Full Stop
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From Tom’s Shore Team-19 August 2023
A hazy day on the Brisbane River where Maiwar’s first trials took place.
Tom and his immediate family are not much into the modern fashion for instantaneous communication. They’d much rather mull over a suitable answer or wait for the best time to send it than have a Pavlovian reaction to incoming mail. They know the costs that can be associated with hasty communication and the benefits that often accompany a leisurely approach.
This characteristic was evident when the family discussed, with Tom, a regime for him to remain in contact using text messages when he was on the high seas. We agreed that once a week he would text us at a given time saying “all is well” or somesuch. We would reply with a message such as “received” – perhaps with a little embellishment.
This approach worked a treat well into Tom’s first leg. But then things changed. True to form, Tom apparently thought the use of three words was a little excessive. His next text message, wait for it, consisted of a lone, solitary full stop (period). Most times the shore team responded with more than a full stop, hoping that some brief conversation might ensue.
At other times the shore team was as brief as Tom had been. So it was that early one Saturday morning when Mahuta was north west of Fiji he sent a full stop. Knowing that he had been very close to, if not in, an area that had experienced 50 knot winds generated by a transiting trough we texted “50 knots near you!”. He replied “feels like it. whats the forecast?” The shore team then gave Tom a detailed forecast for that day – 25 knots SE moderating to 9 knots E by evening, as well as forecasts for the next few days. We then asked “any news?”. He replied “thanks”. Taciturn Tom! Later, Tom explained on the satellite phone that he’d had a torrid time of his encounter with gale force winds but was happy with Maiwar’s performance in these conditions. It was not long after this encounter that Tom’s latitude was to the west of Auckland, New Zealand which is just a few hours flying time from Tom’s home town, Brisbane.
Tom in the 50 knot zone on the Marine Traffic Chart. Maiwar is the dot surrounded by concentric circles just above the “Wind” window.
Since our last update things have been pretty quiet for Tom. He has had periods of very light winds as well as the usual fresh south east trades. As his tracker reveals, during one of the periods of transition between these states he did another frustrating loop de loop. At the time of writing he was being carried north-west by fresh south easterlies. Although a moderation of the trade winds in the Pacific is said to be a feature of El Nino, we are reliably informed by Tom’s meteorologist friend, Bob McDavitt, that this effect is likely only to occur in the Eastern Pacific. Fortunately, however, Bob tells us that Tom can expect good west-flowing currents at around his present latitude.
Tracker screen shot showing Tom’s second loop de loop
When we spoke to Mahuta on the satellite phone he was heading towards the northern end of Vanuatu’s main island, Santo. He said that if the opportunity arose to do some exploring of northern Vanuatu he might do so but would not be stopping. Tom is so far north at this stage that it is most unlikely that his final landfall would be in Southern Queensland. Only time will tell.
Since leaving Pago Pago, Tom has travelled more than 1160 nautical miles (2150 km) at an average speed of almost 1 knot. Since leaving Peru, Mahuta has spent nearly 250 days “on the oars”. He is now around 1360 nautical miles (2420 km) from Cairns and 1125 (2080 km) from Bundaberg. For those who have consulted the Ocean Rowing Society’s site for information about Tom’s journey thus far, and have followed that site’s version of Tom’s tracker, you’ll be pleased to know that these features will soon be up and running again. (At the time of writing, the tracker has been reinstated but seems to report with a lag.) Tom’s own tracker is working well and is more reliable at this stage.
With Tom getting closer and closer to landfall, the time is fast approaching for serious thought to be given to issues such as dealing with customs and quarantine, arranging for Maiwar to be transported home if necessary, and where to have the first celebratory gathering.
Yours sincerely
The Shore Team
19 August 2023
For background Tom’s journey visit the archives