The 1st time in human history someone will cross the Atlantic Ocean on a Jet Ski. After succeeding glamorously in his previous adventures, Alvaro is now going to “encounter” the Atlantic: A challenge of about 5200 nautical miles! Alvaro will navigate 14 hours a day; 90% on the feet. He will have to resist frostiness and sunburns; or he has to free the Jet Ski from nets. Sometimes a shark comes near. But also indescribable starry skies and dolphins are beyond the experiences.

The 50 days of the trip, a ship will escort the driver. During the ride he will be on his own because the ship is much slower. While waiting for the escort to close down and bring new fuel, he will sleep in a life raft. The Aquarium Barcelona is providing a special ultrasonic device (developed by Dr. Grube at the University of Miami) to keep sharks away.

To get his body used to the salty water he will “live” on the Mediterranean Sea off the cost of Mallorca during September. Additionally he will have to put on 20 kg more, because he will lose 300 grams of weight on every day of the journey.

Atlantik2002: ROME - NEW YORK Expedition

The Spirit of Adventure, Sport and Faith has been the driving force behind the extraordinary journey of Alvaro de Marichalar from Spain, who set a new world record for successfully crossing the Atlantic Ocean on a little 2.9 meters long boat: A Bombardier Sea-Doo XP personal watercraft. Alvaro de Marichalar embarked on this expedition not only to set a world navigation record for Spain, but also to promote anti-drug awareness, safe and responsible boating and to spread the message of peace and unity among people of different nations, religions, races and cultures united by the ocean.

Atlantik 2002, an expedition of nearly 10,000 nautical miles, began on February 23, 2002 in Rome, Italy and ended on July 24, 2002 in New York City, USA. During that time, de Marichalar navigated over 800 hours, most of them while standing up, for an average of 12 hours per day. The first leg of the voyage (Rome to Miami) included 119 expedition days and 54 navigation days. The second leg (Miami to New York) added another 10 navigating days to his journey.

The adventurer has ridden his Sea-Doo watercraft to six different world distance records in Europe since 1982. His latest triumph, Atlantik 2002, represents the first attempt ever at traveling the roughly 10.000 Nautical Miles of open ocean by a person on a watercraft.

As with all of de Marichalar's voyages since 1982, Atlantik 2002 was undertaken to support the Foundation for Aid Against Drug Addiction (FAD) and was endorsed by the Spanish National Drug Program. The crossing was also part of a campaign to promote the Spanish organization, Mensajeros de las Paz, which provides assistance to elders of Spanish descent living in poor conditions around the world.

De Marichalar trained for two months leading up to his departure, adding nearly 20 pounds of body mass to compensate for the weight he would lose during his grueling journey. In addition, he spent a month living alone in a Zodiac raff anchored on the Mediterranean Sea, off the coast of Mallorca, to prepare his mind and body for the numerous lonely hours that he would spend on the Atlantic.

Although the nautical part of the voyage may be finished, de Marichalar's journey is far from over. He is currently involved in many projects that derive from his expedition. They include finishing a chronicle of his adventure, a complete video of his trip featuring breathtaking footage from the sea, as well as numerous public speaking engagements to actively promote his mantra of "spirit, faith and adventure." We were fortunate to speak with this seafaring adventurer during one of the few downtimes afforded by his busy schedule… Where were you born and where do you live now?
I was born in Pamplona, Navarra, Spain. I presently live in Madrid.

When did you first ride a PWC?
In 1982, when I was a student at the University of Miami.

What attracted you to the sport? Why PWCs instead of, say, sailboats for instance?
PWCs are "little boats" You must respect the watercraft to pilot it successfully. You have to be aware that you are on a serious boat. It is powerful, maneuverable, can take you to far away places and is very exciting. PWCs allow you to navigate very close to the water. I have tried all sorts of other boats, but none provide me with the same sensation of being 'in' and not just 'on' the sea. I love these "little boats" because they enable you to experience nature with incredible passion.

When did you start thinking about this trip?
About 10 years ago.

You had four main objectives for this trip. What were they?
To fulfill a dream. To obtain a world navigation record for Spain. To promote anti-drug and anti-alcohol awareness as well as responsible boating practices. To spread the message of peace and unity among people of different nations, religions, races and cultures who are united by the ocean.

"The spirit of adventure, sport and faith" - Have you used this motto for other expeditions?
Yes, this has been my motto for all of my other expeditions. It is my mantra for life and my career. I truly believe that the strength that you derive from these notions is limitless. This is the message that I wish to convey, especially to youth.

At what point in your journey did you break the world record for long distance solo navigation on a personal watercraft?
I surpassed the record when I arrived in Tangiers, Morocco. I actually held the previous solo world record set in 1998: 2,200 nautical miles from the Canary Islands to Bilbao.

How many hours a day did you ride on average?
It depended on the day. I never navigated less than 8 hours at a time. The most was 31 hours straight. There were lots of days when I navigated 28, 22, 18 hour days. On average, I rode for 12 hours, at least 4 of which at night.

Could you describe a typical day for you at sea?
My schedule varied depending on the weather. Typically, I would ride three to four hours, then wait for the support boat to arrive. While waiting, I would sleep for an hour or so on my SEA.DOO XP DI (To make it possible, I had two extra flotation devices installed on both sides of my craft)

The support boat provided me with food, water and fuel, which I received on the go. I met up with the support boat every five hours. It only took one minute, thirty seconds to refuel. The XP features the best design for refueling because despite the sea conditions, no water can get into the tank since the fuel intake is on a high position. This is extremely important!

I would stay with the boat for an hour or so to videotape our progress and then take off about five or six miles away, where I would then eat and continue to navigate for another four to five hours. I was continuously in motion.

What did you eat?
I ate the maximum amount of protein and carbohydrates, and drank 10-12 liters of water daily as the voyage was extremely physically demanding. I needed as much energy as possible. I was rapidly losing weight during the entire trip.

Where did you sleep?
From Rome to the Canary Islands, at ports along the coasts of Italy, Tunisia, Algiria, Spain and Morocco. From The Canaries to Antigua (Ttransatlantic lap) on my own SEA.DOO (while waiting to the chase boat, as we commented before) and arround five hours per day on the support boat (It would stop meanwhile) While sleaping, my crew would tune on my Transatlantic XP. From Antigua to New York, at ports again.

How far away from you was the support boat during your journey?
Very far. It's been a solo crossing, so the support boat was anywhere from 2 to 25 miles away.

How many people were on the support boat?
Six: three skippers, one mechanic, a videographer and one computer coordinator.

What type of weather did you encounter?
Honestly, the weather was terrible for most of the trip. From Rome to Gibraltar and on to Tangiers, it was cold and windy with rough seas. Luckily, we had ONE good day in Morocco.., but then it became difficult again en route to Casablanca. The first 5,000 miles were very difficult. It was wintertime and, consequently, very cold with turbulent waters.

During the latter half of the transatlantic lap, we had better temperatures, but the sea remained very high. From Antigua to Miami, I had to deal with an approaching hurricane, so again, higher temperatures but rough waters.

Miami to New York was a beautiful portion of the trip. I would travel alone; without support boat, since I could refuel, sleep and eat at the numerous ports along the U.S. East Coast. Despite difficult navigation, cold and windy, it was a wonderful lap.

Why did you ride standing up for most of the journey?
I rode standing up to avoid damaging my spine. For me it is the only way. I stood up 95% of the 800 navigated hours.

Could you tell us about one of your incredible adventures at sea?
At sea, you encounter a problem a minute…The transatlantic part of the expedition was the most extreme with strong trade winds from the Northeast averaging 35 knots and 18-foot waves. On May 15th, a big shark was swimming around me when I fell off my PWC, which remained full of water and almost sank. With my support boat 20 miles away, I tried to remain as calm as possible, trying to keep my Sea-Doo from sinking. I activated an emergency bail pump to bail out the water. Twenty-five minutes elapsed before I could get back on my little boat. I thank God, and am grateful the shark wasn't particularly hungry!

How did you retain your focus during your solitary hours at sea?
When alone in the "big blue desert," you tend to fall off your machine and swim a lot, so you have no choice but to keep your focus. You can't afford to make a mistake.

Plus, I so believed in my dream and was driven by the challenge it represented. This filled me with energy and the will to pursue and achieve my goal.

Riding into New York City must have been an incredible experience. Could you describe what you saw and how you felt as you approached the end of your expedition? It was the moment I had dreamed of for years. During my voyage, I had envisioned the Statue of Liberty on the horizon and imagined that she was right there as I was crossing the Atlantic. And then, on July 24th, 2002, at 8 a.m., a NBC TV helicopter was following me toward the Statue of Liberty! It was incredible to fly the flags of all the nations that I had visited. It was a beautifull amazing moment. Tears came to my eyes. I just couldn't believe it. The waters were rough that day. It was cold and windy. But inside, I felt wonderful.

Is there another expedition in the forecast?
I have a few other challenges in mind, however, the principal one is to circumnavigate Japan. Also I will travel from Paris to London in the near future.

For a full account of the Atlantik 2002 Crossing, including Alvaro's daily journal entries and photos, visit the official web site at www.atlantik2002.com . For more information on the Sea-Doo watercraft used in this record setting adventure, go to www.sea-doo.com and www.ocean2002.com and www.atlantik2002.com