30 Facts About Donald Crowhurst

Donald Crowhurst was born in 1932 in Ghaziabad, then part of British India.

Donald Crowhurst's mother was a schoolteacher and his father worked in the Indian railways.

Donald Crowhurst was a member of the Liberal Party and was elected to Bridgwater Borough Council.

Once committed to the race, Donald Crowhurst mortgaged both his business and home against Best's continued financial support, placing himself in a grave financial situation.

Donald Crowhurst hired Rodney Hallworth, a crime reporter for the Daily Mail and then the Daily Express, as his public relations officer.

The boat Donald Crowhurst built for the voyage, Teignmouth Electron, was a modified 40-foot trimaran designed by Californian Arthur Piver.

Donald Crowhurst's scheme was to prove these devices by sailing round the world with them, then go into business manufacturing the system.

However, Donald Crowhurst had a very short time in which to build and equip his boat while securing financing and sponsors for the race.

Donald Crowhurst had fallen into the water several times while in Cowes, and as he and Eden climbed aboard Teignmouth Electron, he ended up in the water after slipping on the outboard bracket on the stern of the rubber dinghy.

Eden's description of his two days with Donald Crowhurst provides the most expert independent assessment available for both boat and sailor before the start of the race.

Donald Crowhurst recalls that the trimaran sailed immensely swiftly, but could get no closer to the wind than 60 degrees.

Donald Crowhurst didn't take too much bother with it, merely jotting down figures on a few sheets of paper from time to time.

Donald Crowhurst left from Teignmouth, Devon, on the last day permitted by the rules: 31 October 1968.

Donald Crowhurst encountered immediate problems with his boat, his equipment, and his lack of open-ocean sailing skills and experience.

Donald Crowhurst shut down his radio with a plan to loiter in the South Atlantic for several months while the other boats sailed the Southern Ocean, falsify his navigation logs, then slip back in for the return leg to England.

Since leaving, Donald Crowhurst had been deliberately ambiguous in his radio reports of his location.

The pressure on Donald Crowhurst had therefore increased, since he now looked certain to win the "elapsed time" race.

Donald Crowhurst had by this time begun to make his way back as if he had rounded Cape Horn.

Donald Crowhurst continued his writings for a week, eventually amounting to more than 25,000 words.

The state of the boat gave no indication that it had been overrun by a rogue wave, or that any accident had occurred which might have caused Donald Crowhurst to fall overboard.

Donald Crowhurst saw it as a kind of transformation into another state of being.

Donald Crowhurst was thinking in a totally different realm by that stage.

News of Donald Crowhurst's disappearance led to an air and sea search in the vicinity of the boat and its last estimated course.

Donald Crowhurst stayed out in the ocean for the best part of seven months so all in all, he achieved much more than people ever thought he could, he just didn't achieve what his objective was.

The meaning of Donald Crowhurst's voyage has altered greatly since the [1970] book's first publication.

In 1970, Donald Crowhurst was seen as a hoaxer who came to a pathetic end.

Donald Crowhurst, despite his deceptions, was a man of courage and intelligence, who acted as he did because of intolerable circumstances.

Donald Crowhurst reminded us that there are caveats to the idea that 'anyone can sail around the world'.

Donald Crowhurst believed the secret of his success would be untested technology and this philosophy was exposed in the most tragic way.

Donald Crowhurst was a brave, often maligned, example of the fragility of human nature and the vastness of the sea.