Hungarian single blades a "canoe" across the Atlantic in 75 days

[Glenn MacGrady]

“I crossed the ocean to see the power that makes the world go round,” the 44-year-old athlete wrote on Facebook on Sunday, having reached Antigua on Saturday evening (Hungarian time) after 5,123 kilometers, and remarked that this was his second ocean crossing in the world, after his 77-day trip in 2012.

Originally designed and built by Nándor Fa, Rakonczay rebuilt the boat based on his experience in 2012, adding a new cabin, capital weight, steering system, and state-of-the-art technical equipment.

Here is a Hungarian news report of his trip last month, which has an embedded video and Facebook links:

Gábor Rakonczay Completes Solo Atlantic Crossing in Canoe

Extreme athlete Gábor Rakonczay completed his last expedition in 75 days and 10 hours, during which he crossed the Atlantic Ocean alone in his canoe, and as he said, his career has now come to an end. “I crossed the ocean to see the power that makes the world go round,” the 44-year-old athlete...

hungarytoday.hu

Here is a website devoted to the similar trip Rakonczay completed in 2012:

Szóló transzatlanti kenuzás | Rakonczay Gábor extrém sportoló

Az Atlanti-óceán kelet-nyugat irányú (transzatlanti) átkenuzása Rakonczay Gábor által egyedül, a világon elsőként.

rakonczay.com

 

[Gamma1214]

I don't care how your pronounce it; carrying that mutha has gotta be a B!tc#.

 

[SouthernKevlar]

I don't care how your pronounce it; carrying that mutha has gotta be a B!tc#.

But there ain't no portages on an ocean!

 

[Chip]

I always wonder about ocean crossing paddlers. The scenery doesn’t change much each day. Different conditions, maybe. But it sure seems like it would be monotonous.

The kayakers must be real loose screws. Where do you take a dump in a kayak? At least in a canoe you could move around.

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

I don't care how your pronounce it; carrying that mutha has gotta be a B!tc#.

But there ain't no portages on an ocean!

Well, he apparently portaged Antigua. Here's how:



If you watch his FB video, you'll see his long-shafted paddle is a bent shaft that looks to be about 5°-7°. I also would have expected his canoe to have a rudder, but I don't see one in any of the FB pictures.

His canoe is the same kind of enclosed capsule that a couple of kayakers have used to paddle across oceans. He wanted to do it single blade, and his use of the single blade is what allowed him to claim the ocean-crossing "canoe" record from Guinness.

(I've always maintained that the use of a single blade vs. a double blade is the clearest way to distinguish canoeing from kayaking because the hull shapes and seating positions can be virtually the same.)

 

[Gamma1214]

Well, he apparently portaged Antigua...

cheater

Seriously though, I would have to agree with Chip. Looking at the same scenery every day would have to be the hardest part... especially solo. Not something I'll be doing for sure but certainly interesting.

 

[yknpdlr]

When I paddle long distances on rivers or lakes, most often some kinds of shore landmarks are all along my route, I pick an observable point (an odd tree, or a bend along my path) at some distance ahead, a few hundred yards, quarter mile, whatever is distinctive within easy sight. IN wide open water, I have even focused on a blank spot ahead where a wave may have just broken. I do the same thing when distance hiking. When I reach the point, I choose another up ahead. Treated as an immediate goal to reach and pass, It keeps me going and avoids boredom, and it and fights both mental and physical fatigue. I don't see how that would work over thousands of miles of open ocean.

 

[SouthernKevlar]

I guess that the only daily goal he could see would be the change on his GPS, sort of like watching the little plane on the screen when flying across the Atlantic, but a lot slower.

Whatever his motive for this trip, it was quite a test of perseverance and persistence. It's not something that I would care to do, but hey, whatever floats your boat!