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12
PAKU VIEWS ISSUE 3 SPRING/SUMMER 2011-12
Whale
Warrior
by Rowena Brown
The Ady Gil prior to her stop in Tairua in November, 2009 and before heading off to Antartica. Photo: Larry Routledge.
however in 2008 he smashed the world record in an
electrifying 61 days, shaving 11 from the previous
record.
To promote his record attempt and attract sponsors, Pete
brought the Earthrace into coastal ports throughout New
Zealand. The fact that his mum, Betty Bakewell, lives
here made Tairua a logical stop. He has been holidaying
here since 1997. “I love Tairua and have spent many
weekends here eeling and getting tua tuas, mussels and
crayfsh”, he recalls. “It hasn’t changed much– it’s still a
hunter-gatherer’s paradise”.
Pete’s love and compassion for the environment and
animals came early in life. In a recent conversation
with his mum, Betty, on the deck of her Tairua home,
she talked of raising her fve children on a ffth acre in
Hamilton. “I tried to give the kids a country life in the
city,” says Betty. “They had all sorts of animals and birds
as pets, including a possum.” Pete even had a pet spider
he named Hercules.”
First-born of her twin sons, Pete revealed an awesome
fortitude from birth. Betty said, “When Pete was only 24
hours old he stood up on his feet while I was holding him
- he was that strong”. Little did she know that he would
grow up as a man willing to risk his life for his beliefs.
Betty and her husband Stan, (Pete’s step-dad), were
teenage sweethearts who reconnected 40 years after
they frst met. Looking for a peaceful place to live, they
found and moved to Tairua 14 years ago. Like Pete, they
I frst met Pete Bethune in 2006 while his boat
Earthrace was docked at Tairua wharf. Stepping
down into the tiny cabin space of this extraordinary
craft to meet him, I was struck by his energy and the
intensity of his passion. We recently caught up again
over a cappuccino at Manaia Cafe. When speaking
of the multitude of environmental issues screaming
out for advocacy, he described himself as “a lion in a
feld of zebras”.
- Rowena Brown
In 2006, author and environmentalist Pete Bethune was
on a mission to break the world record as the fastest
powerboat to circumnavigate the globe without leaving
a carbon footprint. You may remember seeing the
Earthrace, shortly after its launch, docked at Tairua
wharf. A fantastical feat of eco-engineering, this carbon-
fbre, bio-fueled, ocean going trirmaran was designed to
actually pierce through waves. It could withstand seven
metres of water above the cabin’s windscreen. Pete’s
frst attempt at the record in 2007 was unsuccessful,