On April 9, 1977, Colin Quincey hauled his plywood boat up Marcus Beach in Queensland, becoming the first person to cross the Tasman Sea under his own power. He had been rowing for 63 days and seven hours. It was an achievement so significant that in the three decades since, no one has achieved a solo crossing again. One recent attempt ended fatally.

Step up Shaun Quincey, Colin’s son. He may share his father’s DNA but he will need more than a genetic predisposition to achieve what he has in mind—the first solo crossing of the Tasman from Australia to New Zealand, and the only solo crossing in any direction since his father’s.

Tasman Trespasser 2 is under construction at Salthouse’s yard in Greenhithe, Auckland. The 7.3m plywood, fibreglass and Kevlar rowing boat was designed along similar lines to the seaworthy Woodvale Pairs boats, initially designed for the Atlantic Rowing Race and used in numerous ocean crossings since. John Salthouse built Colin Quincey’s boat 30-odd years ago and now the old guard is overseeing the construction for the next generation of adventurer.

Family pride is at stake. Last year a pair of Australian kayakers crossed the Tasman in 62 days, beating Colin Quincey’s time by 24 hours. ‘Beating the two kayakers by myself will certainly encourage me to pull on the blades a little harder each day,’ says Shaun. But he’s not just racing the kayakers. ‘I’ll never live it down if I don’t beat Dad.’

Quincey intends putting to sea from Sydney Harbour on the back of a storm front in early November this year. The swell and wind will aid his passage eastwards but, in a journey expected to take around two months, adverse conditions will have to be endured rather than avoided.

The New Zealand Geographic Trust is delighted to support Shaun Quincey in this adventure and we will follow his preparations and voyage on these pages, in New Zealand Geographic’s E-News (subscribe at www.nzgeographic.co.nz) and on Shaun’s website www.tasmantrespasser.com.