Would-be Tasman Sea rower unpopular

Press, 29 June 1987, Page 5

Would-be Tasman Sea rower unpopular

By

GLEN PERKINSON

John Elcock’s third abortive attempt to row the Tasman Sea to New Zealand from Australia has earned him a lawsuit and the ire of Australian fishermen.

The owner of the fishing boat Robin II which rescued Mr Elcock, a former New Zealander, from rough seas about 18 nautical miles off the New South Wales coast has attached a writ to Mr Elcock’s row boat.

“The Press” spoke to Mr Lionel Jarvis, father of the trawler owner, Mr John Jarvis, and an Eden Coastal Patrol officer, Mr Jack Hilmore, last evening.

Mr Hilmore’s version of the rescue differs from that of Mr Elcock’s wife, Petula, who had said that her husband had not called to a passing ship for another boat to tow him back to the port of Eden, about 500 km south of Sydney. She said he had asked only for advice on somewhere to shelter.

Mr Hilmore said that on Wednesday about 6.30 a.m. (Australian time) Mr Elcock called a passing ship and asked a rescue craft to tow him back to Eden from where he had left on his third attempt a day earlier. Once safely back in port Mr Jarvis presented Mr Elcock with a bill for sAustBsoo ($10,000) — the

value of the fish he had missed catching.

Mr Jarvis has returned to sea and was unavailable for comment last evening but his father said Mr Elcock deserved all he got.

Local fishermen had been strongly critical of Mr Elcock, he said. “It was terrible weather when he left. What a mixup, crickey Dick.”

Mr Elcock was untraceable last evening and Mr Jarvis said there “was no way he was staying in town.”

Mr Jarvis sen. read out excerpts from two Australian newspapers which both headlined the oarsman’s ordeal and were critical of his attempt.

From the "Magnet”: “Ignorant New Zealander on an oar and a prayer ... attempted to row the Tasman just to prove it could be done.” Sydney’s “Daily Telegraph” headlined its report: “Rescuers boo lone rower." It said: “Angry fishermen jeered John Elcock who had to be rescued after his third attempt to cross the Tasman singlehandedly failed. “Angry fishermen from Eden lined the wharf, to greet the oarsman. They were swearing. As soon as he was safely ashore he was handed a bill for $B5OO for fish that the boat might have caught.”