey taken by a father and son. Alternating between the voices of the romantic, dramatic David, and his cynical, directionless son Daniel, it is a vivid picture of a troubled but enduring relationship. The two play off of eachother in the narrative much as they must have played off of each other during that year-long solitary voyage. As you read, you feel sometimes the cramped environment of two such different men forced to live in such a small space, and sometimes admiration, for the almost wordless emotional partnership of two men who share love for each other and for the sea; a partnership whose strength is attested by their accomplishment. Finally, it is subtly mythical tale of a father who learns to acknowledge his son's adulthood, and a son who learns to accept a leadership role in the family. Generations of seafaring fathers weave in and out of the narrative and become part of the heroic quest. Sometimes jokey, sometimes over-sentimental, the narrative tone varies wildly (and sometimes annoyingly) but the book itself is easy to read and interesting, as the simple details of the voyage open up the interior lives of the voyagers.
Rating: 
Summary: Inspiring!
Review: David and Daniel Hays are the first Americans to sail around Cape Horn in a boat under 30 feet in length. "My Old Man and the Sea" is the inspiring true story of a father and son's 17,000-mile voyage in a 25-foot yacht named Sparrow to the bottom of the world and back.
Although David and Dan sailed the easier route from the Pacific into the Atlantic with the prevailing westerly winds and currents they endured horrific storms that included Dan being tossed overboard during Sparrows dangerous sideways roll.
The tale is even more impressive when you learn that they chose to sail simply, without an engine and used a sextant and compass instead of a navigational system. David explains, "Our sport is to tune our senses not our instruments."
David and Dan's eloquent descriptions of the magnificence of the ocean and the magic of sailing brought back fond memories of my own six-month adventure hitchhiking on sailboats in the Bahamas. Like them, I was inspired to write a book titled "Earth, the Forgotten Temple." Tales concerning profound encounters with Mother Ocean and her other wilderness places need to be shared.
Most moving of all, despite conflicts, the deep love between the father and the son shine through to warm us all.
Rating:
Summary: A book you can't wait to share !
Review: Extremely entertaining and very readable. We discover through a profoundly human relationship between a father and son much hope and encouragement. We are reminded that life provides all of us with great oportunities for love, joy, laughter, and sharp pointed humor. Perhaps the best thing they both have ever done was to recognize and appreciate each others uniqueness. Dan reminds us of our common error of not seeing people as the miracles they are and not seeing ourselves as the miracles we are. A witty stimulating read. Davids writing is beautiful and earthbound. Dan is an absolute riot. We can only hope they do it again.
Rating:
Summary: The Cape rounding was the second important accomplishment!!
Review: Great Story, and Excellent Adventure, both of a physical and emotional kind! The ability to take on such an adventure and complete it speaks volumes about the parenting of the "Old Man"! This book is for those wishing to read of sea adventure, but just as much, for Parents to read about being involved and in tune with their children. Maybe not to the extreme as in this book, but still involved and feeling!
Rating: 
Summary: Navigating through deep boredom.
Review: How do you make a 17,000 mile voyage sound less boring than it is? I don't know, but if you find out, send a note to David and Daniel Hays with your solution. This book could have been titled "Navel Contemplation/Naval Contemplation." In all fairness, sailing a 24-foot boat around the horn is an amazing feat of seamanship, navigation and raw guts. This review should in no way be taken as a slight to the seamanship of Daniel and David Hays. However, much of the book is filled with pages and pages of self-contemplation. There were some parts which were interesting: How they built the ship; how they stowed their stores; but it would have been more interesting if they had gone in more detail with the technical aspects of their navigation. Many of these details were taken for granted by the Hays', leaving the reader unfamiliar with yachting puzzled. Overall the book was well-written, given what little there was to work with. The fact of the matter is, most sailing voyages are pretty boring especially to those not directly involved.
Rating:
Summary: self agulation
Review: I am the author, Daniel Hays. Would you please remove the 'review' (personal commentary) that I wrote for this site some years ago? I would appreciate it. Thanks, Daniel
Rating:
Summary: Soulful!
Review: I found the book an inspiration. They challenged themselves and the sea. The authors conveyed the feeling that one has when, they discover one's ability to test oneself, and go further then they thought possible. Like jogging and going an extra mile when you felt you couldn't take one more step. The story spawns energy into the daily mundane routine that we have. If time and circumstances permit, I too may enjoy the same adventures and rewards that, these two have shared. This is a book about the coming of self. The story, although Nautical, transcends every aspect of life. If feel that anyone would find pieces of themselves in this book.
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