Zac Sunderland
With $6000, all of his savings, he bought a 36' Islander and with the assistance of his shipwright father retrofitted it for the circumnavigation trip.
On June 14, 2008 Sunderland, of Thousand Oaks, California, set sail from Marina Del Rey in his 36-foot long sailboat "Intrepid" to circumnavigate the globe. Inspired by Robin Lee Graham's "Dove" (1974), the teenager planned to complete his solo voyage and return to California in April of 2009, however delays in his journey have pushed his return date back to July.
The intent is to cross the Pacific to his first port of call, the Marshall Islands, then head west to Papua New Guinea, then Australia, the Indian Ocean, Mauritius and Madagascar, rounding the Cape of Good Hope, sailing across the Atlantic and finally, transiting the Panama Canal / Galapagos Islands back to the Pacific and home.
If successfully, Ventura, California native Sunderland, will be the youngest American sailor since 1965 to complete a solo global circumnavigation (In the late 1960s 16 year-old Robin Lee Graham left Los Angeles, California but did not complete the voyage until 1970, at the age of 20). With over 15,000 sea hours record, Zac desired to emulate his other hero and friend, Aussie Jesse Martin, who completed his own circumnavigation at age 18.
Zac has planned a maximum of 18 months for this voyage, and he will study on board to finish high school education during the 40,000 miles journey.
David Dicks, on the other hand, sailed in February, 1996, at the age of 17, from Fremantle, Western Australia and allegedly finished the circumnavigation in 9 months, finishing his voyage in 1996, aged 18 years and 41 days. For Zac to return as the youngest person ever to circumnavigate, he must complete his trip by January 2010.
Sunderland, who packed 4 weeks of fresh, canned, and freeze-dried food as supplies for the first leg of his voyage said, "I have all my books with me. I have one more year to finish at high school and I have to send back my tests (via e-mail) to my mum.
She's going to grade them and make sure I am doing well." He would like to write a book and record videos or documentary on his 40,000 miles voyage one his trip is completed.
The oldest of Marianne and Laurence Sunderland's 7 children, Zac is a lifelong sailor whose first home was a 17-metre Tradewind sailboat. Sunderland and his family had sailing adventures in Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Mexico.
His father bought a 51' Aleutian, and their family made a 3 year cruise of the Channel Islands, Baja California and mainland Mexico.
The young Sunderland’s voyage began June 14, 2008 in Marina del Rey. His Islander 36 "Intrepid" featured the Produce for Kids (his sponsor), Shuman’s RealSweet and Mastronardi’s Sunset Produce logos, intending to promote healthy eating and produce consumption, particularly among kids. On June 20, 2008, Zac was off the Mexican Coast towards what was initially planned to be his first stop, Marshall Islands, Micronesia (due, 4 weeks), planning 15 to 30 stops around the world: "I've been feeling anxious about the situation and about the boat.
The weather should go back to normal by the end of the week but that seems unbearable at the moment!" Due to some minor work needed to be done on the boat, and the desire to reprovision, he elected to re-route and set a heading for Hawaii. He began his journey with more than 15,000 hours of sailing experience.
On August 4, 2008, Marshall Islands President Litokwa Tomeing (a sailor in his youth), formally welcomed and congratulated Zac in the President's Office, on Majuro: "And how is your boat? I remember one time I went with my parents on a 26- or 270foot canoe and we sailed from Wotje to Arno." He has made only 3 stops since his departure and his next stop is Darwin, Australia. The U.S.
Ambassador to the Marshall Islands, Clyde Bishop, on August 7, also welcomed Sunderland to Majuro U.S. Embassy: “I gave him a rundown of my trip so far and he talked about Majuro.
His favorite thing is the great snorkeling.”
From Majuro, Zac reached Darwin, Australia on September 18, amid a faulty bilge pump and fuel problems forcing him to land in Papua New Guinea. Off 250 km the Indonesian coast en route to his next stop in South Africa, in the Indian Ocean toward Cocos Islands, and 4 miles away, he encountered a large 60-70' wooden fishing boat without flags.
Amid continuing engine and fuel problems, snapped boom, and a broken tiller, needing repairs, Zac Sunderland reached Cocos Islands (a.k.a. Zac turned 17 on November 29 2009, while still at sea. Zac arrived in Durban, South Africa on December 14, after a delay of around 10 days because of a lack of wind.
He plans to fly home to California on December 22 for Christmas to be with his family and will return to South Africa after Christmas to continue his circumnavigation of the world.
Sunderland then sailed short hops to East London, Port Elizabeth, Mossel Bay, then finally get to Cape Town, where he had a completely unplanned, chance meeting with Mike Perham, who is also vying for a record as the world's youngest solo-circumnavigator, and Minoru Saito who at 75 is making his eight solo-circumnavigation and holds the record as the oldest solo, non-stop circumnavigator. Sailing Route
Marina Del Rey, California
Wakiki, Hawaii (unplanned stop)
Majuro, Marshall Islands
Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea (unplanned stop)
Darwin, Australia
Cocos-Keeling Islands, Territory of Australia
Rodrigues Island, Mauritius (unplanned stop)
Port Louis, Mauritius
Durban, South Africa
East London, South Africa
Port Elizabeth, South Africa
Mossel Bay, South Africa
Cape Town, South Africa
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