Sailing around the world was on Dan's bucket list so he built his own boat
Dan Turner sails on the Immortal Game, a yacht he made in his driveway during the COVID pandemic. (Supplied: Dan Turner)
Hundreds of kilometres off the western coast of Panama, Dan Turner floats alone in the open sea.
In his handmade sailboat the Immortal Game, the skipper trims the sail and checks for nearby boats before settling in for a 40-minute sleep, after which he'll rise and make further checks, repeating the process until dawn.
He's a fair way from Port Lincoln in South Australia, where the 41-year-old first learnt to sail.
Dan Turner is ticking his childhood dream off his bucket list as he sails around the world. (Supplied: Dan Turner)
But with the wind behind him, Mr Turner is realising a childhood dream — to sail around the world.
He's one of 15 competitors taking part in the Mini Globe Race, a round-the-world yacht race.
Contestants compete in 5.8-metre Class Globe yachts, starting and finishing in Antigua in the Caribbean Sea.
Mr Turner and the other sailors left the Antigua starting line on February 23, and it will take them about a year to circle the globe and return to Antigua, covering almost 50,000 kilometres, over a five-leg race.
The Mini Globe Race takes more than a year and starts and ends in Antigua in the Caribbean. (Supplied: Mini Globe Race)
After a rest in Panama, the Immortal Game leads the way at the start of second leg, bound for Fiji.
"I'm working my way through to the equator, trying to get the southerly trade wind,"Mr Turner said.
"Right at this minute, I'm actually leading leg two which is pretty cool, but it's still early days and [there's] a lot to go."
Inspired by the 2000 film Cast Away, the volleyball travels with Mr Turner on his voyage around the world. (Supplied: Nikki Turner)
While Mr Turner resides in Adelaide with his wife and three children, it was his Port Lincoln roots that inspired his dream.
"I grew up on the water, just fishing outside the family's house and come from a line of three generations of sailors,"Mr Turner said.
"I guess I was brought up around sailing … from my parents to all my friends and other family, it's something we've done forever.
"I always had this vision that I'd see myself sailing or racing around the world one day … I've been ticking a few things off the bucket list and this was a major one, so now I'm doing it."
Love that spans the seven seas
Back home, Mr Turner's wife and race campaign manager Nikki Turner follows her husband's progress through a live tracker on the Mini Globe Race website.
While she was nervous and excited when Mr Turner expressed his desire to compete in the race, she said it wasn't "too far out of the unknown".
Mr Turner and his wife, Nikki Turner, below deck on the Immortal Game. (Supplied: Nikki Turner)
"We created a bucket list about 15 years ago now and I knew this was something that he wanted to achieve," Mrs Turner said.
"It did come with sacrifices, don't get me wrong, but it was something that we set our minds to, now going on five years ago."
'How are you going to build a boat?'
With no access to a shed, Mr Turner set out to build the Immortal Game in his driveway during the COVID lockdown.
"Dan was working full time; he was out there in the morning and at night after work," Mrs Turner said.
"I would actually take his dinner out there to him so that he could finish off the boat."
Besides making a stool in his year eight tech class, the property developer said he'd never built anything before constructing the Immortal Game.
The Immortal Game takes shape in the early days of its construction. (Supplied: Dan Turner)
"I'm not a builder of any sort," Mr Turner said.
"My family always said to me, 'You're not really good with your hands, how are you going to build a boat?'
"But ultimately I just had a desire to do it, and I was motivated to finish it."
Orcas and immigration
Though sailing around the world may captivate the romantic imagination of many, it comes with many challenges.
"Just getting the boat overseas and the challenges of getting through immigration and customs, and trying to make the race on time; it was difficult from the start," Mr Turner said.
"In the first leg I had a couple of orcas surround the boat … they've been known for taking off rudders and things."
Despite homesickness, large seas, lost items and even damage to his rigging, Mr Turner said he had worked through every challenge thrown his way.
"I quite enjoy being a solo sailor and being able to spend time just thinking … I've learnt a lot, trying to think about what I want to do when I finish this race."
The Immortal Game, steered by Mr Turner, charges ahead in the Mini Globe Race 2025. (Supplied: Dan Turner)
When he returns, Mr Turner says he wants to help the next generation of sailors trying to achieve their dreams.
"I've written a book and I'll probably write another one … I really want to spend time with my wife, and we want to get a bigger boat and sail around ourselves," Mr Turner said.
"I'll probably spend my time focusing on the book … and doing some motivational sort of stuff."
For sailors wanting to take on a challenge like Mr Turner, he said be prepared to make sacrifices.
"If getting out there and having a massive adventure is more important to you than owning a home or having a nice car, all I can say is sacrifice those things and you won't regret doing it," he said.
The Mini Globe Race is expected to take more than a year, ending in Antigua in late February 2026.