The British Romeo who rode a jet ski across the Irish Sea to be with a girlfriend he had met a few weeks earlier admitted that he felt like a “crazy James Bond” during his death-defying mission “for love “.
Dale McLaughlan – who was jailed for violating lock-in rules during the trip – told the Sunday Mirror he spent more than $ 8,000 buying the jet ski, as well as a GPS and dry bag for gifts to carry for his new love.
“The first time I even stood on a jet ski was in that harbor,” said McLaughlan, who ventured across the rough seas to get from Scotland to the Isle of Man to see the new love Jessica Radcliffe, which he met in September.
When I hit open water, I thought ‘Oh my God’. It was like getting a kick in the teeth, ‘he told the British newspaper.
“It was awful. It was not nice. I followed the GPS, but after half an hour a massive wave swept it away. I have no idea where I was going,” he said.
‘I thought it would take 45 minutes. I tried to check maps and ocean currents, which I did not know how to read, ”he admits.
After two hours I thought, ‘Where am I? I could not see anything … I thought I was lost at sea. I was scared, “he said.
“But the thought of Jessica made me drive on,” he said.
His petrol tank warned him that he was about to run out just as he saw the coast of the Isle of Man, which he remembered as ‘such bloody relief’ and ‘as a beacon of hope’.
But he was off target, and at least 15 miles from Jessica’s house – which he says he just walked.
‘I just put on my headphones and put them on. “I listened to power ballads,” he told the Sunday Mirror.
Radcliffe had no idea he was going to undertake the romantic journey, and when he got to her house, she ‘peeked her head out the window and screamed a little,’ he said.
She opens the door, jumps around my waist and gives me a big kiss. I said, ‘Hello, honey!’ “I was still a bit smelly from the water,” he said.
But police soon began beating him after he was photographed on the island, where he was refused to return amid strict coronavirus restrictions against visitors.
“I did not deny it – I was caught red-handed,” he said.
When he told the police about his jet ski ride, he remembered someone saying to him, ‘You’re lucky to be alive! I know people who would not try it on a boat in the summer. ‘
McLaughlan was sentenced to four weeks in prison and says he was surprised he made headlines worldwide. I was like, ‘What? I’m just a guy from Scotland! “People say I’m a legend,” he said.
“I think I took a lot of courage. Many people say that I have put a good end to a terrible year. It made me feel better, ”he said.
“I broke the law. But I did it out of love, “he said.
“I should never have done that. This can be called a passion crime. ‘
Radcliffe told the newspaper that she likes her crazy Romeo.
“How could I not after what he did?” she said.
‘I would like to marry him, but not this year. He must come here first – legally this time! ‘