Earthrace on its way to Hawaii
Posted By RichC on May 18, 2008
Update on Earthrace since they made short stops in Panama, Mexico and San Diego for fuel. They have been running well with the experienced crew who are remaining alert and handling several smallish issues well. The second round the world record attempt is well ahead of schedule. The biggest problem since crossing the Atlantic has been that of getting fuel to the boat fast enough and the worry at the Panama Canal ended up not being a problem and their stop in Mexico was publicity filled.
Captain Pete Bethune reflected on that stop:
“Como diamis? (what is your name?)â€, I say to one of the kids watching us intently from the dock.
“Manuelâ€, he replies shyly, shuffling his feet. His friends are all looking at him.
“Es possiblay visitar elbarco Earthrace (is possible to visit the Earthrace boat)â€, I say to him. His face lights up, and next thing he and his mates are all running across the gangplank and hooting as they scarper into the helm of the world’s coolest boat.An hour later and there is still a constant stream of people wandering through. “Ees very nice you let us look your boatâ€, says a father, who has just managed to drag his kids back onto the dock. It’s funny how I’ve been on Earthrace for two years now, and I still really enjoy letting the public on-board. It is the only asset we have…and thinking about it, the only reason the boat exists is because of the generosity of so many volunteers, sponsors and family members who still work endlessly to support us. So the least we can do is be generous with the boat.
Also, our job is to connect with people – sometimes on a superficial level, like today through media. Millions of Mexicans will see the images of Earthrace on their TV screens tonight, and a proportion of them will remember a little about what we do and the messages we carry. There are other people we connect with more strongly however. Like the kids who went aboard in our brief refuelling stop. Some of them will remember today for a long, long time.
The flotilla is there to escort us out, and amazingly, the entire breakwater is now lined with locals all waving and cheering us as we idle out into open water.
“What an amazing sightâ€, Adam says, as he’s tying off the last of the ropes. I look over to the end of the breakwater, and there amongst the crowd, I spot the father, with his two kids waving furiously at us.
“Yes mate. We are indeed blessed to experience this.â€
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