Yachtsman hurt in storm

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32498, 7 January 1971, Page 2

Yachtsman hurt in storm

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright) LONDON, Jan. 5.

The British yachtsman, Chay Blyth, has badly gashed his forehead fighting mountainous seas in the Pacific, Reuter reported from London yesterday.

Blyth left Britain, on October 18 in an attempt to sail solo round-the-world on an east-west route. He told of the accident in a message sent to a Wellington radio station and relayed to the British Steel Corporation, his sponsor. Blyth said: “The seas were mountainous. I hope they never get any bigger. I was thrown across the cockpit and gashed my forehead badly. But it is mending.” He has been sailing with the tiller lashed on his 59ft all-steel ketch British Steel, because of faulty self-steering gear. In a radio message Blyth said the boat was handling well, but the voyage might take longer because of the need to alter the sail trim. His last reported position was air it 800 miles west of Cape Horn and 500 miles from the nearest land on the South American Pacific coast.

Blyth is about 4000 miles from New Zealand by the direct route. He hopes to be in regular contact with Wellington by radio. Drifting icebergs could present another danger to him when he enters the southern ocean in the next few days.

A Press Association message from Wellington said that Blyth had been in touch with Radio Wellington only once so far, but was expected to make regular use of the service as he crossed the Pacific; according to a spokesman for the radio.

The spokesman said the only' message from Blyth had been received at 1.20

a.m. on January 3, and took the form mainly of a test message to check the service and advise that he was approaching the range of this Post Office short-wave station, which normally controls coastal ship-to-shore messages. “We expect that we will

work him regularly, once a week or perhaps even more often if he wishes,” the spokesman said. “The circuit conditions will, however, vary from day to day and this may affect reception,” he said. “We are prepared to accept traffic for him in the form of an ordinary radio-tele-gram, although we cannot guarantee when it will be passed on, as this is determined by when he decides to call us.” He said the message received from the 30-year-old yachtsman contained no Information on his position. Blyth hopes to be the first man to sail singlehanded round the world non-stop from east to west, against the prevailing winds and currents. The picture shows Blyth’s yacht, photographed when he was leaving Southampton.