Nonstop Solo Circumnavigation from Long Beach, CA

[Ross]

I was concerned when he said that he was

neglecting his housekeeping chores and trying the ignore the noise of his sails.My boat is nearly silent when she is under sail.He never mentioned how the boat behaved when he needed to heave-to. He has been sailing in gales but didn't mention how much he needed to reef main and jib. There is no mention of storm sails.He went to sleep knowing there was a storm in his path but apparently was sailing full and by when he was awakened and had to climb the mast to clear a fouled line.I feel that he had a dream but didn't prepare for it.

 

[Teryn Barnes]

Have any of you sailed around the world?

...Until you do dont make assumptions that Ken Barnes was not prepared for his journey. It's a big ocean and a lot of things can happen out there. And do NOT insist that he was "selfish" for leaving his family. What would be selfish would be his children (including myself) telling him not to fufill his life long dream. I hope you wish him luck and keep him in your prayers

 

[Moody Buccaneer]

Give us a break ...

The very fact that over 250 sailors have circumnavigated and Ken didn't make it past the first cape is prima facia evidence that he was not prepared.I have been hoping for your father's safe recovery as soon as I heard that he was in trouble.It is impossible for you not to react to some of the comments that have been made here. Speaking only for myself, my comments are based on what is presented on the website and my experience talking to people that have circumnavigated. I had concerns about the boat and the preparation from the start.I honestly do not know any ocean sailor that would write the things we've read on the website. They are not consistent with the actions and attitudes of successful sailors.I sincerely hope Ken is fine. I also sincerely hope he will have your support if he chooses to make another attempt in the future. Once the current events are behind him, I hope he will be able to see what errors were made and avoid repeating them the next time.Randy

 

[Ross]

Miss Barnes, I have copied and pasted this

from another post, but it fits here as well.RossReply #6  I have mentioed in other posts about Ken Barnes That I thought he was missing several key ingredients that make a successful adventurer. First and foremost I didn't see any sign of grim determination. What I saw was cock-eyed optimism. He confessed that he didn't, couldn't and wouldn't cook. That speaks of some perceived division of labor within a group. When you are alone you are the entire group.He never made any mention of sea-trials for his bost, no shake down cruise, and no mention of storm tactics.I have a boat that is ocean capable but I am not at this time of my life going to set sail for the east coast of the Atlantic Ocean alone. I like people too much and it is fun to call to someone to look at the sunrise or the sunset.I hope Ken is rescued.I hope that he learns from this experience. His boat has TWO masts. There is no mention of any effort to continue with a jury rig. Many boats have been dismasted, jury rigged a sail and continued to a safe harbor for repairs.He lost his steering. Auto pilot or a disconnect between the wheel and the rudder? Did he loose the rudder? We just don't know because he called for help and has made no report of attempts at damage control or repair. I wonder if he would have considered this venture if rescue WASN'T "just a phone call away".Accidents and just plain bad luck always play a role but the effects of them can be mitigated with good planning, skills, and experience. You can say that the only way to experience sailing around the world is by doing it but we routinely sail around a little bit of it everytime we go out in our boats. Leave early one morning and sail out to sea until midnight and then sail back. You will get 36 hours of off shore experience without going anywhere When you have done that 61 times you will have 3 months of off shore experience. But if you should find that you don't have what it will take for such an effort then take a companion with you

 

[Elliott]

Try not to worry, he will be fine

Keep your head up, anyone who has really been out there knows "stuff" happens. The fact that he will be rescued soon, alive and well is proof he was prepared. Ignore the armchair sailors. Any sailor worth crap feels for you and is pulling for him all the way, critiques of style and prep can wait till he shows up for a pint in his favorite pub.My best to you and your family. He WILL be fine.Elliott

 

[dry boots drew]

Randy, YOU give US a break

I think you're in over your head with the Latin and the logic for that matter. Prima Facia is spelled "Prima Facie". Prima Facie is akin to our contemporary phrase, "at first glance" yet you use the phrase to stake claim to some perceived undeniable truth. People who have researched their position to the point of conviction usually do so with more than a first glance. "250 have made it 'round while Ken didn't make the first cape" is your rational. The logic here is entirely unsound. What it ignores is how many others have not made first cape... we have not even heard their stories. There have probably been thousands. Prima Facie, Ken is doing pretty well. In all the thousands of years of sail craft and sailors, you can only quote 250 having made it... Hell, the best sailors on the world's greatest sailing vessels have throughout history failed to make this cape or the other dreaded cape. The best prepared mariners in the world can't even get the most sophisticated craft out of port in a squall without loss of life (USS Minneapolis-St. Paul, 29 Dec 2006). No, your logic is twisted around on itself. That Ken even arrived at the cape puts him in a select group and sets him apart from armchair and inland sailors alike. Anything can happen out there and NO ONE PERSON is prepared for it all. Ken may have been unlucky, Ken's preparation may have lacked this or that, Ken may have ignored things he shouldn't have, but Ken is out there risking it all while hundreds of thousands of nay sayers sit cozy at home. If you are going to construct arguments against him, at least make them logical. My thoughts and prayers are with him and all sailors who take to water.

 

[Elliott]

RE: Randy, YOU give US a break

EXTREMELY well said. Thank you for taking the time to write that response.Elliott

 

[Tom]

Hoping all is well

Miss Barnes, I too join all the well wishes for your father's family. Please ignore any callous comments here. Most everyone is simply hoping for your father's safe return.Hopes are high. His ship still is afloat. weather while not good, is holding well enough for him to be safe. The boat while having what I heard is a damaged hatch, is still essentially watertight. I'm sure your father has jury rigged it so that it is now a coccoon full of air, that will stay afloat in even rough seas. And soon, rescuers should reach him.People all around the world are praying for your dad. He will be safe.As for Randy the Moody Buccaneer... PLEASE LEAVE THIS YOUNG LADY ALONE. I've seen alot of horrible rude comments on the web. But talking trash about a young lady's father IN FRONT OF HER, while she is so worried about his safety, all alone on the other side of the world,..well...that is a new low.

 

[NautiDuck]

Moody is right

Hey, this is a forum where people get to express their views. Everybody hopes that this fellow gets saved. Nobody wants him hurt or worse. We all feel for the family.Many of us also feel that he was ill prepared. We get to express our views here. This is so similar to the fellows who were lost on Mt Hood. Dreams are great. Living dangerous dreams without adequate preparation is not wise.

 

[Chuck]

Rate of drift??

I am just curious how much and what direction Ken is drifting between these EPIRB positions:Jan 02, 2007 5:00 PM PST Lat 54.55.06 Long 86.17.00 Jan 03, 2007 7:00 AM PST Lat 54.45 Long 86.11Jan 03, 2007 12:45 PM PST Lat 54.44.025 Long 86.09.05Jan 03, 2007 11:00PM PST Lat 54.51.4 Long 86.05.4 Jan 04, 2007 06:06 AM PST Lat 54.39.6 Long 86.02.6 How much distance and direction between each reading? I guess it would be too much to expect to see a plot of some kind.

 

[Dave5031]

Miss Barnes

I trust that all here hope and pray for your Father's safe return and rescue. Perhaps we should wait until that has occured before we excercise our right of analyzing what may have happened. Until then please know our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family and for Ken's safe return.Dave

 

[dry boots drew]

Rate of Drift

Chuck,I have used the following on-line lat-long distance calculator in the past. Simply plug in the coordinates (refer to syntax rules listed on web page) and select units (statute/nautical miles) for the desired output. There are probably others out there more resourceful than I who could provide you an internet site with a long-lat graphic plotter... I think I just defined the task at hand for my next half hour or so.http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~cvm/latlongdist.htmlRegards,dry boots Drew

 

[Chuck]

More on drift

The folowing quotation is from an Associated Press story. Could P-3 planes really be hovering over trying to keep the boat in sight? And why would the family be passing on drift updates to Chilean authorities? I am noticing that coverage from different news organizations is quite inconsistent on many facts."Maritime officials had been tracking the drift of Barnes' boat using his distress beacon. Concerned the signal was getting weaker and might lose power, officials asked the family to tell Barnes to shut off the beacon until three hours before the fishing trawler was set to arrive in the area.Two Chilean P-3 airplanes were hovering over the boat to keep it in sight, said Ron Vangell, a family friend, during a press conference outside Barnes' Newport Beach condominium."We're getting constant updates as to his drift and where he is, and we're transmitting that to the Chilean government, and they're using the P-3s to keep track of him," Vangell said. "I hope that he's getting some sleep because I'm certain this has been very taxing for him.""

 

[Chuck]

Drift distances

dry boots Drew,I used the link you provided. Here's the drift distances I get:Jan 02, 2007 5:00 PM PST ---> Lat 54.55.06 Long 86.17.00--> Starting positionJan 03, 2007 7:00 AM PST ---> Lat 54.45 Long 86.11--------> 10.6 nm in 14 hoursJan 03, 2007 12:45 PM PST --> Lat 54.44.025 Long 86.09.05-> 1.5nm in 6 hrsJan 03, 2007 11:00PM PST ---> Lat 54.51.4 Long 86.05.4----> 7.7nm in 10 hrsJan 04, 2007 06:06 AM PST --> Lat 54.39.6 Long 86.02.6----> 11.9nm in 7 hrsJust using the startin position and ending position, they have drifted 17.6nm in 37 hrs. So what's screwy here? I have tried to double check my numbers. Will drift be pretty random like this based on winds and currents or should there be more of a pattern?Chuck

 

[Moody Buccaneer]

Pardon me

for my poor spelling and misuse of Latin.I invite you sit down for few hours and talk to someone that has crossed oceans or circumnavigated. If after that conversation, you read Ken's logs and come away with the opinion that he had prepared both his boat and himself to have a good chance at realizing his dreams, come back and rant at me.My opinion was formed long before Ken ran into trouble.For a counterpoint: http://www.donnalange.com/

 

[Mark]

Some thoughts from an old salt

Many, many years ago as a young man, I learned first hand about "the sea". I was the navigator on a large Pacific Fleet US Navy replenishment ship. For four years afterwards I was an instructor at Surface Warfare Officers School and taught navigation, seamanship and ship handling to young officers. During our cold war deployments, while we did not circumnavigate the globe, we went about two thirds of the way around (in a very round about manner) and then back again. With the utmost regard for those who seek the solitude and challenge of solo voyaging -- I must interject that lengthy open ocean transits are no place whatsoever for amateurs - I have seen the power of the seas, believe me --- and this is from the water drenched bridge of a 40,000 ton vessel being tossed around like a piece of driftwood. During my tenure on the ship we rescued two groups of "adventurers" - in one instance at great personal risk to some of our crewmembers. Before becoming an officer of the deck and navigator I had a great deal of formal schooling and thousands of hours of experience -- I was tested, restested and certified. I wish Ken the best of luck and hope for his safe recovery and return, but I truly hope his experience imparts a lesson to those who may be similarly inclined.

 

[jackhartjr]

This came in a little bit ago, they got him!

Chilean trawler rescues U.S. sailorAssociated PressSANTIAGO, Chile - An American sailor was rescued early Friday after three days adrift on a disabled yacht off the southern tip of South America, the Chilean navy said.Ken Barnes, 47, was picked up shortly before 6 a.m. EST by the Chilean trawler Polar Pesca 1, the navy's Operations Department reported in Punta Arenas, 3,200 miles south of the capital Santiago.An officer who asked not to be identified in line with the department's rules said by telephone that Barnes was in good general condition except for a small wound in his right thigh.Barnes left Long Beach, Calif., on Oct. 28, hoping to be the first solo sailor from the West Coast to circumnavigate the globe. He hit a fierce storm about a week ago that broke both the vessel's masts and its hatches, disabled the steering and soaked Barnes' supplies and food.The U.S. Coast Guard and Chilean maritime officials picked up signals from his distress beacon Tuesday afternoon, just minutes after Barnes called his girlfriend on his satellite phone to report he was in trouble.A Chilean navy search plane spotted Barnes around 5 p.m. Wednesday and dropped a life raft that missed the boat, said Barnes' longtime girlfriend, Cathy Chambers.Jack Hart

 

[sailormom]

Handling mainsail...?

First off, I'm glad they rescued Ken and all is well. I have never been more than 35 miles offshore and no longer than two days at a time, so I can only imagine what it's like to be 500 miles offshore and facing the weather that he did.Having said that, my husband and I did go back and read his blog. One of his actions that stood out in our minds is taking down the main while running *downwind* in a gale, something he purposefully set his autopilot to do rather than being in a boat out of control and then having no option. He went on to say that the top batten broke and a couple of other parts of the rigging. Wouldn't one normally turn the boat into the wind? Or is there something different about gale-force winds...? There's no way we could have gotten our main down under those circumstances if we were turned downwind.We're honestly not trying to put him down - we're glad he's rescued and bad luck can happen to any of us out there - conditions can deteriorate very quickly out there. Just curious about the mainsail question - shouldn't one always point the boat into the wind to get down the main?Thanks!

 

[Alex]

Reefing

I agree with Sailormom that his blog sounded a bit strange. Wouldn't you turn into the wind to take down the main or at least reef down in very strong wind condition. Put out a sea anchor and wait. Was he in a rush? Flying any sail bigger than a hankerchief in a gale is crazy.Furthermore, it appears the CG drop him a life raft. Unless he didn't have one (foolish), or washed overboard (poorly secured), or launch and detached (bad decision). In any case the boat seems to be floating and in good shape. Lucky for him to have stayed with the boat.It's too early to pass judgement. Only he can answer those questions.The 14 years old ocean crossing teen faired a lot better.

 

[dry boots drew]

no Pardon required, Moody

Hey Moody, I don't spell any better than you, trust me. It may disappoint you, but the truth is I'm not interested in rants, quite the opposite actually. I am interested in the opinions of experienced men where those opinions can be substantiated somewhat. I only intended to point out the flawed logic of your post. I'm sure you know a great deal more than I do about Ken and his experience. What you failed to do is convince me that your opinion is based on fact or sound logic. If you could support your opinion on other than flawed logic and irrelevant statistical inferences, then I'd be sincerely interested to hear your new basis. I am only saying that opinions served up with facts, data and logic are far more compelling. Please don't be offended that I did not buy your argument. And above all, don't misunderstand... it is not your opinion that is suspect here, it is the argument you used to try to validate it. Moody, you may very well be right, you just haven't offered a compelling argument supporting such. I feel that it is important, especially when being critical of someone who is not currently in a position to respond to such criticism.