Alternator problem forces Umdloti yachtie Donald Alexander to quit prestigious Route du Rhum race
While there was a small chance he could have made the journey to Guadeloupe, the risk of sailing 2 500 nautical miles without a safe place to stop should things have gone wrong was simply not worth the risk.
Problems with an alternator has forced intrepid Umdloti sailor Donald Alexander to return to Ponta Delgada and retire from the historic international Route du Rhum yacht race.
Having to pull out of the prestigious race after 14 days into the Transatlantic solo race came as a huge disappointment for the seasoned North Coast seafarer.
Completing this year’s event would have been his second successful race after he finished 23rd in 2018, taking 26 days and an hour to reach the finish line.
“It is with a heavy heart that I make my return to Ponta Delgada. It was becoming apparent that there were problems with the alternator and being able to charge the batteries,” Alexander wrote on his blog last week..
He said the alternator was the lifeblood for his yacht. Without it he would not be able to use on-board autopilot navigation and communication instruments.
“But there are no huge regrets and we managed to put Save Soil on the map.”
The goal of the race for Alexander was to help promote Save Soil, a movement of the Conscious Planet organisation which aims to combat worldwide soil degradation.
An update from Alexander just the day prior to retiring, indicated that mechanical issues had been plaguing him for most of his journey, forcing him to make a stop at the Azores where he consulted boat experts.
While he was able to obtain new batteries which were fully charged on-shore, these quickly drained out at sea.
To continue the race further would not be worth the risk, he explained.
The Route du Rhum yacht race sees hundreds of seasoned skippers race from Saint Malo in northern France to the French overseas territory of Guadeloupe in the Caribbean every four years.
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