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Max Campbell Returns // ELIXIR Halfway Round-the-World
19 August 2025 · 1h 8m · 125 views
What this video covers
Max Campbell, sailing a Swan 37 named Elixir, returns to the On The Wind podcast with host Andy Schell to discuss sailing the boat halfway around the world since their last conversation in 2019. Campbell is currently in Tauranga, New Zealand, completing a refit before the second half of a circumnavigation.8:39 The route covered the Atlantic, Pacific island groups including French Polynesia, Tonga, Samoa, the Cook Islands, and New Zealand, with a COVID-forced seven-month pause in the Canary Islands when Spain locked down on the day he planned to depart for the Atlantic crossing.14:58 He funds the voyage through freelance charter work — including stints on an Oyster 72 in Auckland and a classic Fife delivery across the Pacific — writing for Yachting World and Sail Magazine, a book paid per chapter, and social media across YouTube, Patreon, Instagram, and TikTok.21:03 Sponsorship deals cover a full Raymarine electronics fit-out (two chart plotters, AIS, radar, electronic autopilot), Battle Born batteries, and Volvo Penta engine parts from UK distributor Salmarine.28:07 Campbell's Untied project has brought roughly 50 crew aboard Elixir over four years; about 10 to 12 have since bought their own boats.19:21
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