US teen has charging issues
Abby Sunderland, the American teenager hoping to become the youngest person to sail solo around the world, non-stop, has had to make a pitstop in Cabo san Lucas, after she left California last week.
In her blog, Abby explains what happened. ‘since I’m still north of the equator I won’t have to give up on the non-stop attempt. I will be re-staring from Cabo as soon as I can. We have all been discussing this for awhile now. I’ve spent the last week talking with my team, testing things and doing whatever I could to make this work. The fact is I am just not able to generate enough power with my solar panels and wind generators to keep up with all of my energy needs. We didn’t budget enough fuel for me to run my two alternators as often as I have been needing to so….A new battery or two and more fuel will be put on board in Cabo. Also, the trouble with the wind speed gauge seems to be in the wiring in the mast. I have tested everything else so that needs to be fixed as well.’
Meanwhile, Australian 16-year old Jessica Watson has around 2,000 miles to go to the Cape of Good Hope, and is over halfway through her circumnavigation. Keep up with her progress here