Island Life Magazine Ltd February/March 2015 | Page 16

"I saw massive meteor
showers that were so
bright they lit up the
whole sky as if it was a
lightning storm."

cleaning and general boat checks were also
rotated around so that everyone had an
input into the daily running of the yacht.
My favourite watch was the evening/early
morning one. I saw massive meteor showers
that were so bright they lit up the whole sky
as if it was a lightning storm.”
Towards the halfway point of the race near
disaster struck when the water inlet pipe
came off the engine, and the bilge pump
stopped working so the only option was for
the crew to bale out. Becky said: “We called
the coastguard just to inform them of our
position and situation. They contacted the
Arc and all other yachts where informed of
our problem. We had it resolved in an hour
or so by being calm and working well as a
team. Lots of other yachts contacted us to
see if we were ok or needed help, which was
so comforting. The one good thing about
doing the crossing with the Arc is that you
become one big family and everyone is
looking out for one other.”
Although there was some time for sun
bathing, on one occasion flying fish also
caused a minor problem when they began
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landing on deck, hitting one of the crew
straight in the face. But Becky reckoned:
“Overall the elements were pretty kind to us
the whole way. We had a few squalls hit us
but this just gave us an extra push from the
winds generated from these.”

After 18 days at sea, ‘Ælfgifu’ arrived in St
Lucia in darkness, but there was still one
mishap to come. Becky added: “We hit a
fishing pot two miles from the finish line. No
one would ever see these in the day let alone
at night! The rope got caught right round
our propellor. We managed to move into the
marina slowly without being towed which
would have been highly embarrassing.
“When we arrived we were greeted by
other finishers cheering and clapping, which
is quite emotional. When on land a very
well earned rum punch was waiting for us.
St Lucia is an incredible paradise and was
worth every day of sailing to get to. Finishing
seventh in our class was an incredible
achievement for us. We learned so much
and met the most amazing friends for life.”
The crew have subsequently been sailing
around the Caribbean for the past few
couple of months before they return to Elba
for the start of the 2015 charter season.
Becky reflected: “Being out on a yacht is a
beautiful, breathtaking, unforgettable and
wonderful experience. Everyone should try it
some day.”