Eric Forsyth, a 70-year-old retired Royal Air Force pilot and engineer, and Bob Bennett, a 44-year-old computer executive, are planning a 30,000-mile voyage aboard Forsyth's 42-foot yacht, Fiona. For Forsyth, the voyage is but another journey. In the mid-1990s Forsyth completed a circumnavigation aboard Fiona, reaching Antarctica in 1998. He and Fiona have visited every continent.
Bennett has significantly less sailing experience, most recently aboard a 32-foot Sabre. For Bennett, the trip is an opportunity escape from the high-pressure corporate world and explore life's deeper meaning through the adventure.
Bennett first met Forsyth through the Sabre owners' club when Forsyth came to speak to their group about his circumnavigation. Chemistry between the two was right, and they soon began discussing Bennett's participation in the voyage.
Forsyth is a member of the Cruising Club of America and, in 2001, was awarded the club's Bluewater Medal for his voyaging. The two men will be joined by a third crewmember, 22-year-old David Pontieri.
