Yachting: Round-the-world veteran bids goodbye

By SUZANNE McFADDEN

Mike Quilter, the unsung hero of The Race, is calling it quits after sailing five times around the world.

The Kiwi navigator stepped ashore in Marseilles after a record-blasting 62 days circumnavigating the globe, and announced the end of his round-the-world adventures.

His skipper and long-time friend, Grant Dalton, said Quilter's retirement would "leave a huge hole in my life."

But Quilter had his reasons: "This time I had to put my glasses on to see the damn chart. That's when you know it's time to quit."

After winning the inaugural Race yesterday by at least two days, Dalton could give no higher praise to Quilter, the man who has guided him around the globe three times.

"If I could single people out for the reason we won, it was Mike and 'Clouds' [land-based meteorologist Roger Badham]," he said.

"They placed us perfectly around the track. Mike's extraordinary job of navigating leaves me speechless - I have a big hole to fill now."

Dalton steps from the monster Club Med catamaran to a boat almost half the size to tackle his next round-the-world challenge in the Volvo Ocean Race in September.

Quilter, Dalton's navigator on NZ Endeavour and Merit Cup, will not be going this time because he wants to stay home with his family.

His wife, Robbie, and children, Sam and Jessica, were on the dock to greet him when the boat arrived at 9 pm French time. They did not go to Cook Strait to wave to him when he sailed through 28 days before, so it had been a while since they saw him.

"I want to spend more time with them now. I have enough willpower to call it quits now - not like some people," he said, nudging Dalton.

Not that Quilter did not enjoy himself on this voyage. He loved it.

"It was a very satisfying race - tactically it was very interesting. But the best part was that it was a real adventure," said Quilter, who once sailed non-stop doubled-handed around Australia on catamaran Steinlager I.

"The Volvo race is really hard work, but this was back to the old adventure days. I think The Race has a real future."

Quilter has not turned his back on yachting - his next project is with Badham, calling the weather for Team New Zealand.

In Marseilles, the Club Med crew took over a French restaurant to celebrate.

At the docks, 100,000 people cheered the boat flying the French flag after their 62-day six-hour trip smashed the world record by nine days.

"The crowd surprised us," Dalton said. "We're used to Auckland welcomes but the whole atmosphere here was overwhelming."

Dalton finally had to remove the T-shirt he had been wearing since the start on New Year's Day. He had no choice after being thrown into the freezing waters by his crew.

The nearest Race boat, Innovation Explorer, was 900 miles from the finish when Club Med crossed the line.