ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Dr. Stanley Paris intended to set sail for his solo trip around the globe Saturday afternoon, but for the second time his journey has been delayed. Paris pushed the trip back to Sunday morning, but says the seas are still too high.
Sunday morning he told a crowd of about 25 people gathered to see him off the disappointing news.
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"We have to delay again I'm sorry," Paris said. "Yeah, you feel bad about it. I feel bad for you sorry."
Paris says now he will be leaving on his 63 foot sailboat at 4:30 p.m. It will be his home for the next 130 days or so as he attempts to circumvent the globe.
"The winds are settling but the seas are still high," Paris says. "And the real danger is the boat right now is joined seven and a half feet. And the keel is in the up position. And its very vulnerable should we come down off the swell and hit the bottom out there because the depth is not constant in the outlet."
He thanked the crowd for being there and showing their support, but admitted he was disappointed.
"I share that disappointment with them and all the people here on the dock and on the bridge who have come to see me twice now and I can't go," Paris said.
The New Zealander and his wife sailed into St. Augustine in 1995 and never left. As we near the 450th anniversary of the nation's oldest city, he plans to sail St. Augustine's name around the world, hoping to set a record as the oldest and fastest ever to make the trip solo.