Asianet News Dialogues: Commander Abhilash Tomy (Retd) on his 'Paisa Vasool' 30,000-mile journey
It is only when you go through a storm that you can say that the trip was 'Paisa Vasool', said Commander Abhilash Tomy (retd) while retracing his gruelling 30,000-mile journey in the Golden Globe Race 2022. Watch this special edition of the Asianet News Dialogues to know more about his journey.
FollowIt is only when you go through a storm that you can say the trip was 'Paisa Vasool', said Commander Abhilash Tomy (retd) while retracing his gruelling 30,000-mile journey in the Golden Globe Race 2022.
Taking part in a special edition of the Asianet News Dialogues, Commander Abhilash (Retd) said: "The first storm was on January 26. And the second one was on February 7. The second storm toppled my boat twice and caused a lot of damage to the boat. I kept repairing these things. Finally, the paddle of my wind pilot broke, and I had to find a solution very quickly. The wind was pushing me towards Chile. I had a wind of 30-40 knots, which is a lot. The night was falling, and there were no lighthouses around. It was quite interesting."
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"I really enjoyed the storms. In fact, there was a point when I was complaining that there are no storms. It's only when you go through a storm that you can say (the trip was) 'Paisa Vasool'. I mean what is the point of going to Cape Horn if you do not find a storm; I might as well sail in the Bay of Bengal," he added.
Commander Abhilash (retd) started out on September 4 last year from France on his boat 'Bayanat'. He scripted history on April 29 when he became the first Asian to complete the competition by circumnavigating the globe in 236 days, 14 hours and 46 minutes. In 2018, he suffered a spinal injury after rough seas and powerful winds in the southern Indian Ocean, one of the remotest spots on Earth, crippled his yacht SV Thuriya.
Recalling his journey, the retired Indian Navy officer said, "The toughest part of sailing is sailing when there is no wind. It is very stressful and tiring to keep the boat moving when there is no wind. In a storm, it is very easy to keep the boat moving."
"I went through two areas which were of concern. Close to Portugal, Orcas (species of whales) have started attacking sailboats. These Orcas are teaching their little ones to attack in the same way. This has led to the sinking of a few boats as well. And close to West Africa, I was warned about the threat of pirates. It was not a very safe place. Luckily, I did not have to encounter any of these problems," he said.
Talking about his diet, he said: "As per my manager's calculations, I required something like 6-8 lakh calories to finish this journey. We tried to source food from 3 different sources. One was tinned meat, which I used to have with cooked rice. I had food from the Defence Food Research Laboratory (DFRL); I could just open the packet, heat up and eat it. And I had frozen food, in which you add hot water to make it edible. Other than this I had muesli and milk for breakfast, a lot of cashew and peanuts for snacks, and a lot of popcorn as well."
He further said that on a good day, he would get to sleep for about 5 hours. "That was not even at a stretch. You sleep and then you wake up. You sleep for 15 minutes and then wake up to see if everything is alright. You keep doing this for eight months," he said. Â
The retired Indian Navy officer lamented the lack of financial support for sailing in the country.
"I was lucky to get a sponsor this time. My experience with Indian sponsors has been very bad. And I do not understand why nobody would support sailing. In 2013, when I did my first non-stop circumnavigation, it was considered so important an achievement that the Present of India himself came down to receive me. That's something that has never happened. In 2018, I had the figures of earned media evaluation for the race, and that was quite encouraging. I thought that people would support me in 2022 on the basis of that. But I believe people in India think that sailing as a sport does not get eyeballs, so it is not worth investing in. I was very lucky to get Bayanat as the sponsor. They took just five minutes to take a decision. Even before I signed the contract, Bayanat was already dispersing the money. So because of a UAE company, the India flag could go around the world," Commander Abhilash (retd) said.
For now, Commander Abhilash (Retd) has no plans to set up an academy to mentor young sailors. He said, "That will mean I will have to work with Panchayats, state government and regulations. I have done a lot of file pushing in the North and South Blocks (in New Delhi). I mean that is a project in itself. There is a level to which the government can help an athlete or a sport. And I wanted to prove that if a private sponsor steps in and sponsors the Golden Globe Race, they will get immense value out of it, which is what has happened now. I hope yachting in India finds the same support as cricket does."
