Posted on 06/14/2010 7:42:41 PM PDT by GatorGirl
Round-the-world yachtsman Ian Kiernan criticised Abby for failing to respect the sea. "I don't know what she's doing in the southern Indian Ocean in the middle of the winter. We need adventurers but adventurers who do foolhardy things and put their rescuers at risk, it should not be allowed."
Interesting comments pyx, and I know Kiernan is a yachtsman, not a mountain climber, but "adventurers" routinely put themselves and their rescuers at risk. And when one or the other, or both, die, it's always looked at as "foolhardy".
As to what was she doing in the Indian Ocean, perhaps she was trying to find those "regionally rising sea-levels".
Sorry, I couldn't help myself.
Thank you. Good to see some sense in this thread. Why don’t folks just give up and quit trying to bring her down?
What does Popeye have to say about all of this?
“Even more unnerving is her family’s reliance on God and prayer to help them get to the end of this one.”
Excellent balanced commentary.
I posted it for the sailing analysis, not the religion.
Believe me that part was roundly bashed on the SA threads!
Wait, you kind of want to feel that way about the story but she made it from California to Capetown.
That was no accident and took quite a bit of skill I am sure.
If it was easy, everyone would do it.
What? The part about sailing 3/4 around the world or experience? /s
It wasn’t 3/4 of the way. More like 1/3.
Thats what they said about the Titanic.
THese are all great points.
Probably while she was resting below decks. I have had this happen when the autopilot is overwhelmed by a very sudden shift, or a squall. This is the trouble with gizmo sailing alone... no one on watch while the boat bowls along on her merry own. Cool when everything works. Hellooo Jesus, when something goes a bit off. Especially if you're sound asleep and don't hear the "Hi, you're dead, buzzer!"
Was reading a book once, when the autopilot steered me unerringly on course through a fleet of Mexican fishing boats, I am ashamed to say... in broad daylight on a very nice day. It was an immersion course in foul sailor Spanish for about 45 minutes. Twenty years later I can still remember the words.
In ye olden days, solo sailors sailed at night with much shortened sail, or none, or so I was told.
Oh my gosh! I don't know whether to laugh or not! (but I am)
The Sailing Anarchy forums have lots of new info if you’re interested.
Thanks. The more I read, the more that I believe this girl is lucky to be alive. And she’s alive because of technology and not competence.
She is indeed.
Lucky.
Do yourself a favor and introduce yourself to Alessandro diBenedetto. He’s almost home and his RSS posts are poetic. The other day he caught a tuna and made a gourmet meal for himself. Now that is an adventurer!
He lost his mast before Cape Horn but has continued on with a jury rig on the smallest boat to make a solo, non-stop, unassisted circumnavigation. A truly inspirational sailor. This is the guy we need to be taking our cues from, not a 16 y/o parentally pimped poseur.
I don’t sail. Didn’t know anything about sailing until last week when this story hit. Even with no knowledge, I was shocked to read that Abby had sailed Wild Eyes for only a few hours before leaving on her trip. No other practice runs. That’s akin to buying her a race car, having her drive it to the store and back, on a sunny day, then sending her out in it in a snowstorm.
I forgot to say that I did read a little about the Italian. Ahhhh age and experience. :-)
It is SAD to see the depths...
It is too bad she could not have made it, would have been better for everyone, but a lot of people have tried this and have never returned. Her ability to keep her head and act correctly is well above her age.
The whining reminds me of a bunch of socialist..
“Oh, She got to do that! I didn’t, there fore it must be wrong!”
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