SailBlog

Good morning everyone,

Donna is okay this morning. I had a long chat with her last evening and she sends her thanks to everyone for the thoughts and prayers.

Her current position is: 45.22 S, 93.00 W. That puts her many miles off of the coast of Chile, but heading in the direction she wants to sail, namely north. The seas are still big, but settling down some and the SW winds are pushing her along nicely. Donna was hoping for winds from a constant direction so she could set the pole and go below for some much, much needed rest.

The mood aboard II was somber as Donna began to reflect upon the last few days. It is so hard not to play the, "if only I had....." game, as in, "If only I had stowed the computer," "stowed the texting phone," "sat on deck and hand steered," "went north earlier," "went south earlier," etc. It is my task to listen and learn from her. My words of explanation and encouragement are heard, but sometimes lost in the moment.

Donna has always struggled with the "details" in her life and considers herself unable to properly look after them, sometimes to her peril. Maybe people who dream big dreams, like sailing around the world in a small boat, prioritize the details differently. That is what I love about Donna, she sees things differently than I do. It is a gift and it is one of the most endearing qualities of her personality. Those of you who know Donna personally know exactly what I mean.

INSPIRED INSANITY is "not out of the woods" just yet. I confirmed with Donna that the wind generator was, in fact, damaged in the successive knock downs. (Sorry, Scott).One of the three blades has broken off. The solar panel control box, stowed inside, was flooded as well and has now stopped producing power. That box is essential as it regulates and boosts the voltage going to the batteries. There is hope that she can "reboot" the controller today, as she has done in the past and get power flowing to the batteries again. The SSB radio and tracking devices will have to be used sparingly until charging capabilities are restored.

Finally, Donna confirmed that she took a blow to her face during the second knockdown. She is bruised, but okay. Someday, we will get to see the pictures of that. The totality of the damage to INSPIRED INSANITY and Donna, personally, speaks volumes of the enormity and violence of the knockdowns. We are all thankful it was not worse.

Prior to her departure, we packed and stowed II's original wind generator. It is aboard and should function properly once installed in place of the KISS generator. Swapping the generators is a significant task for Donna, alone on a moving deck. It is heavy and must be placed on it's pole high above the cockpit. She will wait for calmer sea conditions to begin this task. More on this when she is up to it.

Donna spoke directly to Bob McD in New Zealand for updated weather information. Thank you, Bob. She is moving into better weather and sea conditions will improve once she gets above 44 degrees north. She is at 45.2 this morning.

On a lighter note, we are investigating plans for Panama. Thank you, Joan, Mike and the SSCA members involved. What I once thought was impossible is, I am learning, in fact, possible and in all likelihood, probable in the future. Yahoo! The adventure will continue.

INSPIRED INSANITY has everything it needs to sail on to Panama. The communication equipment is wonderful, but not necessary to keep the boat sailing. Donna knows and appreciates this. There are no worries there. She is actually looking forward to the long stretch of calmer ocean without interuptions, where she can focus her energy on the original purpose of the trip.

Finally, yesterday, I received a wonderful email from Donna's close friend and accomplished ocean solo-sailor, Moe Roddy. I read it to Donna until we both were lost in our emotions. It captured Donna's sailing accomplishments during this trip perfectly. Thank you, Moe. It also included this quote from Soren Kierkegaard, "Life can only be understood looking backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Donna's voyage was intended to be an opportunity to understand her life. She is truly living her life forward from here on.

Thanks everyone,

Bob