J/105 wins Tilman Trophy in the Three Peaks Yacht Race
by J/105 Class 28 Jun 2007 22:21 BST
Around 2100 on Wednesday 27 June Andy Hayward and David Wolfendale descended from Ben Nevis to rapturous applause. Journeymaker 5 had finished the The Three Peaks Yacht Race for the second time and this year achieved their goal of winning The Tilman Trophy. This trophy is for teams who get 4 of their 5 crew members onto a mountain summit.
The 30th Three Peaks Yacht Race started on Saturday 23rd June from Barmouth and had 26 boats on the start line. It involves 389 miles of challenging coastal sailing, 59 miles of running (including 14,000 feet of ascent) and 30 miles of cycling.
They came into Corpach on Thursday afternoon, with Chris Jones at the helm of his J/105 in 5th place overall and still in contention for The Tilman Trophy. For JourneyMaker 5, David Wolfendale ran on all three mountains, with a different companion each time. Louse Makin completed Snowdon, Tim Lucas undertook the longest run on Scafell Pike, and Andrew Hayward the run up Ben Nevis.
Their win is nothing less than outstanding as according to Louise Makin, “Two and half years ago none of the sailors could run, and our runners couldn’t sail, but we have taught each other enough to get by. We’re a classic Tilman team in that respect, not great at one thing but good enough at everything! We set ourselves the target of winning the Tilman Trophy and last year was a try out but we came second then, and learned a huge amount, about the race, how hard it is and how important team work is.”
Not only have the team won The Tilman Trophy but they have nearly achieved their fundraising goal for The Bendrigg Trust, who provide adventure experiences for disabled children. They supported The Bendrigg Trust last year and when they visited them earlier this year they were told the centre needed a new climbing wall at a cost of £30,000. They instantly decided to try and raise the money through their race … and they almost have. Donations can be made through the Journeymaker 5 website, www.journeymaker5.com
Since completing the race in 2006 the team have been training hard, both on and off the water, whilst also fundraising and working. Their perseverance has paid off – congratulations!