After a week on the water, Trans-Atlantic solo rower Peter van Kets is in second place and chasing down solo rival Charlie Pitcher. In this first week Peter has been smacked about by bad weather and large side-on swells, had a close-encounter with a ship and was visited, at night, by a big something that kept bumping into his boat.
The fleet of rowing boats has been moving South, to escape Northern storms and unfavourable currents. As a result he has hardly slept. He should get more rest once he hits the more favourable trade winds and currents. His progress, position and distance gained will advance more quickly once he turns West.
In a posting on 6 Jan, Peter describes the conditions he has been experiencing.
“The wind and waves came from all sides all night and day yesterday. I’ve been seasick and unable to hold anything down. Not even the most delicious brownies in the world. The boat is like a cork in a washing machine. I’m holding two matchstick oars and sitting on a seat the size of a barstool. Basically it isn’t a comfortable place to be right now. So lean back in that comfy office chair, or deck chair, and be grateful for small mercies. I’m now already sleep deprived and, well, let’s just say that the medication to treat the sea sickness isn’t taken orally. I’ve got to get that medicine down, or should I say up, all the while getting thrown around from side to side.”
The next day Peter related his night in ‘the washing machine’. With swells hitting him side on, he was forced to stop rowing and put out his para anchor.
I’ve put out my para anchor in order to get some sleep, or should I say rest. Putting out a para anchor is an extremely difficult task to achieve in the current conditions – and even more so to retrieve when I want to get under way again. Picture this: you are in your washing machine in a tin can, unable to keep your eyes open and you must sleep because in a few hours you have to go outside, sit on top of the can and turn the washing machine on to ’spin’. All the while you’re handling a huge kite attached to the can. To top it all, you still tell your wife and friends ’No, I’m fine, having fun actually, and I really want to do this again and again! ’.”
I’m getting a lot wetter on Nyamezela than I did on Qquma, the boat that Bill and I rowed to Antigua. This is contributing to a lot more discomfort. I also had a chance to make contact with Charlie Pitcher, my main rival, and I learned that Charlie is having it just as bad if not worse. I’ve started to get the first few blisters and my bottom is a bit painful. Judging by the drift patterns of the two boats my boat has a lot less drift than Charlie. This could be due to (a) the design of Charlie’s ’spinnaker’ boat (which catches more wind), and (b) the size of my para anchor. Charlie’s para anchor is 5 to 6 ft in diameter whereas mine is 8 ft and capable of stopping a 45 foot yacht from drifting. My boat is only 21 foot. The weather may be worse further north than where I am further south. All this taken into account, I’ve drifted far less and I am looking well placed for when the weather clears.”
Peter’s diary updates on www.own-your-life.co.za make for good reading. Recent posts from the past few days indicate that conditions have improved a bit and should give Peter the opportunity to get a solid block of sleep.
Sitting in 18th position overall, Peter has traveled 279 nm – he has ‘only’ 2425 nm to go.