Crazy RTW sailor - help please

[tangaroa]

Some months ago, I caught the tail end of a TV documentary about a Walter Mittyesque participant in a solo round the world yacht race, who couldn't face the thought of a journey through the southern ocean and so hung around the coast of South America for several months, before heading back towards Blighty.

He kept two logs one of his actual journey and one for the race scruntineers that would show his supposed passage through the southern ocean etc. It was only as he came back into VHF range that he learned that because of the retirements of other competitors, he was actually going to win the race. Knowing his fake log would not stand up to scrutiny, he killed himself by jumping overboard leaving his boat afloat with a suicide note and both logs on the chart table.

If anyone knows his name or if anyone know if an account has been pubished of this story, I'd be very interested to know.

 

[jimi]

very sad

Crowhurst
Teignmouth Electron

 

[tangaroa]

Thank-you Jimi ... that was quick! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[doris]

Donald Crowhurst on a trimaran called Tynemouth Electron..

 

[iangrant]

Try http:// web page

 

[snowleopard]

written up as 'the strange last voyage of donald crowhurst'

teignmouth electron is still lying ashore somewhere in the caribbean AFIK

 

[Sybarite]

Re: \"Les quarantièmes rugissants\"

"The Roaring Forties" This was a French film made about it. Good gale scenes in it.

John

 

[Evadne]

I read the book many years ago, and very sad it was too, written a couple of years after his death when his logbooks had finally been made sense of. Crowhurst was an electrical engineer who was great with gadgets and planning but who was less certain about his abilities as a sailor, and became fatally afraid of capsizing while rounding the horn, so he didn't leave the Atlantic. Moitessier's unexpected retirement put him in imminent danger of coming in first, shortly after he had "re-established" radio contact.

 

[tangaroa]

Many thanks to all those who responded. I've ordered up copies of Moitessier's account of the race as well as the Crowhurst story, should be with me tomorrow.

What did we all do before the web?

 

[Capt_Scarlet]

I read a paperback book which was an account of the race to sail around the world non-stop. This included accounts of each of the eight(?) competitors, one of which being Donald Crowhurst.

Very entertaining read.

Can't remember the name, though. Something like "Sailing for madmen".

 

[Deleted member 478]

That book is called "A voyage for madmen"

 

[machurley22]

[ QUOTE ]
That book is called "A voyage for madmen"

[/ QUOTE ]

by Peter Nichols

Dave

 

[longjohnsilver]

Local BBC weather man Craig Rich was responsible for uncovering his sham. As a matter of interest I helped train Crowhursts son for scuba diving back in the 80s.