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Colin Quincy 33 years ago in his boat Trespasser: “I will always remember the first day I surfed my boat down a 20-foot wave” (click to enlarge)
Shaun’s boat, ‘Tasman Trespasser ll’, ready to go. Images courtesy of Shaun Quincy (click to enlarge)
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ExWeb interview with Colin Quincey, “Plan, plan, plan and then give it your best shot”
Posted: Jan 13, 2010 03:24 pm EST
It was 1977 with no GPS or iPod; he navigated with a sextant, sang songs and did maths while rowing across the Tasman Sea for 63 days. Colin Quincy remains the only person to cross the Tasman solo and survive.
ExWeb’s Correne Coetzer caught up with Colin in Australia while helping his son, Shaun with his last preparations to follow in his father’s footsteps.
ExplorersWeb: How do you feel about your son’s row?
Colin: I’m excited about it and I hope he beats the record.
ExplorersWeb: You were the first to row the Tasman back in 1977 and had nobody’s experience you could learn from. How did you prepare yourself for the row?
Colin: I trained by towing tires behind a dingy in Auckland harbour combined with a lot of careful research and planning plus 10,000 nautical miles of sailing around the world.
ExplorersWeb: How were things different then from now?
Colin: The biggest difference would have to be the use of GPS and also satellite communication. I didn’t talk to anyone and all my navigation was by the stars using a sextant.
ExplorersWeb: You had no communication / satellite phone / music players / audio books with you. How did you keep yourself going?
Colin: I rowed for 63 Days and to entertain myself (apart from smoking) I would navigate constantly, sing songs, read books and do mathematical problems.
ExplorersWeb: What bad experiences did you have during your row?
Colin: Blisters, boils, salt sores. I pulled a muscle in my back which stopped me from rowing for 10 days.
ExplorersWeb: What safety measures did you have?
Colin: I carried an emergency radio beacon and I was constantly tied to my boat.
ExplorersWeb: What great moments do you remember?
Colin: I will always remember the first day I surfed my boat down a 20-foot wave.
ExplorersWeb: What advice can you give to young rowers?
Colin: Plan, Plan, Plan and then give it your best shot!
ExplorersWeb: Would you like to do it again today with your life experience and all the tech?
Colin: There is no point in doing it again for me, I would have preferred to have the tech gear but I wouldn’t do it again as I have no desire to do it twice.
In 1977 Colin Quincey made history by completing the first ever single-handed row across the Tasman. He rowed the 2200 km in 63 days. He left Hokianga Harbour in Northland, New Zealand and landed at Noosa in Queensland, Australia on 10 April 1977. Colin remains the only person to cross the Tasman solo and survive.
His son, 25-year old Shaun is about to follow in his father’s footsteps by rowing the reverse direction.
Colin’s boat was named Tasman Trespasser and Shaun thought it fitting to name his boat and expedition “Tasman Trespasser II”.
Colin Quincey defines the old school adventurer. At age 17, Colin left his hometown of Yorkshire, England to participate in the tall ships race around the world, serving on the George Voch, a German square rigger, eventually sailing into Hawaii, which was to be his home for some time as an apprentice to the sea.
After sailing the oceans of the world, New Zealand became his home and the desire for adventure began brewing. While Colin was working on the New Zealand spirit of adventure he was triggered by some of the young cadets lack of interest in trying new things and pushing their own limits.
The cotton wool wrapping up the young people of the world needed to be removed and Colin Quincey was going to be the one to show them how to do it. The Tasman Trespasser campaign was born and Colin was to row the Tasman 6 months later, making history and putting New Zealand on the map of adventure again.
Colin’s life between then and now hasn’t slowed one bit. After serving 25 years with the Royal New Zealand Navy, Colin has worked with disadvantaged children in Tonga, Thailand and Cambodia.
Colin Quincey was born on 8 May 1945 and lives in Darwin, Australia. His hobbies are reading and cricket. Apart from being and ocean rower, Colin served in the New Zealand Navy for 25 years and was an English Teacher. The latest book he read is “Sphere of Influence” by Kyle Mills.
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