Boat & Crew

THE BOAT

"Jamie" out for a sail.

Name: “Jamie”

Overall Length (OAL): 42 feet

Type: Sailing Catamaran

Model: Leopard 42′

Layout: 4 cabins/4 heads

THE CREW

Captain: Tamas Hamor

Tamas Hamor is no stranger to the sea or to Jennifer’s mission. The Hungarian-born sailor/diver accompanied her on her first two Atlantic Crossings in 2009 as a crewmember and licensed rescue diver with over 500 logged dives. Hamor, 33, will be the Captain of the supporting vessel “Jamie.” He’s been a licensed captain since 2003 and has sailed over 20,000 nautical miles including two Atlantic Crossings with Figge in 2009. He has been diving for more than ten years.

Captain Tamas Hamor

“I first met Jennifer in Cape Verde Island, Africa and since then we have sailed together over 7,000 nautical miles, including two Atlantic Crossings and other swims in the Caribbean, from Tobago to Margarita and then Tobago to Grenada,” he says. “I love her zest for life and fearlessness for adventure. We have only known each other a short time but we have made the most of it.”

After living in Spain for the last ten years, he gave up his construction business and has been sailing full time as a captain for the last two years. “I love traveling. I have already visited over 35 countries and am fluent in three languages,” he says. “I am thrilled and honored to be a part of her next swim as Captain. Each adventure with Jennifer is better than the last.”

First Mate: Sara Hajdu

The girl who wears many hats, Sara earned her law degree from the University of Law in Budapest in 2006, speaks three languages fluently,

First Mate: Sara Hajdu

and has been sailing since she was three. On AC3, she will serve as First Mate and will also do all the cooking. The 32-year old was also on Jennifer’s second Atlantic Crossing as well as her Caribbean swims. She has lived in the United States and in Spain, but decided landlocked life was not for her. “I decided I could not sit an office, so I chose to sail again. I started to travel almost ten years ago, and it’s my passion. I am so excited to be a part of this amazing crew and to support Jennifer in her next swim across the Atlantic.”

Documentary Film Maker:
Horvath Zoltan
Also from Hungary, the 32-year old journalist has worked magazines, newspapers and television as a reporter, editor, photographer and documentary film maker. His focus on covering war-torn countries has taken him to locations like Afghanistan, Syria, Pakistan, Syria, Lebanon, Damascus, and Egypt. He is currently working on his most recent

Horvath Zoltan on location in Lebanon.

documentary film “Jihad” which is still in production. As a television news correspondent, he covered the Kosovo massacre in 1998 and the Begrad bomb attack in 1999.

Also passionate about sailing, Zoltan will be on board to document Jennifer’s journey from start to finish. “It will be a nice change for me to be at sea,” he says. “But I believe there will still be plenty of action for me in the open ocean. I want people to see what Jennifer sees so they can understand what a magnificent undertaking this challenge really is.”

Emergency Physician: Javier Rius

Dr. Javier Rius joins the AC3 crew as an emergency physician. Originally from Alicante, Spain, Rius currently lives in the Canary Islands where he works at the Emergency Center in Tenerife for the Spanish public health system.

The good doctor and one of his star patients.

Before moving to Tenerife, Ruis was an emergency physician at the Red Cross in Alicante, responsible for all six beaches. He has worked at many sporting events as an ambulance physician. He is certified by the American Heart Association in CPR and is a First Aid instructor for the ambulance drivers of the Pubic Health Service in Spain. He is fluent in Spanish, French and English.

“I have always dreamed of crossing the Atlantic, but achieving my dream and helping Jennifer achieve hers is an amazing opportunity,” Rius says.

Kevin Aisner, Rescue Diver/Chef

Born in Miami, FL to a French father and a Peruvian mother, Kevin Aisner was raised speaking French, Spanish, and English. He grew up sailing the Bahamas and the Florida Keys where he developed his skills as a spear fisherman, free diver, and man of the sea.

Rescue diver and chef, this is a guy you want on your boat.

Under the guidance of his father Andre, a gourmand, Kevin perfected his culinary skills at an early age and went on to work in restaurants, both in Miami and in Seattle, WA.  He has always received the highest acclaim for his efforts as cook, sous chef, and personal chef.

More Recently, Kevin has applied all of his talents as First Mate and or Chef/Mate on charter boats cruising the Caribbean.  He has worked on sail and motor yachts form 45’ to 110’.  As a chef, his presentation is second to none.  His creativity in the galley is evident when he serves up a 5 star dinner prepared with local fish/lobster that he has caught and garnished with local herbs that, often, Kevin has gathered in the wild.

As First Mate, working for Sail-Cats, an adventure charter/travel company, Kevin has trained clients in deep water free diving and spear fishing.  He has led excursions exploring remote islands. He has Jennifer Figge on her previous long distance training swims. He has led numerous daytime and nighttime shark dives. And he is considered by many of the Sail-Cats clients to be one of the finest fisherman anywhere.

Nick Bilinski: Navigator, weather router

Nick Bilinski: Navigator, weather router

Nick Bilinski can (hardly) climb a coconut palm and he is not a member of any Ivy League or anything; he is a member of the SXK – Svenska Kryssarklubben (Swedish Cruising Club). He has plenty of racing and cruising experience and professional navigation background. Born in 1968, he grew up in a small fishing village, between the pine forest, the dunes, and the deep blue sea. He graduated from a Maritime High School. Navigator, sailor and a weather router. He sailed a 26′ sailing boat that took him and his partner round the world 2003-2007. Since then, he’s been living in Las Palmas (Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain). Bilinski was not on board for AC3, but his weather updates and navigation reports were a vital part of the voyage.