Donald Attig

Attig was born on February 2, 1936, in Pontiac, Illinois. He attended St. Mary's Grade School, Pontiac Township High School, and Eureka College. In his twenties, he cruised in a powerboat that he built himself and was one of the first to make the journey on the Illinois River from Seneca to New Orleans. After reaching New Orleans, he sailed along the Gulf Coast, eventually crossing the Gulf of Mexico to St. Petersburg, Florida.^{[citation needed]}

Attig established three benchmark records in adventure, endurance, and challenge categories.^[2] In the late 1960s, he developed a system for the assembly-line production of panelized, all-molded homes.^[3]

In 1968, Attig became the first to build a three-masted, Irish-flagged sailboat from the keel up in the United States.^[4] For ten years, he and his family lived aboard and voyaged in the schooner, covering more than 5,000 miles on rivers and inland waterways before taking it to sea.^[5][6][7][8] During that period, he refined seamanship skills, later applied to his benchmark record efforts.^[9][10] He sailed with his wife and newborn son to Ireland in 1977, among other passages.^[11][12] Two of his five children, Omar Brendan and John Paul, were born aboard the vessel.^[13] For years, Attig and his son Omar offered free sailing excursions on the schooner for at‑risk youth from Northern Ireland.^[14] After Omar's death in a car crash, Attig donated the boat to the VEC Youthreach program.^[15]

Between the ages of 71 and 73, Attig undertook endurance and adventure benchmark voyages on Irish inland waterways in an engineless liveaboard boat.^{[citation needed]}

• In 2007, he organized and co‑crewed a motorless liveaboard transit from the Shannon Navigation to the seaport of Tarbert, County Kerry.^{[citation needed]} The River Shannon is the longest river in Ireland.^[16]
• In 2008, he traveled the full Shannon Navigation to the seaport of Foynes, County Limerick, in the same liveaboard boat.^{[citation needed]}
• In 2008, he completed a motorless liveaboard transit of the River Erne Navigation.^{[citation needed]}

During these efforts, the greatest distance was covered by rowing.^{[citation needed]}

Attig started his journey at the Inishmagrath end‑of‑navigation marker on Lough Allen in County Leitrim and continued via Killaloe to the seaport of Tarbert on the Shannon Estuary. Along this route, he reportedly passed 33 bridges, 6 locks, and 9 lakes without mechanical power.^{[citation needed]} Strong flows at several bridges created difficulties for both powered and engineless craft; conditions at and around Killaloe Bridge are noted for high discharge rates (average ≈ 180 tons per second; maximum ≈ 600–700 tons per second).^[17] In addition to bridges and flow, the Ardnacrusha power station's reach and prevailing south‑westerly winds added to the challenge.^{[citation needed]} For hydrometric data, see published flow and level charts by the operator.^[18][19][20]

During the 2007 record‑establishing effort, Jack Donovan of Ballincollig, County Cork (who was aged 60 at the time and had been living with multiple sclerosis)^{[citation needed]} and Attig rowed well over 90% of the time. They rowed mostly in a zigzag pattern due to the wind resistance on the large topside area and the almost flat box‑type bow of the liveaboard boat and gear. When they reached Tarbert, their satellite navigation device indicated that the pair had traveled more than 268 miles (431 km).^[21]

Attig and Donovan started their benchmark establishing effort on 29 June 2007 at Cormongan Beach on Lough Allen at 10:00 a.m. They rowed from there to the Inishmagrath end of navigation marker at the top of Lough Allen. They began the first ever attempt to make an engineless transit of the Shannon in a boat equipped with liveaboard accommodations. Stephan Haeni, a Swiss national living at Cleighran More, witnessed their arrival and departure at the Inishmagrath marker. They completed the Shannon Navigation on 28 July 2007, entering the Killaloe Canal at 4:20 p.m., marking the moment when the official Shannon Navigation had been transited in an engineless liveaboard boat.^{[citation needed]}

The Irish Coast Guard attempted to dissuade the pair from continuing past the end of the navigation marker at Killaloe Bridge.^{[citation needed]} Attig and Donovan left the Killaloe Canal at 4:20 p.m. on 28 July 2007. They anchored in the Tarbert seaport bay at 8:00 p.m. on 8 August 2007, marking the final benchmark records of their journey. At the time, the attempt was described as an engineless transit of the Shannon Navigation and beyond in a liveaboard boat.^{[22][23][24][25][26]} Their record‑setting efforts were carried out during the wettest summer on the Shannon since 1948.^{[citation needed]}

Attig undertook further endurance and adventure "benchmark" voyages, repeating the route single‑handed in the same vessel, Omar's River Bird. RTÉ's Nationwide aired a segment about "Shannon Challenge 2008."^{[citation needed]}

At 1:30 a.m. on June 26, 2008, Attig departed Cormongan Beach on Lough Allen in County Leitrim but was driven back by wind and anchored about 30 metres (98 ft) from the beach; after more than two days, he proceeded toward the Inishmagrath marker. He reached the seaport of Foynes at 12:05 a.m. on August 16, 2008.^{[27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34]}