The good news from Istvan Kopar is that the his self-made emergency tiller he fitted on Puffin two weeks ago is standing up well. The bad news is that he is about to stall in the transition zone between the North East and South West Trade winds, and could be stuck there for several days. Now 2, miles from the finish, he is not expected to get there before March The goose barnacle infestation that is slowing his Gaia 36 Asteria to a leisurely walking pace half way up the South Atlantic is providing him with a bonus time at sea.
Today, the GGR tracker is suggesting a May 1 finish ETA, but as the barnacles grow and slow his progress further, race organisers suspect it could be June before he sees the sands of Les Sables. Then, restaurateurs will be queuing up to harvest the crop. Goose barnacles it seems β large ones especially β are quite a delicacy! A fleet of boats with friends, fans and media came out to escort him to Yacht club Scheveningen where he was was reunited with his Mom and Dad.
Hundreds of people gathered on the dock including the many volunteers that supported him before and during the race, and made this welcome possible. By Sunday, however, it was back to business. Having talked about plans for new adventures in the Scheveningen YC the night before, Mark was back in the gym, starting to train for his next challenge!
Speaking from Fremantle overnight, American tug boat skipper Cody Cordwainer , who is leading the salvage operation said:. Its taking longer than expected. The 60ft sloop we had planned to use has structural problems that are too expensive to repair, so we are back to square one looking for a suitable ocean-going boat.
The good news is that an American philanthropist has donated a large chunk of the salvage costs in exchange for the barrel of Glendalough 7 year old single malt whiskey still onboard and the Distillery has agreed to this. We have made a lot of contacts here and are looking at two avenues: Finding someone with an ocean-going boat having trouble meeting their monthly slip payments who could use the extra cash, or someone with a boat that they want to make ocean-going, and we can do that for them.
