SYDNEY—A tropical cyclone may force two Australian kayakers, who are paddling to New Zealand, to abandon their quest.
Wind, mechanical failures and low morale have delayed the duo's planned Christmas arrival in Auckland to New Year's Day.
Justin Jones, 24, and James Castrission, 25, were dealt another blow today with news that a cyclone was forming about 2,000km north-east of New Zealand.
An independent support company, Race Recon, which makes contact with the men every evening, said the cyclone was heading towards the kayakers.
"We're a little bit concerned," Recon head Patrick Brothers said.
"Over the last 24 hours the predicted time has blown out to New Year's, if at all."
A number of yachting crews in New Zealand have abandoned journeys north and have offered to remain on standby to rescue the kayakers from the looming cyclone.
The Australian and New Zealand maritime safety authorities would be called into action if conditions became extreme, Mr Brothers said.
"We've got to wait and see what happens and not panic with any false alarms," he said.
Headwinds curtailed the pair's progress to 38km today - their weakest performance since they left the NSW mid-north coast on November 13.
"Today was the worst day of the whole expedition and it wasn't even in the right direction (more south than east)," Mr Brothers said.
The kayakers were just over the mid-way point of their 2,200km journey.
Their electric desalination pump has failed, forcing them to use a manual pump which takes valuable time away from their gruelling 15-hour daily paddle regime.
The most recent mechanical malfunction involved the craft's rudder, with water beginning to affect the control cables.
"It looks like the guys are really, really going to earn their stripes," Mr Brothers said.
The pair report three indicators each night to their support team to gauge their current stamina.
On a scale of one to 10, they both rated their physical fitness today as a seven but their mental toughness and fatigue levels have dropped to as low as three.
"The guys are in the dumps now because of the headwinds," Mr Brothers said.
"They're pretty worn out."
The men's progress and their recent audio dispatches have been posted on their website; www.crossingtheditch.com.au
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