Actually, that was the entire reason she needed that done. She had so much electronic gear that she was dependant upon, that the systems on the boat couldn't keep up with the power demands.
That is an epic understatement.
The autopilots were a major blunder. They did not belong on this boat for this voyage. That was perhaps the primary reason her charging system failed. For long passage making, autopilots are an absurd choice. She should have had a proper windvane system. That would have also given her redundant steering if the rudder failed.
Chances are excellent that the knockdowns including the one that dismasted her were helped along by the autopilot as well.
I have no idea whether she knows how to do celestial navigation. It's not really all that hard though. Tania Aebi figured it out as she went, and she started with an almighty lot less experience than Abby Sunderland.
Call me cynical, but I don't think this girl would have a clue how to even begin to do the first or have any idea how to sail w/o the electronics to tell here where land might even be...
And, just to make it clear, no, this old wheat farmer wouldn't have a clue, either, and ain't clamin' would've made it as far as she did, even (but then again, woulda' known better as well).
I just don't think she's ever sailed enough w/o all the modern appurtenances to have a even a ghost of a chance w/o 'em if more than a short distance away from shore what more w/ in a disabled boat...
That's true I don't know her -- what I do know is that she's only 16, not a seasoned sailor w/ 20 years' experience behind her to draw on from which to improvise. I also know she ignored advice to reschedule departure to avoid being where she was this time of year which is notoriously bad weather period for the area.
Doesn't take 20 years experience, it takes a modicum of mechanical aptitude. And supposedly she has done a good deal of singlehanded ocean sailing prior to this, so she's more "seasoned" than many.
Which reflects on her judgment but not on her ability to tie ropes and cloth to a stick of wood (or aluminum or carbon fiber or unobtainium or whatever else the pieces she has dragging in the water alongside the boat are made of).
----------------------------------------- It is obvious that the "Brain Trust" for this attempt had a strong influence from the "Go Fast", hitech racing crowd.
(Carbon spar, water ballast, etc)
It is also obvious they really didn't understand 12VDCV power systems on an extended voyage sail boat.
IMHO, the decision to use an electronic/electro/hydraulic auto pilot rather than a servo wind vane doomed this project before it ever left the dock.
To keep weight to a minimum, the house bank battery was much to small for the task.
As a result, the recharge rate was less than optimum.
The alternator chosen required a 2 gang set of matched belts to drive it; however, the 18 HP, Yanmar diesel is fitted with only a single groove sheave.
As a result, the alternator "Ate" belts.
(This maybe what Abby's "Engine Trouble" was all about since the
18 HP Yanmar is usually fairly reliable.)
The basic design parameter of a sailboat electrical system is that the house bank must carry the load while cycling between 60% and 90% of capacity.
Some simple rules of wet cell batteries.
For every 100AH consumed, you must replace with 125AH
The sustained average recharge rate of a battery is about 15%.
If you want to recharge at a 60A rate you need 400AH of batteries.
They stopped in Cabo and added some house battery capacity but didn't have a 2 gang sheave machined and installed to solve the belt drive problem.
Machinery and electronics are great things, but on a small sailboat trying to do a non stop around the world passage, electrical and machine devices will bite you in the ass.
At least that was my experience sailing a 30ft boat on the Great Lakes.
Had many machinery malfunctions but never had a piece of line (rope) fail.
Sailing and simplicity go together.
Machinery on a sail boat is a disaster waiting to happen, IMHO.
And that includes things such as the olympics. I've seen more than one child's childhood ruined by spending her every free moment training for gymnastics.
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