Sitrep 6, 25 July 2026. This Jester Challenge finished when Raven crossed the finish line on 24th July 2026.
After John and Raven made it across the Gulf Stream the Atlantic had another sting in the tail when they encountered a complex weather system with periods of gale force winds. Then, whilst making his final approach he went to start his engine and it suffered a problem which John thinks was sediment that had been stirred up in the tank.
Upon crossing the line John made contact with New York Yacht Club and through a variety of message relays a VHF connection was established. They sent out a boat crewed by the commodore, vice commodore and a club officer who found Raven about 4nm from Newport off Brenton Point. They towed him in to Newport Harbour and to a slip at their club. The club manager ensured that John and Raven were taken care of and Norm Bailey assisted with organising communications and operations despite being on a cruise in the Bay of Biscay. Our thanks go to everyone involved at NYC for helping John.
John writes: “I passed Castle Hill Light at 2030 on 24 July 2026. Just thought for the record it might be interesting. I make it 75 days. Newport YC once again have been incredibly good. Hailey was on the radio every hour checking my progress in often at half a knot, although at the end I achieved 3 knots. The launch picked me up and towed into Newport Harbour.”
This has been a significant test of John’s superb seamanship, managing his boat to reach the finish line with sail problems and considerable weather challenges throughout.
Bravo Zulu John and Raven.
As always, John has impressed us with his tenacity and extraordinary sailing abilities. Congratulations on completing the coarse John and being the only competitor left standing.
Best regards, Paul L (MCC).
Congratulations. Epic!