Wayfarer Round Britain – Hafren's Record Attempt
by Jeremy Warren 27 May 2014 21:34 BST
27 May 2014
Hafren Christening - Jeremy crewed by Router Rob © Nigel Goldsmith
Two British sailors begin a round Britain challenge, in a 5m dinghy, with emphasis on offshore passage-making.
So just how long is a lengthy dinghy sail? Four hours, maybe six? Say a championship
day with a long trip to the race area, and some hanging around between races? For two
Bristol-based sailors most of June and July will be spent in a Wayfarer, as they attempt
the round Britain record. Starting from Weymouth on Sat 31st May, Jeremy Warren and
Phillip Kirk will head up the Irish Sea, going west of the Isle of Man, and clockwise
around the north of Scotland.
Kirk describes the motivation "Both of us have done a range of different sailing, but this
is a completely new challenge. I'm a Cherub and Enterprise sailor. We'll be adapting
what we know about a dinghy to the distances and conditions we see in offshore yacht
racing. This is fascinating stuff."
"Wayfarer Hafren", named after a mythical goddess of this team's home waters of the
Severn Estuary, will spend a lot of time out of sight of land. Warren comments "We've
sought advice from others who have done all or parts of this challenge. Unsurprisingly
the problems occur inshore and when entering or leaving port. If we can get
comfortable offshore, that's where we'll stay. We plan on ten legs of three days each,
obviously weather-dependent. The first leg, from Weymouth, might get us all the way to
Land's End, but poor weather might as easily put us in Lyme Regis, less than 40 miles
along a direct route of some 1500 miles. We'll see."
Regarding the record, currently 76 days, Warren comments "It is not about this record;
it's about being at sea in a dinghy and sailing it in the dark. The record is an informal
record, with just too many variables, of route, propulsion and outside assistance, to
make it assessable by the Guinness Book of Records. Current holder of this unofficial
record, Ludo Bennett-Jones, did this trip in 2012, effectively demonstrating weather
dependency; over his 76 days, 29 were storm-bound. Notably, he did this when just 21
years old, a second record beyond the reach of this pair; Phil Kirk is 41, Jeremy Warren
56. Bennett-Jones comments "After the worst British summer ever in 2012, it probably
would have been easier to sail across the flooded UK than around it. My circumnavigation completed a dream for me, a rigorous mental and physical challenge.
It is brilliant to be that close to nature, dropping into remote harbours and meeting
equally mad and driven people. With Hafren I will have the pleasure of watching from
the safety and warmth of my sofa. Good luck to the two adventurers, fair winds. Never
stop Exploring!"
The undisputed pioneer of offshore dinghy sailing remains Frank Dye (1928 – 2010), and
it is his example that provides a lot of this team's motivation. What Dye achieved, and
what he suffered, makes round UK look relatively easy; Dye's trips from UK to Iceland
and Norway meant facing force nine gales, thirty foot waves and up to eleven days at
sea. "Wanderer's" two-man crew capsized, broke masts and sails and genuinely
explored the limits of endurance in a sailing dinghy. Kirk dismisses comparison of
Wanderer vs. Hafren, "So much has got easier since Frank Dye went to Iceland. He
lacked GPS and weather data, and used agricultural oilskins that any farm hand today
would think were a joke. They were on a pint of water a day and no sun cream, use of
which Dye rejected as effeminate."
Hafren is the pair's second Wayfarer, and much modified and trialed for this trip.
Warren comments "We are engineers, and we've certainly done a lot to optimise living
on board, with a stove and rudimentary sleeping space. The sail controls are simpler
than a racing Wayfarer, but retain racing robustness and functionality. Sailing
effectively and fast increases our safety and boosts our flexibility on route choices."
At the core of this venture is a desire to demonstrate self-sufficiency, and experience
some hardship beyond the daily work/life routine, in return for sunrises and porpoises,
fresh fish and big distances.
Warren concludes "Our daily business lives are hectic (Warren has just sold out of a
successful high-tech start-up), mine with an agenda set by Microsoft Outlook's task list
and by a mobile phone. This will be very different challenge, sometimes demanding,
sometimes requiring patience and certainly mandating time to reflect. Indeed, a very
different test."
Wayfarer Hafren will be raising money for the RNLI and a local charity that supports
health and education in some of the poorest parts of southern India.
www.xtremedinghycruising.com