Hey Tom,

...to make it into Cape Town... His second attempt has been aborted, as well:

"Once again my attempt to complete a solo circumnavigation has come to an end. On Xmas Eve the top quarter of the mail sail separated along a seam from the rest of the sail. This is not repairable by me at sea and given the gales I can expect before I round the tip of South Africa it is once again not advisable to continue. This is of course is a big disappointment to me and too many who have wished me well. But that is life. I have never let difficulties get in my way of trying something worthwhile. I am always aware that failure can occur but I have never let the fear of failure deter or prevent me from trying. To do so would be to accept mediocrity and that I will never do.

To all who wished me well, family, friends, colleagues and school children I am sorry to disappoint you yet once again and wish you all well in following your dreams.

Now I head for Cape Town, South Africa where once again repairs will be undertaken and later a crew will bring Kiwi Spirit, such a wonderful boat, back to the United States.

I am 680 miles from Cape Town and expect to be there in about five days going quite slow to conserve a limited fuel supply.

Kindest regards and best wishes for the holiday season."

http://stanleyparis.com/?p=1767

I've gotta say, I don't understand this guy at all... He's spent millions building The Ultimate Globe Girdler, and now that THE RECORD is out of reach, he won't even bother to sail the damn thing home himself?

This stunt was never about the Sailing, it seems to me... (grin)

I'll bet North Sails is regretting having gotten involved with this project, bigtime...

best regards,

Jon