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Challenge five, and Dom landed on the Cape of Good Hope. He could also have done with some faith and charity. You kind souls had voted for him to go kitesurfing at a point where the wind screams off the chilly Atlantic Ocean. Get it wrong — not a good idea when tottering on a surfboard attached to a damn great parafoil — and he could be blown all the way to the Falklands. So long, Dom, it was swell while it lasted.

A bit of practice was clearly in order. He started on dry land, on Bloubergstrand’s vast stretch of white sand, looking across the bay to the classic silhouette of Table Mountain. Forget the board — first he had to master the kite. After a bash with the sort of device kids fly in the park, he upgraded to a bigger parafoil, attached to a harness. “Careful of the wires,” warned the instructor, Graham. “They can cut like cheesewire.”

Cheese? Dom likes that. But eating would have to wait. He first had to learn to catch the gust, steer and turn — always useful if you want to get back to shore. After 90 minutes, the lean and wiry Graham declared our man the fastest learner he had ever taught. His student was less sure: “Do you really think I have any control of this thing?”

Apparently, he did. It was time for wetsuits, and a stab at controlling the billowing parafoil from the briny. As the wind whipped up to more than 30 knots, the rookie adrenaline addict was dragged through the surf: “It’s like flying a kite in a washing machine.” A couple of times, he was almost lifted out of the ocean. “I’m not worried. It’s a huge rush — like taking amphetamines, winning the lottery or drinking strong coffee.”

Next up was stepping onto the board. Or rather, it would have been. But the wind, instead of blowing down and across the beach, which would have allowed him to tack safely parallel to the shore, was roaring in headfirst from the ocean. He would have to wait for more favourable conditions.

Still, if Dom was in need of inspiration, it was all around him, as expert kitesurfers — grizzled veterans used to the conditions — jumped balletically over the waves, appearing to hang in the air. “It’s like slow-motion ski-jumping,” Dom said. “The trouble is, I’m like Eddie the Eagle.”

As we go to press, Dom is still waiting for the wind to change. Will he master the gales and the surf? Or will he end up on a rocky outcrop off Argentina?

Following Dom

To follow in Dom’s significant slipstream, head for the windblown coast around Cape Town. Our man was a guest of Original Travel (020 7978 7333, www.originaltravel.co.uk), which has a kitesurfing package from £1,236pp, including four nights, B&B, at the boutique Kensington Place hotel (www.kensingtonplace.co.za), British Airways flights from Heathrow, private transfers and a day of intensive kitesurfing lessons.

Dom travelled to the Cape as a guest of British Airways (0870 850 9850, www.ba.com), which flies there twice daily, nonstop; January fares start from £499 if booked by December 20, or from £733 if booked later.

For more information, visit www.southafrica.net or www.tourismcapetown.co.za