As the cadets first set their eyes on the 72’ Ocean Youth Trust Scotland Ketch, Alba Venturer, which was to be their home and workplace for the next 7 days, there were mixed comments and expressions of apprehension. None of the selected Air Cadets had ever taken part in an activity like this and it […]
OYT Scotland West Coast Challenge Read More »
It was to the beat of Welsh drums that the RNLI Lifeboat led Ajax and 13 other boats out of the harbour to the start line of the Three Peaks Yacht Race, while several hundred spectators watched the spectacle from across the broad Barmouth sands. The Three Peaks is the original adventure race, and 17
Yeoman Amphibian 2017 – Royal Yeomanry & Queen’s Own Yeomanry Read More »
On the 21st May 2017 a fifteen-strong crew, led by Maj Terry Hackett of London UOTC, began a two-week Adventure Training exercise onboard Yacht ‘Adventure’, one of the Army’s two Challenger 72’ Ocean going sail training yachts. The aim of Ex Artic Express was to challenge participants in a demanding environment and to develop their
Arctic Express – London UOTC Read More »
Completion of Leg 13, sailing from Halifax, Nova Scotia into Gosport, Hampshire saw the conclusion of the round-the-world joint service Exercise Transglobe expedition in mid-August 2016. With the voyage having set out from the south coast of England in June 2015 it was with a great deal of pride and enthusiasm that air cadets CWO
Ex Transglobe 2016 – Headquarters Air Cadets Read More »
From the 23rd to the 29th December 2015, 28 Sea Cadets and 5 adult volunteers joined the crew of the TS Lord Nelson to spend their Christmas in the port of Las Palmas in Gran Canaria. This was on board a square rigged training ship designed to give the chance to sail on the open
Tall Ships – Sea Cadets HQ Read More »
In the summer of 2015 I was fortunate to be selected as one of a handful of service skippers for the newly acquired 72’ yachts and in turn for Leg 6, Hobart to Auckland. Flying out to Hobart on New Years eve we had 4 days of yacht preparation and training before setting off on
Transglobe Leg 6 – London UOTC Read More »
In 2015, the Joint Services Adventure Sail Training Center (JSASTC), organised the “Exercise Transglobe”. This exercise is one with tremendous military tradition, which happens every five years. A group of UK forces personnel take parts on legs of a trans- global trip on the two 72ft yachts. I was lucky enough to be selected to
Ex Transglobe 2015 – University of London OTC Read More »
On Monday 23rd June, ten intrepid students from Selly Oak Trust School in Birmingham began their Tall Ships expedition. The students were all sixth formers at the school, which is one of the largest for young people with special educational needs in Europe. The students were a mix of those who had been on a
Tall Ships Challenger 2014 – Selly Oak Trust School Combined Cadet Force Read More »
Let’s imagine a group of ten young people – who have never sailed anything larger than a Pico dinghy before – setting sail across the Irish Sea in a 35ft yacht. The thought alone screams “DISASTER!” But on July 28th 2014, ten young people from Chorley Sea Cadets aged 13 – 16 left Chorley train
Operation Celtic Discovery 2014 – Chorley Sea Cadet Corps Read More »
Ex Hebridean Phoenix was the 5MI Bn entry to the Scottish Islands Peaks Race in 2014. The race is an arduous event that combines challenging coastal sailing and fell running. The entry was made to the Inter-Service category where three team members were responsible for the sailing and the remaining two completed the running. The
Ex Hebridean Phoenix – 5 MI Bn Read More »
Picture the scene. It is the middle of the night, and, just off the southwest coast of Scotland, a lone yacht is struggling through the waves. The wind is a steady Beaufort Force 7; in the United States, that is when the Coastguard issues a small craft warning; in Canada it is merely described as
CCF RM 350 Adventure Sail Training 2014 – Cadet Angus Lapslie’s Account Read More »
Three officers from the Royal Yeomanry took part in the February 2013 Caribbean 600 offshore yacht race as part of a Royal Armoured Corps crew of eleven. The event comprised 50 boats navigating a non-stop 600-mile course from Antigua around the islands of the western Caribbean. Unlike the other crews who were almost universally experienced
1428 – ‘Caribbean 600 Campaign’ – Antigua, Caribbean Read More »
