He and three crew left Auckland Harbour on December 27 bound for Easter Island 400 nautical miles away. Travelling with them was Blizzard's sister ship, Cutty Hunk, owned by Irene Hayward and partner Chris Platt of Akaroa.
During nearly five months at sea, the weather threw everything at them, from gales, big seas and electrical storms to perfect sailing weather. Damaged gear along the way stretched the bounds of Kiwi ingenuity.
The first bad storm hit on night 21 near Easter Island. In winds of 50 knots, gusting to 60 knots, the seas became huge.
Miller writes: "We were sailing under storm jib when we were hit just forward of the beam by a huge breaking wave. Blizzard knocked down." Miller, on deck at the time, clung to the lifelines as a solid wall of water washed over Blizzard.
The life rings and their lights, and the danbuoy (a device that floats upright in the water if a crew member goes overboard), were washed overboard. Down below Miller's crew woke to find the side of Blizzard was the ceiling.
Blizzard righted herself and sat sluggishly with a cockpit of water, dragging all her lines behind her.
In a stroke of luck the men found the lost equipment had become entangled in the lifelines and ropes, and was trailing behind the yacht.
The Blizzard crew heard later on the radio a two-handed ketch nearby had lost one person overboard. At Hanga Roa, Easter Island - reached on day 25 - the crew spent four days reprovisioning, fixing a broken autopilot and touring the island.
On Day 30, Blizzard left for a 12-day sail to San Cristobal, the Galapagas Islands - the land of giant tortoises, iguanas, frigate birds and bathing in a freshwater lake for salty crew. By day 46 they were on their way to Panama.
"We had a gannet that perched on our pulpit and preened itself between feeding excursions for most of the trip. The course to Panama is easy. Follow the rubbish - plastic bottles and polystyrene food trays."
On day 52, having nervously navigated their way through 50 anchored ships, the crew arrived at the Flamenco Marina at the entrance to the Panama Canal. They waited for 10 days to get a "slot" through. Miller's partner, Catherine Livingstone, joined the crew for the trip through the Mira Flores locks and the transit to Colon.
Blizzard was squeezed in ahead of a giant container ship. "And then we are finally in the Atlantic."
From there on to Nassau, the Bahamas north through the Caribbean Sea and the Windward Passage. "From Colon to Jamaica was a hard and uncomfortable slog, something like the Motuihe Channel wind against the tide on top of a two-metre ocean swell for 800 nautical miles."
O n day 76 Blizzard arrived at Nassau Harbour, where they waited 16 days for a replacement crew member from New Zealand and the last norther to blow through. "This is a party town so it was easy to wait."
"Day 92 we depart (in a norther) anyway as we can't figure out how you know it's the last norther, bound for Bermuda 800nm away."
Six days later they reached Bermuda, and two days later left for the Azores, 1800 nautical miles across the North Atlantic.
At 10pm on day 101, the crew found themselves on collision course with a ship travelling at 20 knots. It did not respond to radio calls.
"We get ourselves ready for a gybe and start shining our spotlight on the sails and towards the ship's lights. We gybe and start sailing away from the collision course. Finally a sleepy voice comes over the radio. 'What vessel shines lights on us?' I think our spotlight woke them."
A few days day later Blizzard was sailing in heaving weather under headsail only when the boat was again hit by a giant wave. Miller, who was tidying sail ties on the boom, clung on as Blizzard slid sideways down the wave. The danbuoy was washed overboard again, this time for good.
The night before reaching Horta in the Azores they found themselves in the eye of a fierce electrical storm with forked lightning striking the sea in front and behind Blizzard.
"You can smell it, a burning smell as the brilliant white lightning turns into a falling shower of yellow debris."
The crew, up on deck bringing in the carbon fibre main sail, scrambled below. "'Granny knots in the sail ties and forget the main, just get below' is the call."
A crew change in Horta and they were on to Gibraltar, 1123 nautical miles away. They were down from a crew of four to three, meaning tiring three-hour shifts.
"As we approach Europe the seas become huge and the cockpit a very wet place to be. At midnight on day 120 we can see Portugal 100 miles away as we approach the shipping separation lanes. We weave our way though the north and south- bound lanes and note in the log 'too much action to fill in log!"'
As they entered Gibraltar Strait the crew could see 117 ships on the automatic identification system. The final leg from Gibraltar to Valencia is along the Mediterranean coast - Almeria, Alicante, Denia and Valencia for their target arrival date of May 10.
Blizzard nosed into the 800m canal which leads to the Port America's Cup marina. Miller couldn't help but be impressed.
"What a venue!" he writes."On race mornings the whole place is buzzing."
Kiwis are everywhere, he says, and plenty of Liwis (London Kiwis).
Sailing, rather than flying, to Valencia has been a plan of Miller's since 2005. His partner took a year off work so she could join him on parts of the adventure.
Miller will be away "for a year or two". He plans to take his time sailing home. There's a lot to explore and he's in no hurry.
Full coverage of the America's Cup from
nzherald.co.nz/americascup.
