"By the time the U.S. Women's Challenge had completed the first leg of the 1993-94 Whitbread Round-the-World race, the crew was riven by dissent, financial problems, and personal conflicts. Only a new captain could save the all-women's team from mutiny and lead them to a successful finish. When Dawn Riley received an unexpected phone call from Uruguay asking her to take on the assignment, she didn't hesitate. After four days of hasty group training, the twelve women set out from sunny Punta del Este for the perilous Southern Ocean. With freeze-dried food and four-hour sleep shifts, they would brave the forces of nature in the face of physical injury, dwindling supplies, equipment failure, and overall exhaustion. In the midst of it all, bitter resentment was brewing among the original crew members while the controversy over Riley's takeover made headlines on land." "During the six legs of this arduous journey, the boat - renamed Heineken for its new sponsor - would circumnavigate the globe. Covering 32,000 miles in all, these women dodged mountains of ice, battled the skyscraper seas of Le Maire Strait, crossed the steamy equator, and rounded the legendary Cape Horn in an often perilous adventure. Riley depicts the crew's reactions to the physical and psychological stresses of this ordeal, and how they rallied under her leadership when their very survival was at stake."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved