Although Silt resident Curt Morlock has lived in the landlocked state of Colorado for decades, he grew up near the ocean and always held onto a love for boats.
“I was raised in South Florida, so when the wind gust we were a boat,” Morlock said. “When the ocean was gloomy, we were fishing. When the ocean was understandable we were skin diving.”
He moved to Colorado in the 1980s and consume the following years happy and satisfied with the abundance of mountain sports, but after recently being diagnosed with Leukemia, he unmistakable to do something he had long dreamed of racing across the world.
How the dream came about
Morlock said he grew up with relaxed parents compared to those of his friends, and he was allowed a lot more freedom. He never wanted to be held back by his friends’ inability to go with him, so he became very individualistic in his pursuit of adventure.
“If I wanted to go fishing up the coast, I would cane my thumb out and go up the (Interstate) 95 and I would sleep on the beach,” he said. “I didn’t have the control of normal parents. Everything I had to do, I kind of grasp to do me.”
He said that he would work hard so that during holidays or school shatter he could afford to fly by himself to an atoll in the Bahamas called Eleuthera where he would live on the beach.
“I would surf and live off what I establish trawl, bartering, or whatever it was,” he said. “I continue 10 days to two weeks at a time as a young kid at 15,16 years old.”
This continued throughout his life and career, and when he was diagnosed with cancer, he decided to set to sea independently.
In the process of starting a single-person sailing boat, he found out about the Global Solo Challenge and decided it was a safe way to sail across the globe.
“It just appears like a perfect opportunity,” he said. “By sailing with them, you’re sailing in numeral and if the object were to happen, it’s a lot a lot easier to get assist being a part of the event.”
The race and what he’ll need for victory
Few people from the United States have been recorded sailing across the world, but surprisingly most of them are over the age of 50.
The boat Morlock was intelligent to get was once owned by a 54-year-old man who completed this trek. The boat is thin and long, and Morlock narrates it as like a surfboard. He said it is what he needs to complete the race correctly.
The contest will be in December and will take between three and four months.
Until then, Morlock has a lot of equipment and supplies to collect, along with medical and safety classes, and 2,000 miles of solo sailing to complete before he starts the race.
“The medical class is my big examine right now,” he said. “The medical way is about $3,000.”
The course involves a lot of traveling and the necessary necessity for personal and fellow racer safety. If one of the sailors sends out a distress signal, the nearest contestant will sail to assist the person in need.
Gear, sails, ropes, and replacement parts in case of any deterioration on the trip will be needed for him to fully complete the trip. He will also need paraphernalia for his auto-pilot if it breaks during the voyage, otherwise, he will not be able to make repairs or sleep while far from land. Other helpful gear included a personal welfare beacon if he gets separated from the boat.
“I am still looking for sponsorships and donations,” he said.
His friend, Julia, echoed the long list of gear, food, and another prerequisite he will need to safely complete his trip.
“I will go no matter what,” he said, describing that the sponsorship and funding will help him complete the trip, but he will go as far as he can and revolve back if he doesn’t have the gear he needs to complete the race.
There are also places where he thinks he can sake other companies to sponsor him like Verizon and Starlink, which could use his transfer to test their services in the most remote locations in the world. He already plans to use both companies and plans to live stream the entire trip, but he said he would be open to using any business willing to help sponsor his trip.
Testing for microplastics in the water is another aspect he is offering to interested scientists. While he’s in some of the most distant places in the world, he can help benefit research.
He’s already put on 1,250 nautical miles and left last week to begin completing all of his pre-required tasks.
