"Seems to me her timing was a bit off. This is fairly typical weather for that part of the world this time of year."

She's going around the world, above and below the equator where seasons are reversed. Exactly what time of year could she make the trip without getting involved in local weather problems???

How many of you have given your 16-yr-old a car, based on very little experience? What you've done is hoped that they would DEVELOP some experience, mostly at other people's expense.

If Abby can produce a book out of this, she may be able to pay for her college education without a loan. Reason enough to make the trip, IMO.

"Her father Laurence Sunderland, a boat builder who teaches sailing, said his daughter had thousands of miles of solo sailing experience before she set out and he had scrutinised her skills.

He said: "This was not a flippant decision. Abigail's been raised on the ocean all her life. She's lived over half her life on yachts. This is like second nature to Abigail."

He said the team of experts that worked on Wild Eyes and the circumnavigation project were "second to none."
She will try again

Sue