World-renowned adventurer visits Mtuba
Solo adventurer, Riaan Manser, visited Mtubatuba on Tuesday evening to speak about his recent rowing trip from Morocco to New York.
AFTER deciding to turn his life around 12 years ago, Riaan Manser has transformed himself from ‘working stiff’ to world-renowned solo adventurer.
Visiting Mtubatuba on Tuesday, Manser spoke of his travels and experiences.
Born and bred in Richards Bay, Manser took his career in the business world to Cape Town where one day, at his home in Gordon’s Bay, he decided to do something meaningful with his life.
It was then that the idea of a bicycle trip around Africa popped into his head.
Speaking at Mtubatuba Christian Academy on Tuesday evening, Manser told the audience that deciding to do something radical is one thing but ‘understanding there’s an ocean between saying and doing’ is crucial.
The bicycle trip started Manser’s career as a solo-adventurer and promptly catapulted him into the record books as the first person to cycle the perimeter of Africa.
No walk in the park, the 37 000km, two-year trip saw him hijacked off his bicycle and almost killed by drugged teenage rebels in Liberia.
The spirit of adventure well ensconced in his being, Manser went on to complete some more ‘world firsts’, by kayaking solo around Madagascar and with handicapped friend, Dan Skinstad, around Iceland.
Latest epic
Manser’s visit to Mtubatuba, however, was to talk about his recent rowing expedition from Morocco to New York.
Using Christopher Columbus’ route, Manser and girlfriend, Vastie Geldenhuys, set off from Morocco via the Canary Islands, Bahamas, Miami and on to New York.
With no backup except a life raft, the couple pulled in to New York on 20 June after 1.8 million oar strokes each and 133 days at sea.
A trip packed with stories, this expedition saw Geldenhuys reeling Manser in on a fishing line after strong currents separated him from the vessel.
All this to get some photos of the boat from the sea.
Thinking the adventure was coming to an end, when the couple rowed in to Miami, they were mistaken for Cuban refugees and surrounded by US Coastguard helicopters and vessels.
After realising the case of mistaken identity, the Coastguard granted Manser and Geldenhuys permission to enter Miami.
This trip heralded another world first, as Geldenhuys became the first African woman to row across an ocean.
While Manser isn’t sure what his future on the adventuring front holds, he and Geldenhuys are in the process of signing TV deals in the USA.
