The Mumbai Harbour nowadays is at one of its proudest moments. With Queen Victoria romancing it for a night...and the World (a residential luxury cruise-liner) kissing its waters...
But the best part is the week-long presence of the Vasco-Da-Gama Yacht Rally sailboats and its participants.
It was a sunny Tuesday afternoon when Team GIIRA caught up with Captain Lo for a friendly chat aboard his sailing yacht Mistral.
Lodwijk Brust the organizer of the Vasco da Gama Rally touched upon varied subjects from the name of his boat to the adventures he has had with her and his sailor dogs in India and across the world!
Below are excerpts from an hour and a half long exclusive tete-a-tete with the man himself...aboard his life's true love...
WHY MISTRAL?
Mistral is the north-eastern winds in the Mediterranean and has been a constant companion for this sailorman.
All the boats Lodwijk Brust has had so far have been named after these winds. His present sailboat is built on a Southerly design and has a motor with a 65 horsepower engine.
A 16 year-old boat, its surprising how immaculate its condition and up-keep is, considering that Lo has been sailing solo (apart from this time, with his companion John on-board too). It is 46ft in lenght
It had solar panels, and we also got to see wind turbines on another boat which was also a part of the race.
Boats from France, Canada, England and Holland are part of the Orbit Mumbai to Goa Regatta.
WHY VASCO-DA-GAMA?
The rally has been specially named after the European connection of the two
countries. Vasco da Gama was a Portuguese explorer who discovered an ocean route from Portugal to the East. The name is acknowledged in all the lands en route of the rally!
The purpose of the rally is that it is a non profit event that seeks to bring sailors together to sail and explore various countries and their cultures. Most sailors are retired with time for leisure and plenty of energy to keep them active and occupied with a passion to sail.
THE SAILOR YEARS
Talking of adventure, Lo has endured everything from wrecked boats to sickness and hospitalization in a foreign country to facing the politics of different countries. Once he almost got imprisoned for allowing a young and enthusiastic Indian to join him on his voyage from Goa to Kochin, unaware of the fact that citizens were not allowed to sail on a foreign vessel.
Lo also spoke about how they were held in the Greek-occupied Cyprus since they had previously travelled years back to other half of Cyprus occupied by Turks. Due to the political issues and the two halves being at loggerheads, they would have been in trouble if it wasnt that the media was extensively covering the event.
WHAT INDIA NEEDS?
Lo points out that the maritime law structure of this country is clearly undefined. The main problem lies in lack of differentiation of commercial vessels from pleasure crafts.
Another area of concern is the infrastructure. If Lo would have temporary pontoons set up, these would be gone in less than 2 months. A permanent pontoon facility is very essential to facilitate refueling, parking and maintenance of boats that visit the harbor and these seem to be missing in India.
Apart from these, Lo was most thrilled about the Internet facility and the fact that he paid only Rs. 500 a month as compared to Rs. 60,000 in Holland!
ON-BOARD COMMUNICATION
Lodwijk Brust is in constant communication with the other participants over VHF. They have a daily morning conference over the radio. Lo updates them with safety measures and what precautions need to get taken.
Apart from that, the sailors keep their fingers crossed and give their all to the spirit of adventure!
We wish Lo and the participants all the best for the Festival of Sails, the last leg of the Rally which is infact a regatta, and look forward to meeting them again in the future, hopefully real soon!
Apr 12, 2008
Lo and Behold : On-board the Heartfelt MISTRAL !
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