CAPE TOWN, December 23 (ANA) – South Africa’s Chris Bertish, internationally acclaimed speaker and big wave surfer, set a new world record on Thursday, becoming the first person to paddle across 300-miles of open ocean, unsupported and unassisted.
Paddling from mainland Morocco to the Canary Islands, Bertish set the 300-mile open ocean record while embarking on the Super Crossing, one of the greatest solo, open ocean adventures ever attempted.
The SUP Crossing journey take Bertish across 4,660 miles of open ocean, travelling the equivalent of a marathon a day for over 120 days straight.
Chris said: “I am stoked to get through this monumental stage and past the Canary Islands. More importantly, to move forward into the trans-Atlantic stage of the Sup Crossing and better conditions.
“Knowing that we’ve almost raised enough to build one school and to feed and make an exponential difference for so many more kids is the best Christmas present I could receive!”
Bertish departed on The SUP Crossing from Agadir in Morocco, on December 6, 2016, and began the voyage to the Canary Islands, across the Atlantic Ocean, towards the Caribbean Leeward Island of Anegada.
Just months prior to Chris’ departure, the same transatlantic venture was attempted but not completed by Nicolas Jarossay, who experienced life-threatening damage to his 21-foot board early in his journey.
Earlier in the week directly following his departure, Bertish broke Bart de Zwart’s world record, for the furthest distance paddled, solo and unsupported as he covered 193-miles, about 10-miles offshore.
Bertish commented: “Bart de Zwart has been a great inspiration to me and even sent me a note wishing me well. I have the utmost respect for Bart as well as Nicolas Jarossay.” – African News Agency (ANA)
