NEWS

Roman Paschke's catamaran wreck

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Renowned Polish sailor RomanPaszke, who set off in late September on a solo circumnavigation «against the wool» (from east to west, against the prevailing winds and currents) to set a new record, encountered serious problems. His catamaran Gemini 3 began to surge so fast into his left hull that the pumps could no longer deliver. Already on the tip of South America the athlete had to pull out of the race and signal for help. His boat was towed to the Argentinean port of Río Gallegos at the end of last week and was hoisted ashore on Sunday for inspection and repair. Up to 6 tons of water was found in the left hull!

The fact that there was something wrong with Paschke's boat was clear to knowledgeable people from the very beginning.

We had a chance to see the catamaran back at the shipyard in Gdańsk, and even then a number of things were confusing:

1. 1. The boat was ordered from a yard unknown in the G-Class (90+ foot) catamaran sector;
2. She was designed and built
in
a hurry - three months;
3. Nomex was used as a hull stuffing material, which is extremely light but also extremely problematic: it's not for nothing that builders of several multihulls refused it, preferring foams to it;
«4. Only three weeks before the start the boat was on the shore in» disassembled state.


We fear that this approach to preparation proved to be overly frivolous. In any case we wish Roman good luck. And a new record, if it works!

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