My dad Jon recently took part in the 2022 ARC race (Atlantic Rally for Cruisers) where around 150 sailing boats took part in a race to cross the Atlantic from Gran Canaria in the Canary Islands to St. Lucia in the Caribbean. He was one of 6 people in his 47 foot boat, which was called Chantoosie. The skipper was his 80 year old uncle and one of the crew was his cousin Simon.

The boats set off in some very windy and stormy weather and most of the crew were seasick within about twenty minutes. Luckily not my dad! They had to shower by having buckets of cold salt water thrown over them on the deck by their crew members and one of the toilets broke after a couple of days.

He left England in the middle of November to buy supplies and get the boat ready and he was expected to reach St. Lucia by the 8th December. Unfortunately the trade winds which are always very strong didn’t appear this year and the boats were left bobbing about on the sea, not able to move. My dad was delayed and finally reached St. Lucia on the 13th December.

Luckily we managed to extend our flights back to the UK, so dad could have one night’s sleep in a proper bed before we came back to the snow. He said that while it was an experience he’ll never forget, he’s not keen to ever do it again! He said it was like being in a tumble dryer for 24 days and is very happy to be back on firm ground!

Emily S 8W