Abby Sunderland is alive and apparently safe aboard her damaged sailboat

[Bluebear]

Source: Outdoor

Abby Sunderland, 16, is alive and apparently well, floundering in rough seas in the Indian Ocean without a mast, but safely aboard her 40-foot boat and awaiting the arrival of rescue ships.

An Australian plane with 11 trained observers found Sunderland, who on Thursday had activated two emergency distress beacons signaling an international rescue attempt, not long after daybreak Friday. Its crewmade contact with her on a marine radio channel.

The mariner from Thousand Oaks, Calif., who had been attempting to become the youngest person to have sailed around the world alone, had lost has mast and rigging after her vessel apparently rolled in heaving seas. Her position is extremely remote, more than 2,000 miles from Australia and Africa.

"I was envisioning all sorts of nightmare situations," Marianne Sunderland, Abby's mom, said when reached via phone at her family's home in Thousand Oaks, Calif.

Read more: http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/blog/17960/abby+sunderland+is+alive+and+apparently+safe+aboard+her+damaged+sailboat/

[JCMach1]

1. Confirmed by AFP

http://gulfnews.com/news/world/australia/missing-girl-sailor-found-safe-in-indian-ocean-1.639733

An American teenage solo sailor who went missing in rough Indian Ocean seas has been found safe and well with her damaged vessel, her father said on Friday.

Abby Sunderland, 16, was spotted by an Australian search plane after 0600 GMT on Friday, after she ran into trouble in a remote part of the ocean and triggered emergency beacons.

"She's fine, the boat's afloat and she's on it," Laurence Sunderland told Australia's public broadcaster ABC. "It's huge, fantastic, exciting news."...

[hlthe2b]

2. I feel very conflicted about letting these teens do these

incredibly dangerous undertakings... While it is admirable that a teen was able to climb Everest and that this teen has the skills to sail solo around the world, I don't know if this really should be encouraged....

Anyone remember the case of the 7 year old trying to pilot a plane that went down in Cheyenne, WY in 1996? Her Mom defended that decision too...
(April 11 - Cessna 177B, N35207. Jessica Dubroff, a seven-year-old pilot trainee who was attempting to become the youngest person to fly an airplane across the United States, died when her aircraft crashes after takeoff from Cheyenne Regional Airport in Cheyenne, Wyoming.)

:shrug: So, it doesn't stop with the teens...

[HALO141]

14. It's a non-issue.

It's not like the average person can afford to fund an expedition to climb Everest or sail around the world or whatever else. I do believe it's possible for a 16-year old to fully comprehend the risks involved in such undertakings. (I've met some very smart and mature 16-year olds.) Not so much a 7-year old. Maturity issues aside, a 7-year old simply isn't tall enough to competently handle an airplane solo. I know because I was flying when I was 7. I could plot and hold a course. I could even takeoff and land but I wasn't doing it alone. I had to sit on my knees to be able to see over the instrument panel so my father controlled the rudder pedals and during those operations when things could go wrong quickly (like takeoff and landing), he was ready to take control in an instant.

According to one of the articles I just read, another accomplished sailor said that she shouldn't have been in the Indian ocean this time of year. Never having planned anything like this, I don't know what compromises have to be made in terms of timing and weather patterns and so forth. Maybe they did enough research, maybe they didn't. In the end, though, it's not up to the rest of us to make these sorts of parental judgment calls.

[hlthe2b]

22. I'm not even suggesting a restriction..

Although as the ages keep dropping to be the "world's first," I might rethink that.

I'm just conflicted, that's all...

[pjt7]

3. WHO CARES?

.

[sendero]

4. I agree...

... this only encourages the idiocy.

[Darth_Kitten]

5. who cares that she's alive????

It's great that she is........it doesn't make encouraging a teen to attempt such a venture right.

Don't parents say "no" anymore?

[Steerpike]

7. Hey!

I am just impressed that she made it halfway...shit..if she can make it halfway she sure can finish the trip...I hope she can continue...good for her

in other parts of the world young girls have their face burned with acid...little boys get publically executed for treason...and the horror for young people in other countries and even this country continues...the stories of young desperate homeless americans are the stuff of horror...

it's almost refeshing to see young people pitting themselves up against tremendous odds and succeeding....or at least trying...that is the classic hero quest...

does anyone remember heroes(NOT THE TV SHOW)

[Kali]

18. beats the hell out of overplanned playdates and too much teevee

good for her and her family! (as I sit here all nervous about my boys going to the big city of Phx all by themselves this weekend! :rofl: )

[Steerpike]

25. yow!

a trip to phx! now that is dangerous...how do you sleep at night?

lol...i get nervous letting my kid ride his mongoose around the neighborhood....

[Kali]

35. and they are both past voting age!

have no qualms about letting them roam around the wilderness, they know about the dangers - snakes, bees, javelinas, sun, lightening and all that - but Phx - traffic and highways? :scared:

[dflprincess]

37. I am nearly 57

I have not lived at home since I was 18.

If my mother calls me in the evening and I haven't told her I'm going out and I don't answer she worries. Of course, she admits that now she not only worries that I was in an accident, she has now added "lying on the floor dead of a heart attack" to her list.

No matter how old your children are, moms worry. It's part of the job.

[Kali]

40. lol

the addition :rofl:

[Mz Pip]

61. I still worry about my kids

and they are 33 & 31. I don't think that ever stops. I'm terrible. If he emails me that he's home sick, I have to email him back reminding him to drink plenty of fluids. I'm sure he knows that by now, but I just have to remind him. It really does not end.

He went trekking around India a few weeks back and I was always grateful for the texts he sent regularly letting me know about his disentary and getting to buy cheap Cipro over the counter. What a relief! BTW Cipro is hella cheap in India.

My younger son trekked around Chile when he was 16. I just didn't know it. He and a friend went to Chile to visit the friend's Grandma. They did for a day. The rest of the month not so much. Hitch-hiking, eating raw sea urchins... Sometimes it's better not to know what your kids are doing.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

28. IIRC the mast is broken...its over for her in terms of completion

[Steerpike]

30. too bad

she did a great job...i was in the navy for 7 years...and i don't care how sophisticated her boat was...circumnavigating half the globe is one hell of a feat for a grown up..much less a young'un

[ProgressiveProfessor]

31. For this kind of thing 16 or 26 doesn't make much of a difference

So the age thing is not a big deal as far as I am concerned

[HuckleB]

68. You're correct.

But this is a great emotional release for some, so they have chosen to make age an issue.

[Darth_Kitten]

42. Try when you are 18......

but look at what happened to her?

[likesmountains 52]

12. I guess you do since you read the OP .

[Bluebear]

39. Ah, the milk of human kindness

[HuckleB]

67. Apparently you do, since you took the time to pay attention to it AND respond.

Hmmmmmmmmm.

[Demonaut]

6. all for it but I hope her parents cover the rescue funds

I'm sure this rescue will cost quite a bit

[drmeow]

24. That was along the lines of my thoughts

In a way this reflects the general mindset we have of privatizing the positive and socializing the negative. With the economy its privatizing the profits, socializing the risks. With stuff like this it privatizing the glory/fame and socializing the risk. If you want to be able to say "look at me - I challenged the odds and set records" when you succeed that's fine - go for it. But when things go wrong, you need to pay the costs of it going wrong.

I'm glad she's alive - but this is 100% her responsibility. That makes rescuing her 100% her responsibility as well.

I think before anyone should be allowed to do this, they should have to post a bond against the need to rescue them. If they succeed without needing to be rescued - they get the money back. If they don't, it doesn't come out of my or anyone's tax dollars.

[Demonaut]

34. bond is a great idea

should be mandatory

[Darth_Kitten]

43. Yup......

:)

[L0oniX]

8. Oh the follies of the rich class. Ask me if I care.

[architect359]

10. Awww, you really care. You really do care. Sniff.

:nopity:

[peace13]

9. So happy to hear that she has been found. As a sailor and a mom...

I have mixed feelings about these record breaking attempts. I think the minimum age at attempt should be 18. These winds were living hell and I would not want my daughter subjected to them on a vessel that is set with electric help aids that become useless without battery power. This trip to the south was a risk and this young woman has had her eyes opened wide to so much. Her book may be the best yet. To hell with the record.

Edited to add a big thank you for the crews who put their lives in danger to bring this young woman home alive.

[Dappleganger]

11. Agreed...

the Indian Ocean has some particularly nasty storms/winds, too. I'm glad she's safe.

[Tailormyst]

13. I'm glad she is safe

Maybe her parents will think things through more next time.

[Baclava]

15. I, for one, salute her spirit.

I'd say with all the technology on-board her million dollar yacht she's probably safer there than a lot of teenage girls out on a drunken Saturday night drive in their parents car.


'Can I have the keys mommy? I'll be back before daylight this time, I promise'

'Yes dear - go ahead and have fun, I remember how it was to be young'

[bowens43]

16. Her parents should be prosecuted for allowing her to do this.... nt

[HALO141]

17. great. That's some people's answer to everything. n/t

[denverbill]

41. People are charged with child endangerment for leaving their kids home alone.

Or leaving them in the car to run in to Walmart.

But it's ok to send a 16 year old girl on a solo round the world sailing trip?

Can you imagine what could happen if she fell into the hands of pirates in the Indian Ocean or near Somalia? If a boatload of sailors in a tanker can't hold them off, what chance does a 16 year old girl in a sailboat have?

To me, it's no different from letting a 16 year old try to set a record for jumping cars on a motor-cycle, ala Evil Kneival. It's a death-defying publicity stunt. The family will probably make millions from it.

I'm glad the girl is probably going to be ok, but to send your 16 year old daughter off alone in a sailboat to sail around the world is reckless endangerment in my book.

[Kali]

47. OMG!!!!1!!1

pirates! furiners! 16 year-olds home alone! where the hell is the CPS?

[droidamus2]

55. think about it

It's not like this young lady came down to breakfast one morning and announced 'gee I've never sailed before but I think I am going to try and set the age record for sailing around the world. Mom and Dad could you pick up one of the $200000 sailing boat thingies on your way home from work today'. I think a lot of people are getting down on this for a couple of reasons. One, is the whole she's doing to set a record thing. If there was no record involved and she was just sailing would everybody get as upset? Maybe not. The other problem is many of the people are showing their 'fear of the unknown'. They don't know anything about sailing (I sure don't) so they only imagine the very worst scenarios (from every pirate movie they've ever seen) and let their fear drive their reactions. This young lady obviously had the sailing skills she made it half way around the world on her own. Her age has nothing to do with running into a bad storm and her boat getting damaged any sailor of any age could have this happen. I would suspect that in sailing around the world it is probably impossible to avoid all big seas and storms so it is just part of being a sailor.

[Hansel]

56. Yes clearly we are over reacting because of our fear of the unknown.

It has nothing to do with allowing a 16-year-old girl to sail around the world solo and the high chances of running into storm that she could not successfully navigate--that she actually proved she could not navigate--and probably most couldn't.

I don't give sh*t how good she is at sailing. The girl is 16. Her parents need to learn the word "no".

Her age might not have anything to do with running a bad storm--although I believe it does--but it has everything to do with how she perceives the world. In a 16 year old's mind they are impervious to injury or death, they're immortal. But her parents certainly knew the dangers and that this could have ended up much worse. She got lucky. Very lucky.

I don't see much difference in this stunt than the creeps who pretended that their 6 year old was in a run away balloon so they could get their fame and glory. Only that those people didn't put their child in danger to do it.

This is the 15 minutes of fame syndrome that people keep pushing the envelope on. I'm not really into the "awe isn't she impressive, brave and precocious?" I'm more into "her parents suck" and that they need to grow up and act like parents.

[droidamus2]

60. so what your saying

So what your saying is she made it halfway around the world by dumb luck? I still say you see this as something uber scary and you can't acknowledge that maybe other people even at the age of 16 aren't as limited in their vision as you are. I really doubt that this young woman didn't know the dangers she was putting herself in. Since her family has sailed her whole life I would be very surprised if she has not had the dangers of the ocean beat into her head from a very young age. Not everybody is a publicity hound. Did they seek out the media or did the media hear about and run with it. We should be teaching our young people to reach for the stars (yes and that can mean taking chances) and not cower in the corner. Your supposition seems to be that her parents 'just let her do it', since the are experienced sailors themselves I'm sure they had her trained and talked over the trip many times before it actually happened. Obviously you and I just don't see the world in the same way (by the way I would never have the guts to try something like that even now and I'm 55).

[Kali]

19. yeah she should be out at the mall with her friends

or locked in her room watching teevee

:wtf:

[treestar]

44. Why not? Hanging at the mall with friends is normal

and does not get you killed.

[Kali]

46. eh, normal is overrated

and I suspect the per capita death toll of teens in car accidents is way higher than sailing accidents, not that this person is even in that category

prosecuting parents for allowing/encouraging kids with exceptional skills and motivations seems counterproductive and just plain stupid, if you ask me

there are plenty of average "normal" people

[Hansel]

57. Or doing something in between that and sailing around the world solo. nt

[ProgressiveProfessor]

32. From a sailing perspective there is little difference between 16 and 26

She has lived on a boat and been sailing for years.

Presuming she is not a Lindsey Lohan style flake, she is as prepared as she needed to be. Waiting until she was 18 would have been little more than a legal nicety.

[wordpix]

64. no, between 16 and 26 there's 10 years of experience & maturity--plus, she's an adult at 26

would her parents let her go drive drunk, too, if she wanted to?

[joe black]

20. Glad to hear it.

Worried about her last night. Can't really take anymore bad news these days.

[superconnected]

21. Well that's nice, now can she quit causing WORLD concern for her safety?

I mean her boat is damaged and she sent out a beacon for help - proving that, no, she can't make it around the world on her own.

"after her vessel apparently rolled in heaving seas".

Great. She lost control of her vessel. It's a wonder she's alive. Send her parents a BIG bill for the rescue and send her home. All she proved was what a bad idea this was.

[superconnected]

23. Here we go -

"Marianne and Laurence Sunderland, and six other children, had remained in their home, refusing to talk to reporters, until they had learned the fate of their daughter."

Her parents - Marianne and Laurence Sunderland, are children. No wonder they supported this.

[Occulus]

26. Exactly! It's not like their daughter was missing on the high seas or anything... n/t

[superconnected]

27. Something tells me they're going to fix her boat and send her right back out there.

[JSK]

29. They're also Fundies

They trusted that the Lord was going to protect her.

[Withywindle]

38. Well, she did what she was supposed to do.

Hundreds, probably thousands of adult sailors run into trouble and call for help every year. Doesn't prove anything except that the ocean is dangerous and shit happens. That's why rescue organizations exist--because it's not that uncommon for them to be needed.

It doesn't even prove that 16-year-olds can't do it. Less than a month ago, 16-year-old Jessica Watson of Australia completed her journey just fine: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jessica_Watson

(She's a few months older than Sunderland, which is the only reason Sunderland would be the youngest if she'd succeeded).

I understand the worry - I just don't get the resentment. I admire young people who accomplish extraordinary things (or at least try). Beats sitting home playing video games all day. :shrug:

[wordpix]

33. "envisioning all sorts of nightmare situations"---the mom didn't "envision" earlier?

Sorry but it's just plain wrong to let your 16 y.o. go on a voyage like this.

[cbayer]

36. Cheers and hugs for Abby!

Courageous and inspirational. Those who dismiss her and her family as attention seeking, entitled rich people could not be more wrong.

But that won't change anyone's mind - better to judge the situation without really knowing anything about the facts of how and why Abby chose to do this.

I hope she is able to try again, and soon.

:toast: to Abby!

[rockymountaindem]

45. Why the hell are people around here so bitter?

It's the life of a young person we're talking about. Where's the compassion?

[Kali]

48. they are all sitting at home bitching on their computers

I think it is jealous projection, just like the anti-gay marriage wing nuts and anybody who whines too loud when somebody else either tries or accomplishes something extraordinary, or just has fun.

[kestrel91316]

49. Of course the mom wasn't too concerned about letting her daughter

risk her life on this little jaunt: like Michelle Duggar, she pops out little replacements with considerable regularity. She and hubby are good fundies.

If the daughter had died, they would have just said it was Gawd's will and gone on their merry way.......probably would have another kid in the daughter's honor.

[No Elephants]

50. So, will her parents be paying all costs associated with this?

[fascisthunter]

51. the parents were idiots for allowing her to do this

I have spoken with many who know about sailing... the kid is way out of their league. Dumb sensationalistic crap....

glad she safe though

[cbayer]

52. A note from Abby to all you arm chair sailors who probably never have or never

will do anything as inspirational and courageous as this incredible young woman (who, by the way, is from a wonderful family, not born of privilege and worked for years to do this):

A NOTE FROM ABBY
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Hey everyone,

Sorry I haven't written in so long as you probably already know I had a pretty rough couple of days. I can't write much now as I am typing on a french key pad as well as trying to stay seated in a bouncy fishing boat.

The long and the short of it is, well, one long wave, and one short mast (short meaning two inch stub.) I'll write a more detailed blog later, just wanted to let every one know I am safe and sound on a great big fishing boat headed I am not exactly sure where.

Crazy is the word that really describes everything that has happened best.

Within a few minutes of being on board the fishing boat, I was already getting calls from the press. I don't know how they got the number but it seems everybody is eager to pounce on my story now that something bad has happened.

There are plenty of things people can think of to blame for my situation; my age, the time of year and many more. The truth is, I was in a storm and you don't sail through the Indian Ocean without getting in at least one storm. It wasn't the time of year it was just a Southern Ocean storm. Storms are part of the deal when you set out to sail around the world.

As for age, since when does age create gigantic waves and storms?

I keep hitting the wrong keys and am still trying to get over the fact that I will never see my Wild Eyes again. So Ill write more later.

Abby


http://abbysunderland.com/

[truthisfreedom]

53. Go Abby!

I'm 100% behind her effort.

[hayu_lol]

54. When she had the malfunction stop in Capetown...

that got her behind schedule(season)...so some heavy storms. She had two choices at Capetown. One was to attempt a westward passage in the 'roaring 40s' at Cape Horn into the Pacific(difficult to impossible at this time of year)...through the Panama Canal to the Pacific or return home via the route she was on. The better route was the one she chose.

Had she been at the point where she lost her mast a couple of weeks ago, she probably would have been ok. Had she been 400 miles further south, she could have put in at Reunion, Mauritius, or the other few islands in that area. She could have opted to return to Madagascar(she was about 400 miles east at the time)or the Seychelles a bit further north. Couple of weeks earlier on this route, she would have been in the vicinity of Australia. None of these options was a good as attempting to head for the Pacific and home the way she chose. About a month ago, a member of the British nobility and his family lost their 55' sailboat down closer to Antartica...the famiy was saved by personnel based down there(hit an iceberg).

Abby made good decisions and took what action was necessary. Luck always plays a part and this time it wasn't good. In her blog she said that she only had a two inch stub of mast left...this was a carbon-fiber hi tech mast.

It was the two delays for repairs that put her in this position. For someone living on Madagascar or the Seychelles, a very high-tech boat is just floating around waiting to be salvaged. Lots of very expensive gear on board so worth the risk to go look for it.

We never would have populated this nation if 16 year olds had not chosen to move west(and younger).

[Hansel]

58. Sorry, I remain unimpressed. Her parents were wrong to let her do this.

It could have ended much worse and she seems oblivious to that fact. Pretty much like most 16 year olds who believe they are immortal. "As for age, since when does age create gigantic waves and storms?" is a strange comment. It just sounds naive.

She also seems a little bitter that it took this incident to get the presses' attention. "I don't know how they got the number but it seems everybody is eager to pounce on my story now that something bad has happened."

[depakid]

63. "There are plenty of things people can think of to blame for my situation.."

Yep- there are indeed, and a mature and intelligent person would do well to listen to and learn from them:

One commentator on the Los Angeles Times website summed up the view of many: "Abby Sunderland was on the wrong type of boat (a racing yacht) in the wrong location (the southern Indian Ocean) at the wrong time of year (winter in the southern hemisphere). Other than those minor details it was a well-planned voyage."

The trip resumed on May 21. Abby's course sent her deep into the Southern Ocean's Roaring Forties. At the time of her distress signals, her position was estimated at 42 degrees south. It was this that Los Angeles meteorologist Mark Michelson found most troubling. He described the route chosen for the teenager as ''outrageous''.

''It's bad enough in the summer, December and January,'' Mr Michelson said. ''It can be pretty challenging then. But 10 days before winter? In the peak of the season? I was perplexed. ''It's a shorter ride, but faster is a relative term when you've rolled the boat four times and your rigging is in the water. I'm dismayed that they gave her a course this far south. That's just asking for it at this time of the year.''

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/teen-sailor-found-and-rescuers-on-way-20100611-y3og.html

Reflecting that- Ian Kiernan, an Australian sailor who has circumnavigated the globe, said her voyage had not been planned properly and that she had been "foolhardy" to enter the Indian Ocean during winter when weather conditions could deteriorate swiftly and present a mortal danger.

Marty Still, an Australian who built the boat used by teenage sailor Jessica Watson to successfully sail round the world earlier this year, said that Abby's team had chosen the wrong type of craft for the perilous crossing. He said that her boat had been built for speed, not safety, and would be extremely difficult for one person to sail.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/australia/7820621/Sailing-experts-criticise-Abby-Sunderlands-circumnavigation-attempt.html

Another critic (this with respect to age and experience) is Derrick Fries, a world sailing champion and author of the standard instruction manual Learn to Sail. He said that while he did not doubt Abby's abilities as a sailor, she could not possibly have gained enough experience to prepare for every possible emergency. "Never would I allow my 16-year-old son to even attempt it," he said. "It's almost a death sentence."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/13/abby-sunderland-lone-sailor-rescued

[HuckleB]

66. Goodness. The 16-year-old is wiser than the keyboard commandos of fear.

Who would have thought that?

[rvablue]

69. What's a "french key pad?" Last time I checked the French alphabet consisted of the same 26 letters

that are in the English language?

[Nihil]

71. Check again and you will find that they use a different layout on their keyboards. (n/t)

:hi:

[mokawanis]

59. Anything on her blog about the cost of rescue?

When I read that her parents covered the costs of plunking her out of the ocean than I will stop being critical of this foolishness.

[Kali]

62. I'm sure you wouldn't even notice your portion even if it came out of your taxes.

:eyes:

[mokawanis]

65. That would be true of many things I'm opposed to

but I'm still against them on principle. It took considerable trouble and expense to rescue her. Let mom and dad foot the bill.

[citizen snips]

70. Good hopefully she can pay the $300,000 resuce tab for her mis-adventure

http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/blog/18016/stormy+seas+take+on+new+meaning+in+abby+sunderland+saga/

[Evasporque]

72. Any sailor can be dismasted in heavy seas...

Having a 60 plus wave break on a 40 footer...there is no sailing skill that can predict a outcome...it will most likly roll.

Having only lost her mast is a testament to her skill.

When a boat is dismasted....there are cables that need to be cut with heavy bolt cutters, if any of the mast is left dangling it could hole the hull and cause major shit.

So the first rule in dismasting is get the wrecked rig under control lash down what you can and over board with the rest.

After you have established that the boat is safe from sinking then make a plan...you can either jury rig a rig, if you have an auxilary you can try to get it running...but chances are you have three feet of seawater in the cabin that needs to be removed first. If the weather is building or continuing it will be a long nightmare...

I am glad she is alive...sometimes no trace is found but for maybe some floating wreckage...

[HooptieWagon]

73. There's far greater likelyhood of heavy seas during winter.

Anybody can be hit by lightning, but Abby was standing in the middle of the fairway holding a 1-iron aloft.