The Virgin Atlantic Sailing Challenge with Sunsail
by Marion Telsnig, Sunsail 17 Mar 2016 08:58 GMT
5-12 November 2016
The Virgin Atlantic Sailing Challenge with Sunsail will take place in the British Virgin Islands © Sunsail
Virgin Atlantic's Change is in the Air sustainability strategy gives their employees and customers the opportunity to change things for the better, both for the environment and community investment programme. This concept is at the core of their business and every year, colleagues from across the company take part in a self-funded challenge across the globe designed to push them to their limits, all to raise much needed funds for worthwhile causes.
For 2016, the Virgin Atlantic team has decided to organise a sailing event and Sunsail are delighted to provide the yacht fleet that the eager teams will be racing in, as well as full event support and co-ordination.
From 5th-12th November 2016, more than 90 Virgin Atlantic employees will be taking part in the Virgin Atlantic Sailing Challenge in the British Virgin Islands in the Caribbean, a location very much associated with the company and its history. Designed to be challenging and fun, the principal aim of this event is to raise money and awareness for a selection of charities and projects, including Virgin Atlantic's partner charity Free the Children.
Starting from Sunsail's base in Road Town on Tortola, the teams will be racing from island to island with additional challenges along the way having Necker Island as the back drop.
Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group "A great idea and I am looking forward to welcoming our Virgin Sailors to the BVI. I hope to join in too."
Captain Chris Hall, a pilot with Virgin since the very beginning and the driver behind all of the challenges undertaken through the years, said of this new event "Our unique brand of staff-led activism is all about challenging our people whilst having fun and doing good. More than 1500 of us have cycled, climbed, run and trekked all around the world and now we can't resist the idea of bringing some serious Virgin energy to experience sailing in the BVI. It's a place that's very much Virgin Territory, with the hundreds of thousands of people we fly to the Caribbean and of course the charismatic presence of Richard. We can't wait to open up the sails and we hope to raise thousands of pounds for our charity partner Free The Children".
Rajan Mistry at Virgin Atlantic, who coined the sailing challenge idea and has participated in many other Virgin challenges, added "Virgin people, reaching out to all parts of the world, air, land and now sea".
With some of the participants having never stepped on a boat before, the Caribbean Sailing Challenge is set to test sea legs to the limits and raise a significant amount of money for worthy causes.