Four hours after we reported on Austrian adventure sailor Norber Sedlacek's progress so far this afternoon, the premature end of his record attempt was announced on his Facebook page. There it says:
"Due to electrical problems, skipper Norbert Sedlacek Koch has had to abandon the record attempt and will return to Les Sables d'Olonne when the conditions on board and the weather permit. Despite hours of effort, he was unable to secure the power supply for the necessary systems such as the autopilot and navigation electronics. It was therefore with a heavy heart, primarily for safety reasons, that he decided to abandon the record attempt, which had been very successful to date."
On the previous days, the skipper himself had left an optimistic impression. The journey continued northwards: Sedlacek had left Irish waters behind and had reached latitude 63 degrees north off the east coast of Iceland. He reported about it on Facebook.
In addition to photos of dolphins and seagulls that occasionally visited him, he also occasionally struck a reflective note. However, these were more about the environmental problems than the technical difficulties on board his yacht.
He recently shared a photo from the cockpit of his self-built Open 60, for example, showing part of the aft deck and the surrounding scenery. It is grey in grey: drizzle, cloudy, hazy. "It's alternately warm, cold and then warm again. At times I think someone is turning on the hairdryer," he writes.
The influence of the Gulf Stream is noticeable for Sedlacek. This has the advantage that he can still work on board in a thin jacket at 63 degrees latitude. But at the same time, it is also frightening: climate change is having a very strong impact. He appeals to his community: "Let's not take it lightly, let's act now."
With the "Ant Arctic Lab" project, the sailor, who has already taken part in the Vendée Globe and crossed the oceans several times, wanted to make his own contribution to climate protection. According to his own statements, his declared aim is to develop a revolutionary yacht construction concept that is sustainable, recyclable and environmentally friendly in contrast to conventional production methods. For this reason the 18.28 metre long boat is made from a volcanic fibre-balsa wood sandwich which is intended to be particularly environmentally friendly.
Sedlacek's planned course would have taken him past Iceland to Spitsbergen and then southwards towards Antarctica over the next few days. Its current position can be determined via a Live tracker can be tracked online.
Back in 2019, Sedlacek had to return to the starting harbour after seven days at sea due to irreparable damage to the boat. Last year, the coronavirus pandemic prevented his planned start. And now his planned round-the-world voyage has come to a swift end once again. It is not yet known whether he intends to make another attempt.
