SA surfer nominated for Laureus after cross-Atlantic paddle
Johannesburg - Between a series of terrifying shark encounters, a capsized craft and being thrown overboard, it’s hard for Chris Bertish to single out his most frightening moment during his recent record-breaking journey across the Atlantic Ocean.
That’s because there were just so many of them, says the South African Big Wave surfer. “Almost every day was filled with scary moments,” he reveals. “It’s a big open ocean and you’re very much alone out there.
“There were a couple of shark encounters that were terrifying and numerous times when I got thrown off, or the craft capsized.”
The 42-year-old set out on the greatest ocean adventure ever by paddling a modified stand-up paddle (Sup) craft over 6400km across the Atlantic Ocean to Antigua, completely solo, and unassisted, for charity.
Bertish departed from the coast of Morocco on December 6 last year, paddling 1 944 000 strokes across the Atlantic Ocean for 93 days, finally reaching the English Harbour in Antigua.
By achieving this feat, he became the first man to cross the Atlantic Ocean on a stand-up paddle board.
But the journey to Antigua was far from smooth-sailing. In fact, Bertish’s life was at risk every day. The internationally-acclaimed speaker and Guinness Stand-Up Paddle Boarding world record holder recalls an incident two weeks into his journey where a large creature that resembled a whale tried to sink his craft.
“I was caught in a large storm with 30-40 knot winds, one step below hurricane level.
“The creature got caught in my parachute anchor attached to the craft and was trying to take me down underneath the surface, and I had to get out on deck in the middle of the night in the middle of the storm to cut myself free.”
Picture: Marco Bava
There were many times when Bertish thought his specialised Sup craft, the ImpiFish, was going to sink.
“There’s nothing more frightening than lying in the cabin knowing you’re slowly sinking into the ocean. Because of the tempestuous sea conditions, the deck of the ImpiFish was under water pretty much the entire journey and my hatches were constantly leaking.”
But giving up was not an option for the Cape Town-born surfer. Bertish thought about the thousands of children who would benefit from his journey, and knew there was no way he could turn back.
Bertish embarked on the extreme journey to raise money for three charities - the Signature of Hope Trust, The Lunchbox Fund and Operation Smile.
He raised over R6 million from his journey. “Thinking about all the children who would benefit was such a powerful and motivating force, daily, so no matter how challenging it was out there, I knew getting to the other side and succeeding was the only outcome.”
Bertish’s heroics have now been recognised by global sporting movement Laureus, who have nominated him for a Laureus Sports Award for Sporting Moment of the Month for December.
Bertish is delighted. “As a South African, former President Nelson Mandela has been a massive influence on my life, and everything I do is done to inspire others to believe in themselves, what’s possible, and to influence positive change.
“Through the sports and adventures I undertake, I’ve used my passion for sport to power my purpose, and by doing that have found a way to inspire a generation, and positively impact on and change the lives of millions. That’s the most rewarding purpose in the world.”
Recalling his record-breaking journey across the Atlantic, Bertish tells how each day he would spend around 10-16 hours paddling in 3-4 hour shifts.
“I’d need to prepare my food, hydrate, make water, and check my power, water desalination and navigation systems constantly, every hour of the day and night.
“Somewhere in-between, I’d catch a bit of sleep, but never more than one and half hours at a time.”
Even though Bertish spent 93 days all alone, he had no time to feel lonely.
“Solitude just wasn’t something I had time for. There were so many obstacles and life-threatening issues to deal with, daily, that loneliness was never a challenge.”
Bertish plans to spend the next two years travelling the world and giving motivational talks.
“I’ll be inspiring people with the story of this last project, and how people in life can conquer their own fears, shift comfort zones and overcome their challenges in life. This while working on writing my new book, Limitless, and also working on producing the new film, Standing Alone, about the Sup crossing, which is going to be incredible.
“I also have a couple of smaller projects over the next couple of years that will set a couple of new world records.”
What comes after that will be mind-blowing, he says.
“The next massive project I’m working on for 2021, is simply incredible! I’ve been working on it for a while already, but it will blow people’s minds It takes all the sports I love and connects them all around the world, while being 100% focused on education, conservation and inspiration.”
* To vote for Bertish for Sporting Moment of the Month, visit www.mylaureus.com