The ocean racer finished fifth in the 1989-90 Whitbread race.
This year's Whitbread race has been an especially grueling one.
The decision to devote eight months to a Whitbread race is difficult for any sailor, but especially one with a young family.
He has never sailed in the 33,000-mile Whitbread race.
But the Whitbread race has put everything in perspective.
"If we don't make it, there probably won't be an American entry in the 1993 Whitbread race."
The team went on to finish the Whitbread race, completing the 27,000-mile voyage third among 15 entries.
They are surely not enough to be competitive in the highly charged Whitbread race.
It took him five attempts to achieve the first stated goal of his sailing life, which was victory in the Whitbread race.