ANTIGUA — For a man who's about to leave on an ocean voyage spanning 26,000 nautical miles, Dan Turk seems surprisingly relaxed.
After successfully completing a qualifying leg across the Atlantic from Portugal to Antigua, in which he finished fourth among 15 entrants, the Thunder Bay high school teacher will once again hoist the sail of his homemade boat Little Bea on Feb. 23.
It will mark the official start of the Mini Globe Race 2025, a journey that will take 13 months to complete.
In an interview Tuesday, Turk said even though "it's a heck of a lot longer than the pre-qualifier," he's confident in his ability to complete the trip safely.
"There's been some racing with a lot of people who have a lot of ocean miles. I feel pretty good about that fourth place finish," he said. "I don't have any real worries. I think the biggest challenge is going to be going through the Indian Ocean and coming around the Cape of Good Hope on the southern part of Africa, because there are some big weather systems in that area, some big tidal waters, and some fast currents."
"We might have to dip into a lot of different spots to sit out some weather."
All the competitors, of which Turk is the only Canadian, are using 5.8-metre-long homemade plywood yachts.
In the first stage, it will take them 10 to 12 days to reach Panama.
Various legs across the Pacific will bring the racers to places such as Tahiti, Tonga and Fiji.
"I'm really keen on the South Pacific and those different islands. Those are really exotic places for me," Turk said. "And just meeting the people, which I think is going to be really cool."
It's not the prize – the winner gets a trophy – but rather his love of sailing and adventure that motivated him to enter the race.
"I really enjoy being at sea and being independent. And I don't mind the solitude. There's no loneliness. It's just a little bit of solitude."
Turk will be well-connected with the outside world and have the ability to text and phone via satellite when necessary.
The racers will also be able to track each other's positions on a regular basis.
He said his race manager, Morgan Ellis, will be instrumental in keeping him updated with available weather forecasts, even if it might take awhile to download the information.
People who want to follow him on his epic voyage have various options, including his website, his Facebook page, Instagram, or the YB Races app.
"You can look up the Mini Globe Race, and you can actually track me and all the other competitors," he said. "I guess they use Google Maps or Google Earth to make that happen. You can zoom in and check status and data, and all kinds of stuff. That's a lot of fun."
In Antigua, Turk has been undergoing physiotherapy for sciatica that developed during the voyage from Portugal, when he got hurt and damaged a nerve.
He said he's gradually feeling better, but has made arrangements to see another therapist upon reaching Panama.
"I'll manage. Yeah, it'll be good," he predicted.
