From: "Patrick Roberts" <proberts58@me.com>
Date: December 25, 2008 8:29:15 AM PST
To: abacocharters2@aol.com
Cc: robertpa@OHSU.EDU
Subject: Engine failure on Eclectic Lady
Vicky,
We are presently at anchor near Dickie's Cay off Man-O-War. We are not well situated because we were forced to drop anchor when the engine failed and we could not restart it. I understand that we should, and we have attempted, contact Sherman on Ch 16, but he explained that we would not be able to reach ABC by radio until after Boxing Day. I'm emailing you because I would like to get the word out so you may contact him if we lose power by the 27th because we cannot recharge our batteries with the engine.
We got off to a slow start on Christmas eve, in part because the engine battery needed replacement. When we were leaving the Hope Town Harbor, the engine stalled, and we quickly dropped anchor in the entrance to stop our drift. Fortunately, we were able to restart the engine and proceeded under sail to Man-O-War. Because of our concern about the reliability of the engine, we did not attempt to enter the harbor at Man-O-War, but were seeking good anchorage north of Dickie's Cay. The engine stalled on our approach, and would repeatedly fail after restarting until we could not restart it, so we anchored exposed to wind and chop for the night. The engine has been able to start cold, but stalls after 10-15 minutes and all throttle positions. The problem is difficult to diagnose because we have no gauges, but there may be a low oil or overheating problem as possibly indicated by the warning lights.
We have two more nights before we can expect a response from ABC, so we will attempt to weigh anchor and move to Fisher's bay at Guana Cay. There, the entrance is broad enough that, if the engine will not take us in, we will be able to sail to a more secure anchorage than here at Man-O-War. The present state of the engine will make impossible to enter the Hope Town Harbor and pickup a mooring. We will continue to try to contact ABC on Ch 16 through the holidays, and try to read any email with instructions when we go ashore on Guana Cay. Of course, you understand that this is a major mechanical failure and we will expect a pro-rated refund beginning Christmas eve. We are doing our best to make the most of a difficult situation and we hope that ABC can get assistance to us soon after the holiday.
Regards, Patrick Roberts