A shipwreck might end a dream of circumnavigating the globe. Not for the Wilcox family. In 1973, the Wilcox family sets off to sail around the world aboard the 40-foot sailboat, Vela. Thirteen months later, they are shipwrecked on a coral reef, with surf tearing a huge hole into the side of their boat. With years invested in saving money, preparing the boat, and learning to navigate by the stars, parents Chuck and Dawn refuse to give up. Fourteen-year-old Garth is determined to continue, while eleven-year-old Linda never wanted to go in the first place. Can they overcome the emotional, physical and financial challenges to transform from castaways into circumnavigators? To triumph, they must rebuild their boat on a remote Pacific island. Damage sustained on the reef and a lack of resources haunt them the rest of the way around the world as they face daunting obstacles, including wild weather, pirates, gun boats, mines and thieves, plus pesky bureaucrats and cockroaches as stubborn as the family. Without a working engine and no way to communicate with the outside world, they struggle to reach home before their broken rig comes crashing down and they run out of food in a trial that tests them to their limits. ". . . The author's expressive writing captures the wonder of being at sea in all its glory. . . her engaging narrative succeeds in capturing the thrills and frustrations of this intrepid family.--Kirkus Reviews (starred review). *Selected Kirkus Book of the Month. "A modern, swashbuckling adventure." -- Seattle Book Review "Completely riveting."-- San Francisco Book Review "A gripping tale of a family's harrowing journey to sail around the world against seemingly insurmountable and deadly odds." --Robert Dugoni, the #1 Amazon and #1 WSJ bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite series "What a tale! The Wilcox family's epic 'round-tripper had me turning pages at flank speed. Wendy Hinman crafts a true-life adventure story as outlandish and memorable as The Swiss Family Robinson, with shipwreck, reefs, dengue fever, gun-toting soldiers, and teenagers who won't do their homework." --Bruce Barcott, author of Last Flight of the Scarlet Macaw and The Measure of a Mountain , and a contributor to Outside Magazine "Sea Trials is a skillfully told story of perseverance, ingenuity, and grit. Wendy Hinman is back with another gripping sea saga. Hinman's pacing keeps the story humming along and her eye for detail helps us savor the voyage." --Janna Cawrse Esarey, author of Motion of the Ocean "In a time before cell phones and laptops, the Wilcox family set out to sail around the world, but after a shipwreck, their adventure takes a dramatic detour. Thrilling, poignant, and hilarious moments surface as this family struggles to cope with each other, repair the wreck and most of all, to keep going. " --Debra Daniels-Zeller author of The Northwest Vegetarian Cookbook "A satisfying read about the costs and rewards of human endeavor and the effects they have on a family." --Jan Burak Schwert, author of Geezers' Guide to the Galaxy: A Lifetime of Travel Encounters "A nail-biting adventure story."--Elsie Hulsizer, author of Voyages to Windward and Glaciers, Bears and Totems Dear reader,      For years, my husband and his family have shared snippets from their epic voyage around the world. Intrigued to learn more, I delved into the details and discovered a richer tale than I'd imagined, one that deserved to be shared with a wider audience. It's quite a story, and more remarkably, it's true. Sea Trials highlights major events from the around-the-world journey the Wilcox family took aboard Vela , their 40-foot Maine Pinky, from 1973-1978. Their voyage occurred during the relative dark ages of sailing when people navigated using a sextant, and long before the days of instant communication. Few undertook such a journey, and limited information was available about outfitting a boat for ocean voyaging or ports along the way. Yet, despite unbelievable obstacles, this pioneering family survived a shipwreck and made it all the way around the world. No small feat you'll discover.   To tell this story, I drew upon: Personal interviews with my husband, Garth Wilcox; his mother, Dawn Wilcox; and his father Chuck Wilcox; - An unpublished manuscript by Garth's sister, Linda Wilcox, which she wrote when she was sixteen, registered with the Library of Congress, and later shared with us; - An unpublished partial manuscript by Erika Hublitz, the University of California schoolwork administrator with whom the family corresponded during the voyage; - The ship's log and related notes from Dawn Wilcox; - News articles about the shipwreck and the family upon their return by local as well as AP and UPI reporters that appeared in publications around the world and a TV interview with talk-show host Maury Povich; - Hundreds of detailed letters handwritten by family members during the voyage; - Photos and scrapbook