Delayed Gratification – Tim Taylor’s New Zealand Circumnavigation On Hold

By Grant Dyson

Rating: ***

I found this to be an interesting article showing how young people can set out to accomplish big goals.

In this article, the author write about how 24 year-old Tim Taylor, from Tauranga, New Zealand set out to continuously kayak around New Zealand. His goal was to make the trip in only 3 ½ months. He left his home shore in November 2010. Unfortunately, he met a few weather challenges along the way. In June, only two days paddling from the northernmost part of New Zealand and only 800km from completing his goal, Tim had to admit his defeat and return home. Now in winter, the sea conditions were too much and he would have to wait until spring to finish his journey.

Tim Taylor is an example of what you can eventually hope to accomplish if you try hard enough. Kayaking around something the size of New Zealand in unpredictable weather conditions takes a lot of planning and skill. However, even for someone as skilled as Tim, the sea was no match. Setting goals is an important part of life. Planning and training for those goals are just as important. However, whenever we set out to do anything in Nature, we must always be aware of the power that Nature has over us and give it the respect it deserves. Smartly, Tim chose to respect the sea and postpone his goal and wait for more predictable sea conditions.
It is important for people of all ages to set goals. However, sometimes there are forces bigger than us that may force us to slow down or stop. But, that doesn’t mean we should give up – only change the direction and try again.

Dyson, Grant. “Delayed Gratification – Tim Taylor’s New Zealand Circumnavigation On Hold”. Adventure Kayak, Volume 11, Issue 3. Canada. Rapid Media. (Summer/Fall 2011) P. 17 (on-line digital copy of magazine)