Simply put, Carl should never have tried to go east of Lenny, or any hurricane. I know he knew this, and I can sympathize with him completely. He didn't want to run west because he had fought hard for easting, and he also didn't have a lot of sea room in that direction. I'm sure he considered that, if he had to, he could sail all the way to Africa to stay east of the storm.
Unfortunately, it is very hard to outflank a hurricane on the NE side in a sailing boat. 
Hurricanes have four sectors and the NE side is the most dangerous because the wind is increased by the storm's forward motion and sucks you further into the eye. The SW side is the least dangerous because the winds are reduced by the storm moving away from you and spitting you out away from the storm. If you are caught in the path of a tropical system, the general rules for evasive actions are thus:
If your are in the:
1- NE Quadrant - the most dangerous - tactic, sail close hauled on starboard tack at right angles to the assumed track, or heave-to on starboard tack.
2- NW Quadrant - less dangerous - tactic, run with the wind on the starboard quarter
3- SE Quadrant - dangerous - tactic, heave to on the starboard tack
4- SW Quadrant - least dangerous - tactic, run at right angles to the assumed track
While it takes incredibly bad luck or real ignorance to be caught in the path of a hurricane, anyone who sails in the tropics should be aware of these basic guidelines. I don't know if Carl had sailed west instead of east that he would still be alive today, but I do know that he would be happy to know that the lessons of his tragedy helped a brother sailor in a time of dire need. | 
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