Coastguards cast adrift record boat

Coastguards removed the oars and a flag before releasing the boat

A record-breaking Devon rower is still hoping to recover his boat - after it was cast adrift by coastguards.

Simon Chalk has been searching for his £100,000 self-righting craft after he had to cut it loose during storms while it was being towed into Mauritius.

His father, Roger, said a Mauritius coastguard vessel had tracked down the drifting rowing boat, named True Spirit.

But after removing the oars and the Red Ensign from the vessel, they cast it adrift out to sea again.

"You can imagine how pleased Simon was," said Roger Chalk.

"The coastguards said they had no way of lifting the boat, and there were no hooks left in the boat to tow it.

Simon Chalk hopes to put the boat in a maritime museum

"The boat is still afloat, and there is still a weak signal from its tracking beacon.

"Simon wants to get it back - to us that boat is priceless."

Mr Chalk said his son wanted the boat to go into a maritime museum.

Simon Chalk, 30, from Newton Abbot, became the youngest person and first Briton to row across the Indian Ocean from western Australia to the finish line off Raphael Island on 15 June.

During his 3,200-mile voyage, he experienced adverse winds, searing heat and storms, and even survived a major scare when the boat was rolled onto its side.