1:11 AM Fri 26 Dec 2008 GMT
It's the homeward stretch for Earthrace, according to NZ skipper Pete Bethune, who has been on the 'road' now for two and a half years.
Speaking from Cleveland this Boxing Day, on his way to East Coast Marina, Manly Cove where his futuristic boat is moored, Bethune is content after months at sea having spent a past few days with his wife, Sharon and kids.
'That's been the hardest thing,' he says. 'There have been heaps of challenges, but missing my family was the worst.'
Today Bethune and his crew of volunteers are heading to Redcliff, Brisbane. Then, by 2 February, Earthrace will leave Australia for its final NZ tour.
The boat was launched April 2006, and since then it has visited about 40 countries and hosted around 150,000 visitors onboard.
The Mission, Bethune explains, has changed somewhat since the concept was on the drawing board.
'It has evolved,' says Bethune. 'Initially, we set out to promote bio diesel and its potential, but these days, it's more about showing how we can all lead amazing lives and take care of the environment at the same time. We're running the boat as carbon neutral, which means we purchase credits to balance our carbon output. We use no antifoul, just a silicon paint on the boat. We're trying to show that you don't have to be a hippy and live in the hills. There are plenty of good things you can do that are not hard to do, like running smaller cars, using diesel and recycling.'
Earthrace has enjoyed 'fantastic media around the world,' he says. 'In Europe, west coast of US, UK and New Zealand. Where there are big boating communities, we've had heaps of visitors.'
As well as becoming homesick, Bethune says there have been a multitude of challenges unique to Earthrace.
'The whole journey has relied on volunteers. Three times I've tried to handover to other people to skipper, but I've been dragged back. It's hard to get bluewater qualified skippers to volunteer.'
There have also been financial challenges throughout, he admits. 'At first, we were really focused on the record attempt. I was verging on bankruptcy, so I thought it would be helpful to ask people to pay $5 to visit the boat in New Zealand. I managed through the promotional tour to knock off a large chunk of the creditors and as a result, we have found that opening the boat to the public has been much more rewarding, not financially, but our ability to connect with people, school groups and families. We didn't really consider these groups before we set off.'
Media is one thing, he continues, but experiencing the vessel onboard is quite another. 'There is a tenuous connection via seeing us on TV, it's not personal. But when you take the boat in to a town, they take you out for dinner and you talk to a school, you can make a strong connection and have a better chance of influencing them.'
Beating the previous record for circumnavigating the globe in a powerboat, and doing so using only renewable fuels, was also fraught with its own barriers. 'We failed the first time, so it was hard to get motivated. When you're battling storms and other setbacks, it grinds you down, the crew gets grumpy and lethargic.'
The voyage was over 24,000 nautical miles, and took 60 days, 23 hours and 49 minutes, smashing the old record by over two weeks. The vessel, Earthrace is a 78 foot alternative fuel powered wave-piercing trimaran.
While the welcome on the north Queensland coast was as warm as anywhere in the world, Australian customs and red tape almost threatened to preclude visitors to Earthrace.
As Bethune explains: 'I've visited over 40 countries now and I reckon you guys probably have the most red tape of any country. It was certainly tricky for Queensland. In the end sense prevailed and the Maritime Safety people were nice and just doing their job.
'The US had a strong focus on licenses and paperwork, but for us it was so easy over there. Each location, the coastguard would visit us, check things in five minutes and sign off the open days. There seems a double standard here where they are imposing building standards on boats. The paperwork, licenses and stuff to run a boat here involves a lot of work. I'd hate to be running a small charter business here.'
But in all, local people have been quick to support Earthrace. 'We had around 1600 visitors at 1770 and just as many on the Sunshine Coast.'
Bethune is also grateful to local sponsors - including Neumans Petroleum and Freedom Fuels in Brisbane, who sponsored the journey down the Australian coast, as well as ZF Marine and Cummins Mercruiser.
'Also my crew. They are all volunteers. Although, in Australia we have had hardly any female volunteers and we like to have a balance. I'm looking for a couple of women, one would do it.'
If any seafaring sheilas would like the opportunity, contact Peter on email pete@earthrace.net
More at www.earthrace.net
by Jeni Bone
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