Posted 03.26.2007 at 6:21 pm
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In our December 2006 issue, we featured an innovatively designed, biodiesel-powered speedboat called Earthrace that was going to attempt to set an around-the-world nautical speed record of 65 days. Skipper Pete Bethune’s intent was to raise awareness of the environmental benefits—and raw power—of biodiesel fuel. That effort came to a tragic end last week when, only nine days into the attempt, Earthrace crashed into a fishing vessel off Guatemala, killing one fisherman and seriously injuring a second (the third member of the boat's crew suffered only minor injuries). Bethune and his crew did everything they could to rescue the fishermen and treat their injuries while the boat limped back to shore, likely saving the lives of the two injured sailors they were able to recover. The mission, of course, was terminated, and the crew remains in Guatemala pending an investigation. For a riveting account of the accident, see Bethune's Captain's blog . —Eric Adams
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Sounds like Sean Penn was at the helm. What a cool guy! Wow... Seems like it was only yesterday when Penn was in New Orleans saving all those hurricane Katrina people with a boat-load of his photographers and a 12oz red cup to bail his sinking boat with.
So.. they set off with yet another stupid excuse for guys to make a loud screaming bunch of noise with a boat, they kill one man, injure 2 others, and pollute the ocean with a bunch of oil and boat parts?!? What was the point again? And why the heck wasnt anyone *watching* where the boat was going? Sounds like a bunch of jerks masquerading as environmentalists to me..
The race wasn't terminated because they were let go. The oil used in the boat was biodegradeable, a little thing called biodiesel. The Earthrace boat was virtually unharmed anyway.
the cool thing with Earthrace, it is bigger than just a few team members or a boat. there's an army of people who still believe in what Earthrace stands for, and they believe they can make a small difference...
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Marine Engineers Beneficial