Day 28 - part 2: More broken axles

Day 28 - part 2: More broken axles

The latest message this afternoon from Team Gallagher on board Moana reads:

‘Just broke another axle. Last good seat sags and drags along slides.’

Refer to the photo (attached) to see a sliding seat and the rails (slides) the seat moves back and forth on.

So they are left with one operational sliding seat and two non-sliding seats. The crew will be able to continue by fixed seat rowing, much as you would in a dingy, swinging the body back and forth and assisting with the arms. The drawback to this is they cannot use their legs, the most powerful muscles used for rowing.

Three updates today to give you the gist of what taking place on board Moana

Day 28: Christmas Eve tango

Moana is doing the tango with the ocean waves as Team Gallagher go back and forth, round and round (see the photo or zoom in on the position map).

Following on from yesterday, Clouds suggested the best they could do in the weather they had was to head south or south-west. So while Team Gallagher does one step forward, two sideways and one back the good news is they managed to do exactly that - heading south in seas described as ‘sloppy’.

For Christmas Day they have requested the words to a good Christmas song. I’ve suggested the Pogues ‘Fairytale of New York’ which will be on its way to their Skycom satellite phone to begin practicing for the big day tomorrow. Other ideas welcome!

Day 27: Broken axles and bad currents

As we’ve already seen the Tasman Sea has a multitude of wind variability’s.

The same can be said for the current. It is littered with pockets of enormous circulating whirlpools.

The latest message from the Team Gallagher crew on board Moana sent via their Skycom sat phone suggests they are currently in the grip of one such current: ‘Have broken axels on two seats. Trying to fix now so we can row west to get south current so we can head east to the cape.’

All sounds a bit cryptic doesn’t it. They are in a reasonably strong north/north westerly current and the thinking is - once the seats are repaired - to row in the opposite direction they really want to go in order to get out of it.

Sadly, from the looks of the current maps, if they were a couple of degrees further east they would be in an easterly current. I will contact our Sydney based meteorologist 'Clouds' to get suggestions and will report back.

Rob Hamill

Team Gallagher Director

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