The object was to travel from his home in Ireland to Sydney, using only surface transport, preferably indigenous to the area he was travelling through. He did, in fact, break his rule, and use an aeroplane once; he had a choice between flying, or missing a ferry, and having to wait an unacceptable length of time for the next one.
The trip was aired recently on BBC2, under the title Ireland to Sydney: By Any Means. And, a part of the objective was to use as many means as possible. I didn’t see the whole series, as I was abroad for the middle three episodes. But, I believe he racked up over a hundred, and seems to have used everything except a dog-sled.
One means I don’t think he tried is a jet-ski … but, next year, airline pilot Jeremy Burfoot and his friend Phil Briars plan to do just that. All the way from London to Sydney, a distance of 28,000 km. to raise awareness and funds for Cancer Research.
It’s not as crazy an idea as it sounds; the World Record presently stands at 18,400 km. and Jeremy has already circumnavigated New Zealand on his jet-ski.
If all goes to plan, they’ll be leaving London from a spot on the Thames outside the Parliament Buildings on 22nd June 2009; their arrival in Sydney ‘ … will be selected to ensure maximum media coverage for the sponsors’.
If you want to know more about this trip, their website is at
www.london-sydney.com, where you can download their sponsorship proposal in .pdf format, which will tell you much more about it.
Travelrat's Travels 
[…] Sydney… The Hard WayThe object was to travel from his home in Ireland to Sydney, using only surface transport, preferably indigenous to the area he was travelling through. He did, in fact, break his rule, and use an aeroplane once; he had a choice between … […]
By: Sydney-Opera-House » Sydney… The Hard Way on October 31, 2008
at 12:07 pm
I wouldn’t fancy doing London to Sydney on a jet ski. I imagine most of the time they’ll stay as close to the coast as possible but there will be times when they’ll hit open water. That would be the scary part. I’ll have to look out for Charley’s show.
By: Selma on November 1, 2008
at 4:23 am
They are only going to ride during daylight hours, and either go ashore or board their support boat each night … GPS will allow them to re-enter the water at exactly the same spot the following day.
It certainly makes it seem not such a crazy idea as it did at first. Although, personally, I’d rather ride there on Delaney’s donkey!
By: travelrat on November 2, 2008
at 7:11 am