SEAL BEACH, CA February 19 -- A military helicopter spotted the sailboat Quest 275 miles off the coast of Oman yesterday, “with Africans onboard and a skiff in tow,” confirming the capture of the 58-foot blue water cruiser, with owners Scott and Jean Savage Adam and two other Americans aboard. News reports had indicated their attempts to send an SOS signal were subverted by the pirates.
The Adams are well known Southern California sailors, having cruised and raced local waters extensively, and competed in the Marina del Rey to Puerto Vallarta yacht race in 2003. The two other victims are Phyllis Mccay, who recently suffered an eye injury and requires daily medical treatment; and the crew’s latest recruit, Robert 'Bob' Riggle, of Seattle, according to new reports from The New York Times.
Having cruised the Pacific for nearly a decade in their goal to distribute Bibles and “enjoy God’s creation,” the Adams last year joined the Oz-Med Rally which offers “extra security in some dangerous waters of the world” (according to the organizer's website) – a conspicuously hazardous stretch of ocean. Boats assembled at various ports between Mackay, Australia and Phuket, Thailand in the fall, with the goal of convening in Crete mid-April.
Quest’s SPOT (satellite position locator) showed them in Mumbai, India in early February. But according to rally organizer Richard Bolt, Quest joined the Oz-Med segment of Blue Water Rallies in Phuket and sailed as far as Mumbai; “Then they decided to take their own route across the Indian Ocean, and were on their own. We had no other yachts in the vicinity.”
Bolt did not divulge the location or status of the remainder of the flotilla, for security purposes. His website reads:
“It is true that we take a route past Aden and up the Red Sea. However, when approaching notorious waters, the rally is organized into tactical defensive formations and you are briefed on a strategy which offers the best chance of avoiding any unwanted piratical attention. Blue Water Rallies have been helping yachts safely through the Red Sea approaches for 15 years – that is about 200 yachts and lots more people. So far we have a 100% success record. We liaise very closely with all the friendly forces in the area and we report the positions of each convoy at regular intervals. Whilst we cannot provide an armed escort, we do have naval forces keeping a brotherly eye open for your welfare. If you are going to sail through these waters, we like to think that sailing with us is the safest way to do it.”
Accomplished mariners (both Scott and Jean hold a USCG captain's license) the Adams were presumed to be following defensive practices: deliberately keeping communications spare, to avoid detection by pirates; running without lights at night; and staying well offshore.
None-the-less, they were captured several hundred miles off the coast by Somali rebels Feb. 18. The vessel is expected to arrive in Somalia Sunday according to MSNBC; no demands have yet been announced. An estimated 29 ships and 660 hostages are being held by Somali pirates at present.
Armchair boaters and critics remain skeptical about transiting this area at all, and yet experienced sailors pose the question: do you risk the gauntlet of terrorists to the north? Or the treacherous Cape of Storms to the south? There is no easy route for intrepid boaters sailing round the world.
“You take one dangerous route, or the other dangerous route,” explains Capt. Karen Prioleau – a USCG licensed captain and instructor with thousands of miles of offshore experience.
Family and friends continue to hope and pray for the crew of Quest. “These are good and gentle people,” said Jean’s ex-husband, Bill Savage. “They’ve put everything into the ministry they’ve been carrying throughout the Pacific and Southeast Asia, and are hoping to carry into the lands they are in now. We hope they will be respected and we hope our government and the concerned authorities in the area will secure their release as rapidly as possible.”
Their website – which was last updated in December – shows Quest’s proposed route leaving Mumbai would bring them to Salalah, Oman; Djibouti; and El Gouna, Egypt. After convening with the flotilla in Crete, their ultimate goal is to join their children and grandchildren in London, UK for Christmas 2011.
“We communicated last weekend, when they were leaving Mumbai on this journey,” added Savage – the father of Jean’s sons. “I asked ‘What if anything happens?’ and she said, ‘We are following our dreams ... pray for us.’”
-- Betsy Crowfoot
Feb 20, 2011:
King5 News on Mccay and Riggle
