00:00The 2024 Trinidad and Tobago Great Race takes place on August 17th, with Mr. Solo 2 also
00:06part of the action. The vessel won the 130-mile class last year, and driver Hayden Charles
00:12is optimistic his team can be victorious once again.
00:15Well, let's just say that every year we enter the race, we are confident we're going to
00:20win. So confidence is 100 percent. We are almost ready. We just took the engines out
00:25just to do a little few checks, and then we're hoping to put them back in even this evening
00:29or by tomorrow. But we are completely ready, and we had a good set of training through
00:35these smaller regattas that we did during the year. So we feel confident that we can
00:41at least get to Tobago in a very good time.
00:45Speaking of the regattas that Mr. Solo 2 competed in this year, the vessel came out on top in
00:50its class. Charles says it was a good form of preparation going into the great race.
00:55I take the regattas as training for small courses or tight turns and stuff like that.
01:01It's sort of like training to use the boat properly, and especially in racing conditions
01:06and so on. Because during the course of this race, which has so many different facets,
01:11you have calm water, then you have rough water, then you have sharp turns to make. Let's say
01:15even in Maracas or at the end in Tobago, in Storby, that your mind has to keep shifting
01:24into what to expect, how does this boat operate, and how does it operate in sync with the three
01:29people in it.
01:30Hayden's son Joseph Charles is the navigator. It's certainly not virgin territory for the
01:3520-year-old, who was a part of the winning team last year. And how excited is he for
01:40this year's event?
01:41Well, honestly, every year, it seems as if you're more excited than the previous year.
01:47A bit above our anticipation and expectation on what we expect to do. So, overall, we're
01:55excited and we just want to see the boat perform, all in all.
01:59And I understand that you are studying mechanical engineering because you have a passion for
02:03such vessels?
02:04Yeah, so, I got my passion over the years just spending time around the boats, being
02:09with the mechanics, and also working here in the factory. So, it definitely plays a
02:14role in why I'm pursuing mechanical engineering. So, I look forward to that in September, and
02:18I just hope to close off this year with a winning grid race.
02:21And who could leave out the family's patriarch, Ken Charles? Even though the legend retired
02:26from racing, he is the crew chief, which means he has his work cut out for him behind the
02:30scenes.
02:31I can now sit back, make sure everything is perfect in the boat. Like, we go through the
02:38engines, the throttles, the connections, the water connections, everything. We go through
02:46and make sure that the boat is in tip-top condition.
02:50Charles Sr. misses being in the driver's seat after having raced for decades. So, the question
02:55is, will he ever come out of retirement?
02:58No one knows what the future holds. But, as of now, I'm retired.
03:04The vessel's throttleman, Darren Marshall, resides in Canada, but he's expected to return
03:09to the Twin Island nation just in time for the great race.
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