Series of mishaps delays Hilary Lister's voyage

Quadriplegic sailor Hilary Lister is now 15 days into her circumnavigation of the British Isles. She can move only her head, and controls the boat using a ‘sip’ and ‘puff’ system, connected to the rudder and sheets.

She is currently in Lymington, Hampshire, where she is expecting to stay for a few days following a series of setbacks.

On her blog, Hilary described the situation. “The weather continues to frustrate us with extremely strong winds blowing from the Southwest. Whilst Lymington is lovely, we are facing yet another setback which will keep us off the water. Today Sean Davis, one of our RIB crew, cut himself – and although not a major injury, it was bad enough to need gluing back together at the local A&E. Since Martin Forster, one of our other RIB drivers, injured his arm whilst we were training in Cowes and is still recuperating, we have no spare crew.

It’s frustrating, but we always knew that this would be the tough part as we are sailing against prevailing winds. Once we round Lands End the wind will no longer be in our faces and many of the problems with the boat and its systems will have been solved.”

Keep up with the round-Britain trip on Hilary Lister’s website