He's 61 years old, his name is Shane Freeman and he's Australian. He sails on a Tradewind 35. He is one of the 4 Australians registered for this extraordinary round-the-world race which is due to start from England in 17 months, on 16th June 2018.
To reach the start line in England, this yachtsman decided to round Cape Horn before heading up the Atlantic. A route that he is doing on his own as training for the race. Alas, after having had problems with the rudder finally repaired, it was a bigger wave than the others that got the better of this competitor.
On February 18, 2017, about 300 miles west of Chile, his sailboat Mushka went down and dismasted. Fortunately, the skipper was inside. He spent 5 hours separating from the broken rigging while trying to keep the boom for a makeshift rigging.
The Chilean coastguard, having been warned of the sinking, proposed to divert a cargo ship. Shane asked for a few hours to assess the situation before deciding, 15 hours later, to abandon ship. He was able to board the Chinese bulk carrier Ambition Frontier not without first setting up a system to flood the boat by cutting off a water inlet hose to the engine.
Once on the bridge of the cargo ship, the Australian was able to appreciate the sea conditions and admits to having chosen the right option by abandoning his yacht. He will be disembarked in Chile, from where he intends to return to Australia.
A rescue that ends well, but which leaves the sailor bitter, as he has to withdraw from the Golden Globe Race.
