Abby Sunderland - SoloRound

[TaoJones]

PM on the way, dpex.

TaoJones

[estarzinger]

Originally Posted by paradix

1.) Yes, Jan Moeller sailed an Open 40 non-stop around the world in 2004.

Terrific, so we know this basic platform can do it. Do you know #1 what size his fuel tanks were and #2 if he had a wind vane.

I see he got outside weather only on a every three day schedule, which means he was probably pretty aware of power coservation.

[surfingminniwinni]

Can this be true?

Abby Sunderland halts solo bid to be youngest to sail the world

Abby Sunderland halts solo bid to be youngest to sail the world | News.com.au

Its hard to believe anything in the Murdoch press.

[GordMay]

It’s all in how you sensationalise the headline!

From Abby’s Website & Blog:

➥ Abby Sunderland | Abigail Sunderland | Wild Eyes | Solo Circumvent | Shoecity.com Sponsor

➥ Abby's Blog

ABBY HEADS TO CABO SAN LUCAS
January 30, 2010
Abby heads to Cabo San Lucas to meet Team Abby for needed repairs on Wild Eyes. Still being north of the equator, she will be able to restart her non-stop solo circumnavigation from Baja California.

From the previously- linked press report:

"... Sunderland, 16, said in her blog on Saturday that she would have to head to Mexico for repairs as she was not able to generate sufficient power from her solar panels and wind generators.

Her team will meet her in Cabo San Lucas bringing fuel and more batteries to help her run her two alternators.

However, Sutherland will not be giving up her world-record attempt.

"Since I'm still north of the equator I won't have to give up on the non-stop attempt," Sunderland wrote in her blog.

"I will be re-starting from Cabo as soon as I can."

[READY2GO]

I don't think one can make the judgement that Abby's trip is unorganised because she had an electrical problem. She had charging problems prior to leaving, and replaced various components of the system. They obviously thouht they had the problem fixed, but didn't. I can't tell you how many times I have bought new parts that were bad out of the box, or only lasted a few days (or hours). Besides, remember Jessicas rocky start, and look where she is today. I'd say let's wait awhile before we start judging her or her team.

[Artful Dodger]

With her need for power how will such a sail boat if it incounters the same as Jessica's fare. As for preparation sure they have checked and rechecked the equipment, but the consumtion charts may have to be reworked. As for her chance to being the youngest, at what point for Abby are the days numbered before she is out of the race.

[infiniteblue]

The further this attempt goes the worse it looks to me.
Good luck to the girl, but I'm worried that she thinks 'the Lords' in charge because he appears to be busy right now, devastating Haiti.
Maybe she should wait to next year when he's not busy....

[dpex]

Originally Posted by infiniteblue

The further this attempt goes the worse it looks to me.
Good luck to the girl, but I'm worried that she thinks 'the Lords' in charge because he appears to be busy right now, devastating Haiti.
Maybe she should wait to next year when he's not busy....

Really? Good heavens. I thought he was busy conning those heathens in the US Fed that they could easily take on 2 trillion dollars of debt, and to hell with paying it back. :--))

Anyway. Seems to me that the competitive aspect between the girls has become a bit of a focus. Frankly, I don't think that's proper.

I think that any 16 year-old with sufficient maturity to sail a keel-boat anywhere, single-handed, has to be awarded the hats-off. For the same to not only contemplate but to actually engage in a RTW event is, in my opinion, simply amazing.

These young people, and the many like them who are engaged in so many activities which I, as a teen in the 50's would never have even dreamed of, represent the spearhead taking this world forward one more grudging step away from stupidity.

The Greeks had Jason in their mythology. We now have Jesse and Abby in our reality. Their Golden Fleece is not in the winning, it is in the doing.

[TaoJones]

The entire conversation among various members speculating on Jessica Watson's actions during the storm she encountered, as well as those of her team, has been merged with the "Abby Sunderland vs Jessica Watson" thread. It is off-topic in the "Abby Sunderland - Solo 'Round" thread.

Please keep your posts in this thread on the topic of Abby Sunderland and her, and her team's, efforts. Thank you for your cooperation.

TaoJones

[Greenman]

I have to say I am very impressed with the level of maturity Abby displays on her blog. I say congrats and fair winds. Both (Abby and Jessica) are hopefully inspirations a future crop of young ladies taking to the water, and that can't be a bad thing. The more young people sailing the better the sport/hobby/lifestyle will be in the future.

[sec906]

Abby set sail again today, to circumnavigate solo, non-stop, unassisted leaving from and returning to Cabo San Lucas. From Abby's Blog it looks like quite an extensive list of repairs and modifications were done over the past week.

[Gnitfar]

Shake down done...Window of time to be somewhere on her voyage at a safe time, she has only lost a few days, hope this whole thing wasn't a rush job!

[slomotion]

Except for more fuel, more batteries, and adjusting the alternator and AIS, I didn't see anything on the list directly or indirectly related to the charging issues that stopped her in the first place.

We were lazy comfort oriented cruisers with refrigeration, watermaker, multiple appliances, SSB, 2 laptops, daily hot water showers, etc.; and we were virtually electrically self sufficient with 3 solar panels and 1 wind generator. Of course, that was in the Bahamas/Caribbean where there is almost always sun and/or wind. And, of course, we usually weren't at sea - we didn't have twin autopilots, radar, AIS, satellite phone/Internet, etc. Apparently a serious high tech solo circumnavigator has higher electrical demand than two people living well on a boat and watching the world go by.

Hopefully the issue is resolved and Abby can get on with it. If so, I think she will go very fast.

[TaoJones]

Originally Posted by slomotion

Hopefully the issue is resolved and Abby can get on with it. If so, I think she will go very fast.

Me too, slomo! (I'm assuming we both mean "go very fast" in its positive connotation. )

TaoJones

[infiniteblue]

Going very fast seems to be her preoccupation from the threads she 's posted thus far...I thought she was trying to solo circumnavigate and that it wasnt a race.
The list of repairs reminds me of the coach of the Auistralian Cricket team when they finally lost the Ashes trophy to England some years back. Over a two month tour he talked endlessly in jargon and psych speech,never once mentioning 'cricket bat or ball, or 'batting or bowling'.
Abbys blog gives no impression, at all, that she's actually using a yacht for her circumnavigation. Does she have sails, a mainsheet block,a boom vang or, for that matter, a wheel or tiller to actually helm the boat herself?

Good luck to her, it's a brave venture. I doubt she'll complete a non stop voyage.