HOW DO YOU EVEN BEGIN TO ENGINEER A VOYAGE AT SEA THAT COULD LAST FOR 7 MONTHS OR MORE?
THE CREW ABOARD SEEKER NEEDED FUEL, SPECIALIZED BATTERY STORAGE,
ALONG WITH ENOUGH FOOD AND FRESH WATER
FOR NINE PEOPLE AND ONE LONG-DISTANCE SWIMMER.
THE CREW WORKED WITH CHIEF ENGINEER RASMUS GORDON, WHO TOOK CHARGE OF EVERYTHING FROM
GENERATING WATER AND POWER, TO FUELING THE SHIP.
Ras: When the ship was originally built, it was built as a racing yacht, but that also
means they don’t go to sea for more than a month at a time.
So we have extra fuel bladders added to the ship to double the fuel capacity.
We’re still depending on not having to use the main engine a lot because that takes up
five times the amount of fuel as the generator.
BUT WHEN STRONG WINDS AND CURRENTS PUSH THE BOAT OFF-COURSE, SOMETIMES THE CREW HAS NO
CHOICE BUT TO RELY ON THE MAIN ENGINE TO GET BACK ON BEN’S LAST GPS COORDINATES.
FOR ELECTRICITY ON THE BOAT, RASMUS RIGGED A DUAL POWER SYSTEM.
THE MAIN BATTERY BANK, POWERED BY SOLAR PANELS AND WIND GENERATORS, IS USED FOR
LIGHTING AND NON-ESSENTIAL ITEMS.
A SMALLER BANK SUPPORTS THE NAVIGATION EQUIPMENT— A SAFETY PRECAUTION
IN CASE THE MAIN BANK SHOULD EVER FAIL.
THESE BANKS ARE COMPOSED OF “AGM” BATTERIES, WHERE THE ELECTROLYTE, THE CONDUCTIVE
MIXTURE OF WATER AND SULPHURIC ACID INSIDE, IS ABSORBED IN GLASS FIBER.
THIS MEANS THESE BATTERIES ARE RESISTANT TO CORROSION, SPILL PROOF, AND DON’T REQUIRE
VENTILATION—SO THEY ARE PERFECT FOR THE ROUGH CONDITIONS ON SEEKER.
ANOTHER MAJOR ENGINEERING CHALLENGE OF A LONG-TERM SEA VOYAGE
IS THE ABILITY TO MAKE FRESH WATER.
Ras: We have two water makers so we always have one backup if the other one fails, and
we have a lot of spares for the water makers, because that is our most important equipment.
WHILE THE BOAT IS MOVING, THE WATER MAKERS RUN SEA WATER THROUGH TWO FILTERS, REMOVING
ANY DEBRIS AND MICROPLASTICS.
THE LIQUID THEN RUNS PARALLEL TO A REVERSE OSMOSIS MEMBRANE,
CREATING FRESHWATER, WHICH IS ESSENTIAL
FOR MORE THAN JUST DRINKING.
Ras: The thing that really determines how long we can be at sea is our fuel and food capacity.
The fresh water is important because we need it for the cooking,
a lot of the cooking is gonna be freeze-dried food.
When Ben finishes swimming he needs to have a fresh water shower to rinse all the salt off his body
to prevent any damages to his skin.
PLANNING FOR THE FOOD ON BOARD WAS A WHOLE OTHER STORY.
Ty: We bought a lot of this fresh food stuff
but it gets really hot down below and together with the
dampness and the heat is not good for preserving the fresh food.
Maks: Whoa whoa whoa!!
What is that?
Ty: I don’t know, honestly I don’t know but it’s coming out of these potatoes
Ty: We can all agree a potato doesn’t usually look like that when you eat it
Maria: Yeah, of course.
Ty: But we’re going to eat it.
We waste nothing.
THOUGH THE CREW WERE ABLE TO HAVE FRESH VEGETABLES FOR THE FIRST MONTH AT SEA,
THE BULK OF THEIR MEAL PLAN CENTERS ON USING CANNED AND
FREEZE-DRIED FOODS — COMBINED WITH BASES, LIKE
PASTA AND RICE.
AND IF THE CREW IS LUCKY, THEY ALSO MIGHT HAVE THE OPTION OF FRESH FISH.
Paul: Zero fish in 47 days, and 3 fish in 15 minutes.
Maks: We measure and weigh the fish, for one of the research protocols we're doing, and
then we cut open the stomach, see if there's any plastic inside the stomach.
UNFORTUNATELY, THE CREW DID HAVE TO REMOVE PLASTIC FROM THIS FISH.
IT'S A PRIME EXAMPLE THAT UNDERSCORES JUST HOW IMPORTANT RAISING AWARENESS FOR OCEAN
HEALTH IS, AND THAT ALL THIS CAREFUL PLANNING IS WORTH IT.
Maks: People always think ‘oh man you’re going to be spending 7 months on a sailing boat?'
'That must be ****ing boring.’
Well it it sometimes repetitive, but there's so much to do so it's never boring.
I haven't been bored so far.
AND WITH GOOD REASON — BECAUSE ALTHOUGH THE CREW CAN FEEL AS PREPARED AS POSSIBLE, THERE
ARE CERTAINLY UNPREDICTABLE CHALLENGES AHEAD.
Maks: “The other night a storm caught us by surprise, some of us got a little bit seasick.”
Ben: “I want the motion to just stop.”
“Ben there’s a shark!” Ty: “Right there!
F me, see it?”
Paul: “So much drama!”
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