Renowned for rough windswept seas and sinking ships, the ‘Cape of Storms’, as it was known by seafarers, has wrecked a total of 26 ships that can still be seen strewn along the rocky peninsula. The first modern rounding of the Cape was done in 1487 by Portuguese explorer Bartolomeu Dias and his crew in an attempt to establish direct trade relations with the far east. Dias called the Cape ‘Cabo das Tormentas’, the original name for the Cape, which directly translated means Cape of Storms.
Growing up around Cape Town, even before being a kiter, I was aware of the rough ocean conditions induced by the gale-force winds in the summer and battered by Southern Ocean storms during the winter months. Tales of shipwrecked sailors and explorers were great fantasies to envision at an early age. I would stare at the ocean and wonder what it was like for these early explorers. These brave sailors had no way of knowing what type of oceanic and environmental conditions they would face, only good faith and trust in their Captain’s decisions and the integrity of their vessel.
Fast forward several centuries to the year 2023, and we find ourselves living in a far more
