Robin johnston biography

More than 40 years have gone by since Sir Robin Knox-Johnston made history by becoming the first man to sail solo and non-stop around the globe in With his yacht Suhaili packed to the gunwales with supplies he set off on a voyage that was to last just over ten months. He arrived back in Falmouth after days at sea, on 22 April , securing his place in the history books.

Sir Robin wanted everyone to have the opportunity to experience the challenge and sheer exhilaration of ocean racing because there are far more flags of success on the top of Mount Everest than on the high seas. In the British newspaper The Sunday Times announced the award of a trophy, the Golden Globe, for the first person to sail single handed and non-stop around the world.

The longest non-stop voyage until then was achieved by Sir Francis Chichester in , when he circumnavigated the world with one stop in Australia. His boat had needed a major re-fit halfway, and no one was certain a yacht could be kept serviceable for 30, miles, let alone survive the conditions to be expected, nor whether a human could keep going that long alone.

Nevertheless, a solo non-stop circumnavigation was the one great voyage left to be made. Efforts to find a sponsor for a Colin Mudie designed 56 foot steel yacht failed, but by this time the idea and become an obsession.

Michael jayston

In all, there were 9 entrants, but because small boats sail slower than big ones, each planned to depart to suit their own schedule, and The Sunday Times was forced to announce that the start time could be between 1 June and 31 October Click here to learn more. The Clipper Race is one of the biggest challenges of the natural world and an endurance test like no other.

It is the only race in the world where the organisers supply a fleet of twelve identical racing yachts, each with a fully qualified skipper to safely guide the crew. Normally the domain of seasoned pros, this supreme challenge is taken on by ordinary, everyday people. Click here to find out more.