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"Arduous it certainly has been and it embodies the Corinthian 'can-do' spirit of the Armed Forces."
Vigilance can reveal that after 2,975 miles racing across the North Atlantic the crew of British Soldier - the Army's offshore racing yacht - are just a few days away from the finish line of the Transatlantic Race 2011.
According to an MoD source the Army’s racing yacht at only 40 feet is the smallest yacht in this year’s transatlantic race is crewed by nine soldiers. Several of this close knit crew have completed tours of Afghanistan in the last two years and two are on standby to return in the autumn.
Vigilance learnt the 2,975 mile Transatlantic Race 2011 started on June 26 from Newport, Rhode Island and the British Soldier has just 75 miles to go before planning to cross the finish line some time on Friday 15th July.
It is said the race has been a demanding and character building experience, frequently putting members of the crew beyond their comfort zones. In addition to all the usual 'pulse-quickeners' such as thick fog for the first 10 days and the ever present threat of whales capable of capsizing the yacht with a flick of a tail, the crew have also had to deal with hydraulic faults and gear failures that are part and parcel of demanding ocean sailing.
The skipper, Lt Col Nick Bate, said: "It's all about putting a bunch of guys in a demanding situation, out of reach of immediate outside assistance, where they must work as a team in arduous conditions in order to succeed; it also provides some excitement and reward in between other demanding duties."
Arduous it certainly has been and it embodies the Corinthian 'can-do' spirit of the Armed Forces. At 39 feet British Soldier is the smallest boat in the race (the longest was 289') and has a limited capacity for supplies. While they are hardly 'survival rations' the feeding plan has been carefully worked out and she only carried enough cooking gas to permit two hot drinks and one hot meal per day. The crew expect to finish the race on day 20, having catered for 20 days of food and 21 days of water. To quote the skipper: "To finish with food left over would have been carrying excess weight.”
British Soldier will be arriving in Gosport, tides and winds permitting on Saturday between 0900 and 1200 a more accurate arrival time will be known on Friday afternoon when the boat will have crossed the finish line.
About British Soldier
British Soldier, an Archambault 40 bought by the Army Sailing Association in 2008, is regularly sailed by a squad comprised of approximately 100 serving soldiers on return from operational tours, offering them a chance to race offshore when on leave or between jobs. A number of injured soldiers also sail British Soldier as part of their rehabilitation. The yacht is not publicly funded; it is supported by a combination of a generous sponsor (Fujitsu), soldiers’ own contributions, the Army Sports Lottery, and Army and Services charitable trusts funds. (http://www.sailarmy.co.uk/). At 39 feet (11.88m) overall in length, is the smallest boat in the Transatlantic Race 2011 fleet.
British Soldier has spent 2011 competing in the inaugural Atlantic Ocean Racing Series which has included the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) Caribbean 600, the Annapolis to Newport Race and the Transatlantic Race 2011. On completion of TR 2011, she will be competing in Cowes Week with a crew of disabled Servicemen before racing in the Rolex Fastnet Race and then the Biscay Race.
In 2008, British Soldier was selected to represent Great Britain in the Commodore's Cup, as well as achieving second place overall among 250 yachts in the RORC Offshore Series. In 2010 she again achieved second place in the RORC Offshore Series after races such as Round Ireland, and Round Britain and Ireland and the Army Offshore Racing Team was named Services Sports Team of the Year.
A total of 48 Servicemen and women have been sailing in British Soldier, but the crew who are racing back across the Atlanticcomprises:
Lieutenant Colonel Nick Bate (47) - is the Army’s most experienced and successful racing skipper, who has raced a wide variety of yachts. He started racing on an IOR ¾ tonner in the early 1980s, and after joining the Army in 1987, he competed in the 1989/90 Whitbread Round the World Race on British Defender and has sailed eight Rolex Fastnet Races. This is his fourth Atlantic crossing. He is a trained tank commander and has completed operational tours in Iraq (twice), Afghanistan, Bosnia and Kosovo.
Captain David Holdsworth (36) - originally an Army engineer, he completed a tour in Afghanistan in 2010, and is now a cardiologist based in Oxford. He has completed two Rolex Fastnet Races and a total of 20,000 miles of cruising and offshore racing in the last 4 seasons.
Second Lieutenant Martin Livingston - a former Royal Navy officer of seven years who qualified as a doctor in March 2011 and has limited ocean racing experience but has completed around 4,500 cruising and racing miles.
Lance Corporal Terence “Polly” Parsons (41) - joined the Royal Engineers in May 1990 as a Combat Engineer; he suffered an injury on an operational tour in Bosnia, found sailing as a form of rehabilitation and has since sailed approximately 5,000 “mostly-offshore” miles.
Captain Oli Donaghy (31) - returned from Afghanistan (16 Air Assault Brigade) just in time to start the TR 2011 and has completed about 7,000 miles of racing, including three Rolex Fastnet campaigns.
Second Lieutenant Phil Caswell (24) - commissioned in 2010 into the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers; he has sailed 18,000 racing, cruising, military and youth sail training miles, but this will be his first Atlantic crossing..
Clarke Small - new to the Royal Artillery after completing basic training in April 2011, started sailing at age 16 in his native South Africa and has since completed a circumnavigation and competed in the Cape Town to Rio race and Rolex Sydney Hobart Race.
Richard Hall - currently training new recruits and due to return to an Engineer Regiment shortly for another Afghanistan tour (his first was in 2010); he joined the British Soldier program at its start in 2008 .
Captain Rachel Clayton (28) - has just returned from her second tour in Afghanistan; she learnt to sail on Optimists on a river in Brunei and this will be her first Atlantic crossing.
The first-ever Atlantic Ocean Racing Series (AORS), requires entrants to compete in the TR 2011 plus two other events selected from the now completed Pineapple Cup - Montego Bay Race (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., to Montego Bay, Jamaica) and RORC Caribbean 600, and the upcoming Annapolis to Newport Race (June 3); Rolex Fastnet Race (August 14); Biscay Race (September 11-12) and Rolex Middle Sea Race (October 22). Each race is weighted equally in overall series scoring with the exception of the TR 2011, which is weighted 1.5 times.
Source: MoD