SCUTTLEBUTT EUROPE #43 - 1 AUGUST 2002
Produced by Seahorse magazine and boats.com Europe, Scuttlebutt Europe is a
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A SAILING FIRST AROUND IRELAND
Two British sailors will mount a sailing first this week when they embark on
a charity fund-raising sail around Ireland.
Digby Fox and Tim Swinburn will be trapezing off two tiny 16ft singlehanded
catamarans, which are normally raced over short courses.
Digby, a yachtmaster and series producer of the TV show Watersports World,
says: "No one's done it on beach cats before - can't think why! These boats
do capsize and cartwheel, so we need to concentrate for hours on end and
navigate around some tricky coastline, particularly on the Atlantic side.
For such little boats, it's a whopping challenge."
The pair are raising money for a hydrotherapy pool in memory of Digby's son.
Hydrotherapy is physio in water, an effective treatment for muscle, bone and
nerve damage, and the pool will be based in the UK at a special needs school
for children.
The pair will launch from Howth Yacht Club outside Dublin on the morning of
Friday August 2nd. They then turn right, sailing clockwise around Ireland.
They estimate sailing 850 nautical miles in total, with tacking upwind and
sailing into bays. The boats are capable of 18 knots (33 kilometres an hour)
at full tilt with the spinnaker flying.
"They're quick boats," says Digby, "so we can knock off 70 nautical miles in
a day. We'll be stopping each night, no doubt refuelling in some of
Ireland's world famous pubs, but our stop-overs are entirely dependent on
wind, so it's a bit of lottery where we end up each evening."
To date, more than £100,000 of a £175,000 target has been reached, and
sailing star Ellen MacArthur is the charity's patron. You can sponsor the
sailors or make a donation through the website
http://www.harrys-hydro.org 
