A Cornwall-based pensioner and his Somerset crew member have finally completed the AZAB yacht race between Falmouth and the Azores, despite a series of setbacks that might have put off far younger competitors.
Jem Tetley (76) from Grampound was taking part in the race to raise funds for Padstow RNLI, while Chris Vickery (47), a surgeon from Taunton, was raising funds for the Somerset Colorectal Cancer Support Group.
The pair's yacht, Carte Blanche, a Swan 36, limped into Falmouth on Friday, June 29th, after struggling with gear failure. They had been at sea for nearly 10 days, having slowed to help an injured sailor.
Shortly before setting off on the race, Jem broke a bone in his leg. Later, as Carte Blanche sailed into the Azores, Chris dislocated his elbow.
There was more to come for the adventurous pair on the race back to Falmouth. A lone sailor called for assistance after falling and breaking a bone in his hand. Chris gave advice over the radio, but the injured man was short of painkillers.
The two boats set converging courses. Chris says: “As I was getting a canister of medicine together down below, there was a huge bang. I came up on deck and the hydraulic ram, which adjusts the tension on the backstay, had failed.
“There's a great danger of the mast falling down once the backstay has parted, so I put a jury rig together. I cobbled together a simple replacement to keep everything up. The weather was dreadful with huge seas and 35-knot winds. We managed to sail under a foresail alone, but our progress was painfully slow.”
Jem and Chris floated the drugs canister to another yacht, Shockwave, that had responded to the injured man's call for help. Shockwave's crew passed it on to him. A third yacht, Raparee, had also arrived to help, and decided to stay with Carte Blanche for the rest of her journey in case the makeshift rig failed.
Chris says: “I can't tell you how reassuring it was to have them there. In the awful conditions, it helped to know that if the mast came down and we got into real trouble they would have been with us like a shot. I can't thank the crew of Raparee enough. I would also like to thank the coastguards at Falmouth Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre. They were marvelous, maintaining a radio watch so we could report on our progress and also keeping our families informed as we headed home.”
Jem, who was welcomed home by his wife and granddaughter, chaired the appeal committee for the boathouse at Trevose Head, home to the RNLI's new Tamar class all-weather lifeboat. He hopes people will read about the eventful trip home and visit his fundraising site at justgiving.com/carteblanche
